nem wrote:
> "Michael J. Mahon"  wrote in news:
> 
>> So the market for personal computers was primed long before
>> computers could be bought for under several thousand dollars.
> 
> And yet, there was the (in)famous statement by an IBM executive around 
> 1970 that went something like "I think there's a home market for about 
> five computers."

A typical statement from a non-software engineer or marketing type.

I worked at a mainframe company at the time, and there was *lots* of
interest among the software staff, particularly the younger ones.

It was a bit of a cognitive leap to imagine a useful computer that
didn't require kilowatts of power, raised floor, and a small army
of people to keep it working, and younger people found it easier
to make that leap.  ;-)

Among this group, it wasn't so much rebellion as wanting to have a
cool toy to play with.

-michael

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