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> "Plus, tech was not controlled by large corporations as it is now." IBM would beg to differ. They were monopolists in a way that Microsoft and Google are on
by ThrowawayR2 2y ago
> "Plus, tech was not controlled by large corporations as it is now."
IBM would beg to differ. They were monopolists in a way that Microsoft and Google are only pale imitations of. "Nobody ever got fired for buying IBM" and the term FUD were coined to describe them. The entire x86 hardware ecosystem has its roots in IBM's dominance through the original IBM PC hardware architecture.
One aspect of why the '80s-'90s were interesting to the retro enthusiast because it was the era with the most diversity and competition in home computing. By 2000 or so, the IBM PC standard had steamrollered every other competitor, leaving only the Mac occupying a small niche.
- hx8 2y agoWhen I went to college in the late '00s I was able to find several other Linux users. The counter culture to the Windows/Mac duopoly was alive and well. In some ways we won by being accepted as mainstream for certain niches. Between WSL, Steamdeck and Docker Linux has seen more adoption than I was expecting.
- psd1 2y agoI've always assumed that Linux's server-side dominance was fated by providing an apache Web server for zero monetary cost. IIS was several years behind and cost money. I can't imagine Facebook running on IIS in 2004, for example.