Altair - the first PC

Altair - the first PC. Altair is often regarded as the first personal computer, although it was one of those switches and lights computers - programming is done by arranging a set of switches in a special order, and the results appear as different combinations of lights.

In other words, such a machine is a genuine computer, but absolutely useless, as Steve Wozniak, one of the PC pioneers, put it. After the first microprocessors had come onto the market, Ed Roberts, an engineer at MITS, a small calculator company in Texas, decided to build a kit computer, which he intended to sell to hobbyists.

He chose Intel s 8080 as the CPU for his computer, since this chip was the most advanced and powerful at the time. As Roberts wanted to sell his computer for less than 500 and the official price for the 8080 was already at 360, he contacted Intel and could finally receive the chip for only 75 apiece. By the end of 1974, Roberts finished his computer, which was named Altair. When the Altair was introduced on the cover of the January 1975 issue of Popular Electronics as the first personal computer, which would go for 397 only, the market response was in credible.

The low price was the actual sensation, because it was largely known that the price for the Intel 8080 CPU powering the Altair was already at 360. So many hobbyists, engineers and programmers who had keenly waited for their own personal computer, which they could experiment on at home, welcomed the new product and ordered their Altair on the spot. Roberts had never expected such a great response and his small firm was flooded by those immediate orders more than 4000 . He boosted up the production, but still could not meet the huge demand.

The Altair was a success at first, and Roberts sold many of them. However, he had increased production at the expense of quality and further refinement of his computer, so the Altair brought along a lot of trouble and was finally supplanted by other computers, which were superior. Nevertheless, the Altair as the first successful microcomputer, contributed a lot to the PC revolution, since it encouraged other people to build personal computers e.g. IMSAI, Apple. The first computer shopsDuring this time, the mid-1970s, the first computer shops came into existence.

Pioneering in this field was Paul Terrell who came to the idea of running such a shop, after the Altair had been put onto the market. His first Byte Shop opened in Mountain View located in the heart of Silicon Valley by the end of 1975. Initially, Terrell sold the Altair and accessory products such as additional memory boards and other devices, which came onto the market.

With the arising microcomputer industry, he could offer his customers - mainly hobbyists and engineers - more and more products, and his shop became a success. Other Byte Shops were opened and Terrell s computer shop chain expanded beyond the Silicon Valley. The computer shops provided its customers with a variety of devices around the computer and also with service and help. The Altair was shipped as a kit computer and was to be assembled first, and then it was still not difficult to work with it. The hobbyists helped each other with advice.

It was this spirit of sharing solutions and the common interest in microcomputers that led to the foundation of the first computer club. Homebrew Computer ClubThe legendary Homebrew Computer Club was the first of its kind, and provided an early impetus for the development of the microcomputer industry in Silicon Valley.

Its first meeting in March 1975 was held in one of its members garage in Menlo Park in Santa Clara County. The Homebrew members were engineers and computer enthusiasts who discussed about the Altair and other technical topics. The club attracted many hobbyists and was attended by nearly 750 people one year after its foundation. The Homebrew Computer Club had its own philosophy. People meet, because they were interested in computers and liked tinkering with them, but not for commercial reasons - at least in its early times.

Its members exchanged information about all aspects of micro computing technology and talked about devices they had designed. From its ranks came the founders of many microcomputer companies - for example Bob Marsh, Adam Osborne, or Steve Jobs and Steven Wozniak - the famous Apple founders. The Homebrew Computer Club is the place where the roots of many Silicon Valley microcomputer companies are located. It has spawned a revolution in micro processing and represents an important step in the development of a multi-billion dollar industry.

The Apple StoryApple provides one of Silicon Valley s most famous stories. It shows features that are typical for most start-up firms in the valley, however, it is unique and its early success and its contribution to the personal computer are unmatched.