Which computers were used for what purposes?

[punchy71]

I am interested in comparing the different niche markets that each of the vintage computers carved out for themselves. In other words; what was the primary purpose each platform was used for or excelled in. Some were more game oriented. Others were more educational oriented and still others more business oriented or government oriented. Some were used primarily in the telecommunications industry. I'm thinking primarily in terms of hardware but feel free to also expound on software, operating systems and programming languages that tended to dominate each platform. Please add comments to which platforms you feel were more oriented towards in your opinion.

Thank you

 

[DOS lives on!!]

Apple products were and still are used in schools and education environments. Their ease and simplicity made them perfect for younger children.

 

[njroadfan]

The Amiga was found in the following applications

1. Video Toaster: Real time video mixer, character generator, 2D/3D video graphics and later a non-linear editing system with the Toaster Flyer add-on

2. The Prevue Guide: Remember the channel that had the long scrolling list of whats on TV? It was run by an Amiga at your cable company's head-end until the mid-90s

3. Scala MM: This was a popular Powerpoint-like application used by many local access channels for a community bulletin board. It was later ported to PC, but didn't enjoy the success the Amiga version did since PCs didn't come with built in composite video output.

The Atari ST was well known for Cubase, a music sequencing program as the system featured standard MIDI ports. It also found a niche as a desktop publishing system (although not nearly as widespread as the Macintosh) with programs called CALAMUS and PageStream.

 

[Chuck(G)]

Tons of systems you never heard of involved in word processing, CNC and industrial control. Not to mention military applications.

 

[punchy71]

I'm primarily thinking in terms of home computers/microcomputers/personal computers (but I'm sure some non-home computers made their way home anyway if they could fit through the front door). =)

 

[Chuck(G)]

"Microcomputers" covers a lot of ground.

For example, Lanier, Brother, Royal and Smith-Corona all made word processors using microprocessors. Many were at use in the home and several could even boot other operating systems, such as CP/M. Yet nobody thinks of those as "vintage computers".

My disappointment with the term "vintage computer" is that there were lots of systems that weren't Apple, IBM or Commodore that nobody today cares a plugged nickel about.

 

[commodorejohn]

My disappointment with the term "vintage computer" is that there were lots of systems that weren't Apple, IBM or Commodore that nobody today cares a plugged nickel about.

I don't know if it's so much that nobody cares as that not so many people even know about them. Probably if you were active in the hobbyist days and reading through the computer magazines of the time, you'd have heard of some less-common systems, but for those of us who got into retrocomputing later on, it takes active research effort to know about them. I mean, I'd never even heard of the Jupiter Ace until I was browsing around Forth-related Wikipedia articles, for instance.

 

[Caluser2000]

Another brand is Acorn, hardly mentioned here. Was mainly used in UK and some other countries. Targeted at the education sector but was used in homes and other areas doing all sorts of chores.

 

[punchy71]

What kind of niche area did the Tandy/Radio Shack computers carve out for themselves?

 

[Chuckster_in_Jax]

Hewlett Packard's pre-PC compatible computers were extensively used in Engineering and Scientific application. The same can be said for their RPN calculators.

 

[Ole Juul]

I don't know if it's so much that nobody cares as that not so many people even know about them. Probably if you were active in the hobbyist days and reading through the computer magazines of the time, you'd have heard of some less-common systems, but for those of us who got into retrocomputing later on, it takes active research effort to know about them. I mean, I'd never even heard of the Jupiter Ace until I was browsing around Forth-related Wikipedia articles, for instance.

I must say that I share Chuck's disappointment. Yes, I know most people have a strong preference for the famous and common, but I would have thought that a "vintage" crowd would transcend that a little more. I have nowhere near the depth of experience that Chuck has, but I can and do read. Because of my interest in vintage, I dig up all kinds of interesting and esoteric history on the net. The rare and uncommon is by far the most interesting to me. Too bad so many people disagree.

Anyway, to get back on topic. Here are two machines I've read about which were aimed at a specific purpose and are also uncommon. The first one is so rare that I can't even find a picture on the net. From the only article I can find:

the IBM-compatible PC10, which starts at $995. Its major distinction in a sea of IBM clones: It has a one-piece case that makes it look like the Apple Macintosh Classic. It also comes with Microsoft Corp.'s Mac-like Windows 3.0 graphics software. Like the Mac, the Cardinal PC comes with its basic software installed so that buyers can simply "plug and play."

The company's challenge now is to land shelf space for the PC10 in computer stores. Cardinal figures it may interest big dealers in its plans to leapfrog straight into the nascent market for multimedia computers.

Another interesting computer is the slightly better known ICON. Those who run, or are interested in the QNX operating system will know all about it, as will those of a certain age who went to school in Ontario. From Wikipedia:

The ICON was a computer built specifically for use in schools, to fill a standard created by the Ontario Ministry of Education. They were widely used, mostly in high schools in the mid- to late 1980s, but disappeared after that time with the widespread introduction of PCs and Apple Macintoshes. They were also known as the CEMCorp ICON, Burroughs ICON, and finally Unisys ICON when Burroughs and Sperry Corporation merged to form Unisys in 1986. The machine was also nicknamed the bionic beaver.

I'm sure Chuck has a long list of other examples of computers that have been eclipsed by the mundane and pedestrian.

 

[tezza]

My disappointment with the term "vintage computer" is that there were lots of systems that weren't Apple, IBM or Commodore that nobody today cares a plugged nickel about.

Your disappointment is more with how some people interpret the term rather than the term itself I think Chuck. I agree. To me vintage computers span a huge number of machines...in fact anything from the 80s and earlier. There was a huge, huge number of makes and models.

Yes, those without a "classic" label don't get too much airtime and do risk being lost to history. This is one of the motivating factors for my System 80 site. The computer was really only important in this part of the world would likely to have been forgotten if not documented somewhere.

Tez

 

[GADFRAN]

Of course consider Osborne, Kaypro, early Compaq, etc. also - much to ponder there - very complex !

Much more to add, but do your own research first so can discuss better further.

Thanks for good questions - hopefully good answers - but very complex.

Frank

 

[Chuck(G)]

I wonder if I'm the only one left with engineering documents, much less the real machine, for this thing.

You know, I tried to give one away and couldn't find any takers...

 

[njroadfan]

Yes, those without a "classic" label don't get too much airtime and do risk being lost to history. This is one of the motivating factors for my System 80 site. The computer was really only important in this part of the world would likely to have been forgotten if not documented somewhere.

When I see "System 80", I'm reminded of something that was in my 1st grade classroom, but it really wasn't a computer! It was an interactive learning system that used slides for visuals and a vinyl record for audio.



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/System80

 

[Caluser2000]

Now there's a real multimedia machine!!

 

[barythrin]

I'd be amazed if you couldn't get a buyer for that Durango Chuck, give you're right, I've never heard of it but that looks awesome and obviously has the ability to be a full computer vs type writer.

That's the simple answer though, computers were made to do math for science, but home market originally I think was mostly type writers and word processors. You could write a letter, presentation, etc and unlike a type writer, go back and correct or replace words and have the entire document edit itself which was pretty amazing improvement over type it one time and you're done or start over.

The trs-80 has a huge following and also a few fanatics which would be better to answer that question but from my stand it seemed like a good word processor and spreadsheet type system with some games as well. From the things I saw it bundled with it seemed like it was marketing to adults mostly for doing accounting and account/asset management at home.

Someone already mentioned Amiga, but Commodore also at the home was sorta marketed with gaming in mind but I think the huge selling point behind so many of these home computer consoles was the sales pitch that your kid could learn programming. What parent wouldn't think to themselves "do I want my son sitting around all day only playing games? or .. for just a little more than a game console, they could do school work and educational applications and even maybe learn to program their own software!". To me it'd be a no brainer, even as a kid I'd happily taken a computer over a game system any day.

 

[tezza]

but home market originally I think was mostly type writers and word processors. You could write a letter, presentation, etc and unlike a type writer, go back and correct or replace words and have the entire document edit itself which was pretty amazing improvement over type it one time and you're done or start over.

Yes, certainly when I bought my first home computer, the TRS-80-compatible System 80 computers were marketed (and priced) in New Zealand to adults, not to "family" as such. I used it for Word processing, Games, Learning BASIC, Household accounts and Membership lists roughly in that order. I even found it useful in my job to crunch stats and write documents...WAY better than the equipment I had a work.

The way I see it from 1976 to say 1981 there was a "personal computer" market which targetted adults;either electronic hobbiests, small business people or just well-heeled professionals wanting a computer for word processing, database, to learn more about computers and some games. Computers like the Apple II, TRS-80 Model I and III and Commodore Pet fitted neatly into this market.

Then around 1980/1981 the market split for a few years. A "home computer market" as lead by the Vic-20/ZX-Spectrum/TRS-80 colour computer developed. Poor keyboard and limited screen real-estate but cheap, and with colour, sound and graphics. Tape and cartridge for storage. The other branch was "business computers". Monochrome, little or no graphics, CP/M and later PC/MS-DOS. Invariably disk-based and expensive. The Apple II/IIe was about the only one that spanned these two markets, but it was priced in the business end.

In the day, I regarded those 1981-83 cheap colour and sound "home" computers as toys, where poor keyboards and screen real estate limited "useful" things you could do with them. But then I was an adult at the time. I'm sure if I was a kid with games in mind I would have loved one. Not that I didn't enjoy the odd game. The TRS-80 world despite the B/W blocky graphics, still had some entertaining titles. My favourites were the adventure games, where graphics weren't used anyway.

Tez

 

[Al Kossow]

Another brand is Acorn, hardly mentioned here. Was mainly used in UK and some other countries. Targeted at the education sector but was used in homes and other areas doing all sorts of chores.

Interesting you picked the least known of the Acorn products. The BBC Micro and the Archimedes were much better known. I didn't even know they made a NS32000 system.

 

[Chuck(G)]

I'd be amazed if you couldn't get a buyer for that Durango Chuck, give you're right, I've never heard of it but that looks awesome and obviously has the ability to be a full computer vs type writer.

It's more than that--192K of memory, hard drive, 4-port async comm, multipass NLQ printer with downloadable fonts, IEEE-488 interface... Runs its own multi-user OS, but will also run CP/M or MP/M. IMOHO, the only weaknesses are the 8085 CPU and the 80x25 CRT text-only display. But this was a system for business, not a game box, so the lack of graphics is at least understandable.

But because it's not a TRS-80 or C-64 or Kaypro, I can understand the lack of enthusiasm.