4 ms·
Intel won because of windows. None of those answers adequately give credit to gates.
by hshxushx 3y ago
Intel won because of windows. None of those answers adequately give credit to gates.
- vondur 3y agoIntel won because of DOS. Once Compaq opened the market to clones, you could purchase an Intel PC from any number of manufacturers that could run DOS, and then later Windows. IBM tried to stop this with OS2, but thanks to its DOS compatibility layer, Microsoft convinced everyone to develop for DOS, since it wasn't going away in OS2.
- UncleOxidant 3y agoYep, the IBM PC clones are what opened things up for x86 - you could get PC clones for a lot cheaper than Macs or even IBM branded PCs. I suspect that if IBM had decided to not allow clones (either by design or by lawsuits) that the 68K family would have been viable for longer (and/or we would have seen Macs transition to the 88K). There would have essentially have been main 2 choices for a while:IBM PC or Macs. Which would also have meant that Intel wouldn't have completely dominated the processor market - it would have been more of a 2 player CPU market. We also had the Amiga and the Atari ST machines on 68K then as well, so without PC clones they would likely have become the low-price choice for a while.
- tcbawo 3y agoI mentioned this in another comment, but the presence of interchangeable clones created a form of distributed long term support for business software. This was the killer feature that propelled business investment. Companies invest a lot in tailoring off the shelf software and custom software. Knowing that you have the ability to switch to another vendor made the decision a no-brainer for most businesses.