Born 31 years ago IBM PC.

August 12 (in Russia - 13th), 1981, IBM announced the release of PC-branded IBM 5150 PC. Although the term "personal computer" in those days are used, after the standards developed in IBM, he was firmly entrenched for machines of this architecture.What 31 years ago received pay 2,000 dollars for the latest innovation IBM?

         IBM Personal Computer model 5150 with IBM CGA monitor (model number 5153)

• Processor: Intel 8088 running at 4.77 MHz Intel 8087 math coprocessor
• Memory: 16 to 256 KB (the first model comes with 16 KB, and could only extend to 64)
• Non-volatile memory: 64 KB read-only
• Graphics: implemented as a plug-in cards. Normally available text mode 40 to 80 characters, color options supplied adapter CGA (320 by 200 or 640 by 200 pixels)
• Audio: Built-in Speaker PC Speaker
• Expansion slots: five eight-bit ISA slots
• Removable storage: optional up to two floppy drives 5.25 "floppy drive 160 KB
• Hard Drive: Optional, 10 MB
• Pre-installed software: IBM Basic

IBM PC 5150 Price list

By the standards of 1981 it was expensive and powerful, but compact computer (that is, fits on the table and do not take up the whole thing.) Was he successful? Imagine that it's 1981: the New Year will be sold one hundred thousand IBM PC. In those days it an absolute success.

With the release of IBM 5160 PC / XT in 1983 and IBM 5162 XT/286 in 1986 only to consolidate this success, and the IBM PC will gradually become standard. This standard will try to update with the release of the 1987 IBM PS / 2, but to compete with the successful development of its own was not easy. Market for IBM-compatible computers and expansion cards that time has grown too. The subsequent history is well known to us: IBM quietly withdrew from the unpredictable market for personal computers, and the present king was Microsoft  - a tiny former contractor, adapt QDOS for IBM PC and renamed it MS-DOS.

In the late eighties and early nineties popular IBM PC could not seem very rosy trend. Boring office computer managed to defeat all daring diversity that was at the time. Apple II,Commodore 64 , ZX Spectrum and other home computers were far more interesting than IBM PC. To them were written thousands of different applications and games, while the IBM PC was the most outstanding program spreadsheet VisiCalc.

Microsoft haters can also look at the birth of the IBM PC as the beginning of the dark ages. After all, Microsoft have come out of IBM and survived by the desire of the company to support virtually any type of equipment. Those who managed to have the hell of a lot of trouble in the nineties with the assembly of computers from bad parts of suspicious origin, have the right to remember the appearance of IBM PC not the good word.

But do not do justice to the popular IBM PC is impossible after thirty years, more than ninety percent of home computers - his heirs. Everybody loves a winner, and now the PC era - an important part of the history of computers. History, in which you and I had a chance to participate.

- use an image from wikipedia