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I have no doubt that "network computers" are going to have a bit of renaissance soon. I just doubt that people will be in a rush to buy a $1000 version. People

I have no doubt that "network computers" are going to have a bit of renaissance soon. I just doubt that people will be in a rush to buy a $1000 version. People may like simpler computing experiences, but they won't buy just based on that. The iPad took off cause it is a sexy (and fairly cheap) product. The simplicity just enhanced the experience. High end Chromebooks would basically require the purchaser to value simplicity over everything. They would have to not buy cheaper computers that check off more features and can even run Chrome themselves. And I just think the amount of people who are aware of their limitations and will spend more than the average person to accommodate them is very small.

ChuckMcM 14y ago
Thank you for that response. What is really cool is that we may see folks actually get this choice and then we can come back around and talk about it again. A funny (and true) story: I got to intern at IBM in the late 70s. The Altair 8800 was getting a lot of press and Apple had just jumped in with the Apple II. I lusted after a Sol-80 at the time. Anyway, there was an on going discussion at IBM as to whether or not anyone would really pay what it would cost to make a "real" computer for individuals. So they built one, it ran a hacked up version of the software their other computers ran called TSO/MVS. It had a very serialized 370 architecture to cut down on complexity, and limited batch capability. It would have retailed for about $17,000 to make the kinds of margins IBM expected. (many of the parts got reused in the 5100 but that is different story) It was a total failure of course, nobody wanted a computer for themselves, it was just a bunch of overly ambitious EE's over promising and under delivering by using calculator chips to make something that could run stored programs. IBM was not a calculator company, so that was a market they weren't going to enter. A complete renegade at IBM had a different view and built their vision in a widely derided project in Boca Raton FL (even then it wasn't much of a tech bastion). The resulting machine, the IBM PC, was a huge deal. And like the iPad it surprised its own maker at how many they sold. I relate that story because I think we're on the cusp of one of those changes. My instincts tell me that this is one of those times when renegades have an advantage over the common knowledge. I call it out so that folks can watch it happen, or not. I'm really going to feel foolish next year if nothing has changed but I'm totally ok with that. At the moment it feels like Christmas Eve to me.

ChuckMcM 14y ago

Thank you for that response. What is really cool is that we may see folks actually get this choice and then we can come back around and talk about it again. A funny (and true) story: I got to intern at IBM in the late 70s. The Altair 8800 was getting a lot of press and Apple had just jumped in with the Apple II. I lusted after a Sol-80 at the time. Anyway, there was an on going discussion at IBM as to whether or not anyone would really pay what it would cost to make a "real" computer for individuals. So they built one, it ran a hacked up version of the software their other computers ran called TSO/MVS. It had a very serialized 370 architecture to cut down on complexity, and limited batch capability. It would have retailed for about $17,000 to make the kinds of margins IBM expected. (many of the parts got reused in the 5100 but that is different story) It was a total failure of course, nobody wanted a computer for themselves, it was just a bunch of overly ambitious EE's over promising and under delivering by using calculator chips to make something that could run stored programs. IBM was not a calculator company, so that was a market they weren't going to enter. A complete renegade at IBM had a different view and built their vision in a widely derided project in Boca Raton FL (even then it wasn't much of a tech bastion). The resulting machine, the IBM PC, was a huge deal. And like the iPad it surprised its own maker at how many they sold. I relate that story because I think we're on the cusp of one of those changes. My instincts tell me that this is one of those times when renegades have an advantage over the common knowledge. I call it out so that folks can watch it happen, or not. I'm really going to feel foolish next year if nothing has changed but I'm totally ok with that. At the moment it feels like Christmas Eve to me.