 data general was one of the first minicomputer firms from the late 1960s. three of the four founders were former employees of digital equipment corporation. their first product, the data general nova, was a 16-bit minicomputer. this used their own operating system, rdos, and in conjunction with programming languages like "data general business basic" they provided a multi-user operating system with record locking and built-in databases far ahead of many contemporary systems. the nova was followed by the supernova and eclipse product lines, all of which were used in many applications for the next two decades. the company employed an original equipment manufacturer (oem) sales strategy to sell to third parties who incorporated data general computers into the oem's specific product lines. a series of missteps in the 1980s, including missing the advance of microcomputers despite the launch of the micronova in 1977, and the data general-one portable computer in 1984, led to a decline in the company's market share. the company did continue into the 1990s, however, and was eventually acquired by emc corporation in 1999. ==history==  ===origin, founding and early years: nova and supernova=== data general (dg) was founded by several engineers from digital equipment corporation who were frustrated with dec's management and left to form their own company. the chief founders were edson de castro, henry burkhardt iii, and richard sogge of digital equipment (dec), and herbert richman of fairchild semiconductor. the company was incorporated in the state of delaware in april 1968. de castro was the chief engineer in charge of the pdp-8, dec's line of inexpensive computers that created the minicomputer market. it was designed specifically to be used in laboratory equipment settings; as the technology improved, it was reduced in size to fit into a 19-inch rack. many pdp-8's still operate today, decades later. de castro, convinced he could do one better, began work on his new 16-bit design. the result was released in 1969 as the nova. designed to be rack-mounted similarly to the later pdp-8 machines, it was smaller in height and ran considerably faster. launched as "the best small computer in the world",{{cite web|url=http://archive.computerhist
Companies_established_in_1968 Data_General Defunct_computer_companies_based_in_Massachusetts Defunct_computer_hardware_companies Defunct_software_companies EMC_Corporation