whitneys posted.....

My two cents' worth. Flying Eagle cents, mind you.

The History Micro-Computer Predecessors: The Terminal & The Calculator Datapoint 2200 aut al. HP-85 eg. The Kit Scelbi-8H Mark-8 The Altair/The S-100 aka Attack of the Clones MITS Altair 8800 IMSAI 8080

What I like about whitneys' list, is that it has themes, a process, and a progression; from which examples are suggested. It's a little whimsical, which is fine. There's too many movie references as suggested. And it allows for some alternative exhibits of computing such as non-USA computers. (I'm not saying other lists did not have these qualities.) I don't agree with some of the history as presented, because to my 60-year-old eye it focuses on post-1980 consumer personal computing and so judges prior history from that view. To me that's a common 21st century problem. For instance, the emphasis on brand dominance as winners (IBM, Apple, ohyeahCompaq). Treating all S-100 as "clones" and only covering the very oldest (MITS, IMSAI, SOL), ignores history. The idea that an Apple I (copy) represents single-board computers is absurd. My point is not to argue; I said "to my old eye...". My point is that the list is coherent and themed, and I commend that. Any exhibit can be revised, other themes presented, on another day. There's no shortage of themes, trends, examples. In due course, each could get their turn. Herb Johnson -- Herbert R. Johnson, New Jersey USA http://www.retrotechnology.com OR .net