On 5/25/24 08:14, Jon Elson via cctalk wrote: > Yes, the Bendix G-15 was said to be the first personal computer. It was > as big as a refrigerator, and weighed a LOT more, and drew much more > power. (300 vacuum tubes, 3000 Germanium diodes, drum memory.) but, > one guy could program it and run it. > > The LINC comes in a close second.
Offhand, if I were King of the World, I'd immediately eliminate from competition those computers that cannot be run from a US 120 volt 15 amp wall receptacle. The rationale being that anything that requires special power wiring cannot be "personal" So, for example, the PB-250 qualifies; the IBM 1130 does not. The Honeywell H316 "Kitchen computer" probably does, in the sense of intent, but it was never produced for mass consumption. I recall a short-lived 60's attempt at a personal data retrieval device (cassette tape storage)--I don't think it had any computational capabilities, so probably not a computer per se. Anyone remember the name? --Chuck
