In brief, there are few aspects of our lives which have not been touched in some way by the personal computing revolution. In 1995, the personal computer industry celebrated its twentieth anniversary. It has come along way since the release of the Altair 8800 which began the revolution and this journey is one of the great technological odysseys of the twentieth century. In this two part article, Provenance contributor Mark Brogan of Edith Cowan University's Department of Library and Information Science, describes and analyses two decades of innovation in personal computing. Mark's investigative method employs concepts derived from the theory of innovation and microeconomics which can be used to explain the success or failure of firms working in this dynamic and competitive industry.
Most people think of the programmable computer as a modern innovation.
But the computer had its genesis in the concept of a programmable general purpose calculator first developed by Charles Babbage and Ada Lovelace in the 1830s. For widespread application, computers required the development of modern solid state electronics. Since their inception in the 1970s, personal computers have been defined by architecture and by the characteristics of size and affordability. During this period product was highly differentiated in terms of software and hardware and the market was shaped around enthusiasts and hobbyists. The social and economic potential of the technology was not widely appreciated.