BYTE covered a new kind of microcomputer they called "appliance computers". Here are some compilations:
http://atariage.com/forums/topic/262195-40-years/
http://atariage.com/forums/topic/262195-40-years/
For the majority of people (literally, based on Apple, Commodore, and Tandy sales figures over the years), the PET is far more important historically than the Apple ][ (or TRS-80).
Until the 'MPC' (not descended from Apple, Commodore, or Tandy) became a thing that most people had in their homes, most people who became computer users got their start with the Vic 20 or Commodore 64, direct descendants of the PET.
That's a pretty bold statement--do you have data to back that up? Color me skeptical.
I disagree. Popularity does not equate to importance. The C64 sold well because of brutal marketing. In 1977 the Apple II was far more innovative and influential.
Heck, the TRS-80 was no slouch either. But Tandy was even more inept than Commodore after Jack.
I don't think there were Radio Schack stores in Europe. But as far as I know there were Tandy stores (we even still have a few round here).
Thing is, most all of the schools used the BBC Micro and its variants (such as the Acorn Electron) rather than the C64 or the TRS-80. Before that it was Commodore PETs, though you did sometimes see oddball CPM systems, like the RML 380Z.
There must have been Tandy stores in Europe