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Also, Texas Instruments released its Professional Computer, a TI PC going up against IBM PC. It ran MS-DOS and used an 8088 CPU, but it was not a clone and wasn
by adrianmonk 6y ago
Also, Texas Instruments released its Professional Computer, a TI PC going up against IBM PC. It ran MS-DOS and used an 8088 CPU, but it was not a clone and wasn't totally compatible. (Different graphics, different expansion bus, slightly different MS-DOS, slightly different MS-BASIC, etc.)
Byte Magazine's review (https://archive.org/details/byte-magazine-1983-12/page/n287/mode/1up https://archive.org/details/byte-magazine-1983-12/page/n287/...) described it as "daring to be somewhat different".
- protomyth 6y agoYou'll notice it and the DEC Rainbow didn't last long. Compatibility was important. The PC AT showed compatibility plus was important. After all it was the whole point of the turbo switch.
- adrianmonk 6y agoIt's interesting to ask why people didn't understand the importance of compatibility at first. One reason could be the tendency to disregard the cost of software, which is a mistake people still make today. But there was also another factor back then: computer hardware was very expensive. It is understandable to think that, if you're going to spend a gigantic pile of money on computer equipment, then it needs to be the absolute best computer equipment you can get. I think wanting to squeeze the most value out of your investment could explain why buyers and manufacturers were willing to sacrifice compatibility.