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Still got my SGI machine. I boot it up every now and then, just to have a wonder about what it would have been like if SGI had just pushed a bit harder, made a

Still got my SGI machine. I boot it up every now and then, just to have a wonder about what it would have been like if SGI had just pushed a bit harder, made a laptop, beaten Apple to the "coolest unix workstation vendor in the world" target, and so on. Frankly, I'd rather be typing this message on an SGI laptop than a MacbookPro, but that's history for you.

justincormack 12y ago
There was a Sun laptop around then, although very expensive.
- ch_123 12y ago
  An Alpha one too... http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Tadpole-ALPHAbook-1-OpenVMS-Alpha-Laptop-21066A-Processor-with-accessories-/200814581492 http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Tadpole-ALPHAbook-1-OpenVMS-Alpha-... (Note: I'm not linked to that auction, and it's over. It just happened to be the best set of pictures I could readily find of one)
- ibisum 12y ago
  There were a couple of SGI Indy laptop prototypes in the works too, but I guess they didn't go anywhere. But .. just imagine this, all you althist'ers: what if SGI had been the one to release the tiBook, instead of Apple, and for a good price? Would we all be going into SGI stores and drooling these days? I bet that could've happened .. the spirit was there at SGI, even if the management wasn't. (It should also be noted that a lot of that spirit went elsewhere when SGI exploded: Transmeta, Nvidia, AMD, etc. Some good SGI talent even went to Apple! So .. there is a bit of SGI DNA all over the place these days, in fact ..)
- dagw 12y ago
  Was there? I know there where one or two companies making Sparc laptops that ran Solaris, but I don't think Sun ever made a laptop.
bluedino 12y ago
SGI was never going to make a cheap desktop, though. Not that a loaded Mac was cheap, but a pretty basic, but usable Indy was still like $12,000. My high school 'won' one from the National Science Foundation. PC workstations weren't close in power and Windows was flaky but you could buy 5 of them for every 1 SGI machine ($5,000 PC's vs a $25,000 SGI)
- ska 12y ago
  IIRC they had a half-assed kick at it with the O2, but that was too little, to late.

justincormack 12y ago

There was a Sun laptop around then, although very expensive.

ch_123 12y ago
An Alpha one too... http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Tadpole-ALPHAbook-1-OpenVMS-Alpha-Laptop-21066A-Processor-with-accessories-/200814581492 http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Tadpole-ALPHAbook-1-OpenVMS-Alpha-... (Note: I'm not linked to that auction, and it's over. It just happened to be the best set of pictures I could readily find of one)
ibisum 12y ago
There were a couple of SGI Indy laptop prototypes in the works too, but I guess they didn't go anywhere. But .. just imagine this, all you althist'ers: what if SGI had been the one to release the tiBook, instead of Apple, and for a good price? Would we all be going into SGI stores and drooling these days? I bet that could've happened .. the spirit was there at SGI, even if the management wasn't. (It should also be noted that a lot of that spirit went elsewhere when SGI exploded: Transmeta, Nvidia, AMD, etc. Some good SGI talent even went to Apple! So .. there is a bit of SGI DNA all over the place these days, in fact ..)
dagw 12y ago
Was there? I know there where one or two companies making Sparc laptops that ran Solaris, but I don't think Sun ever made a laptop.

bluedino 12y ago

SGI was never going to make a cheap desktop, though. Not that a loaded Mac was cheap, but a pretty basic, but usable Indy was still like $12,000. My high school 'won' one from the National Science Foundation. PC workstations weren't close in power and Windows was flaky but you could buy 5 of them for every 1 SGI machine ($5,000 PC's vs a $25,000 SGI)

ska 12y ago
IIRC they had a half-assed kick at it with the O2, but that was too little, to late.