This past weekend, the Paul Gray PC Museum exhibited some of our collection at the first ever VCF SoCal! We took the opportunity to show off some highlights of our collection that aren’t on view in the current exhibition, and those of you who couldn’t make it to the festival can check out the exhibition through the photos below.
Here’s a photo of our exhibition table!
Our first section involved a showcase of early portable computers, often referred to as “luggables” due to their size and weight. We brought an Osborne Executive, a Kaypro II, and an Otrona Attaché, all of which released in 1982. These showcase the diversity of approaches to the design of the suitcase-style luggable in the early days of portable computing, and provide a snapshot of the fierce competition for the top spot on the list of “appliance” portables that catered to consumers looking to use a computer for word processing, spreadsheets, and other business applications.
“Luggables” of the Early 1980s: Before clamshell laptops became the standard of portability, briefcase-style “luggable” computers set off the trend of portable computers for the consumer market. These machines packed the functionality of a desktop computer into an all-in-one travel-sized package with a built-in carrying handle and a sturdy outer casing, and were made small enough to slide under an airplane seat. Often weighing upwards of 25 pounds, they may seem to stretch the definition of “portable” as we know it today, but they popularized the idea of a computer unchained from the desk and able to function on the go.The direct successor to the widely successful Osborne I, the Osborne Executive boasted a larger monitor and more compact floppy disk drives. Like its predecessor, it came bundled with popular software for business applications, appealing to users who wanted a machine that was ready to go for business use. Compared to the Osborne I, relatively few Executives were produced, as a combination of competition from the Kaypro II and a tendency to announce new products early drove the company to bankruptcy in 1985.At 18 pounds, the Otrona Attaché was much smaller than the most popular portables of the early 1980s. It was also much more expensive, costing about twice as much as the Kaypro II at $3,995. Despite the price, its elegant, streamlined design and its technical capabilities made it a hit with reviewers and popular with scientists and engineers, but it ultimately sold fewer than 10,000 units. The Attaché and its successor, the Otrona 2001, were innovative but too expensive to produce, and Otrona filed for bankruptcy after just three years in business.As the Osborne’s main competitor in the category of ready-to-use portable computers packaged with the productivity software necessary for the average consumer, the Kaypro II contrasted its rival with its rugged-looking aluminum exterior and significantly larger screen. Despite providing limited expansion options for electronics hobbyists, the Kaypro II was incredibly popular, generating a large network of user groups throughout the United States. In competition with the Osborne, it came out the clear winner, leading to a line of successive models that lasted the company until 1992.
For the other portion of the exhibit, we took at look at early iterations of the iMac, showcasing how Apple’s experimentation with the look of their all-in-one desktop computers resulted in machines that have become iconic examples of late 1990s and early 2000s design. The iMac G3 and G4 show off the broad spectrum of forms and features that Apple explored for the line before settling on the “slab” shape used since mid-2004.
Before Apple began to settle the iMac into the rectangular slab shape it takes today, early entries in the line produced some of the most visually iconic machines of their time. Blue, bulbous, and translucent in a sea of beige and black, the iMac G3 was a major departure from the kind of design that had become standard in computing upon its release in 1998. In another radical transition, the iMac G4 was designed to instead emphasize the flatness of the LCD screen, moving the computer components into a base that let the display shine. Advertised with a personality akin to Pixar’s desk lamp mascot, the “sunflower” iMac’s funky form was still functional, giving users significant flexibility in how to position the monitor.
In addition to the exhibition, we participated in a panel on preserving computer history with Jim Trageser, former Executive Director of the Computer Museum of America, and Sellam Ismail, founder of the Vintage Computer Festival. We had a great conversation about the respective roles of institutions and hobbyists in the preservation of vintage computing, as well as emulation and software preservation. The festival was a great opportunity to make connections with the vintage computing community (and give out a lot of bookmarks)!
Here’s a close up of our free goodies – we made bookmarks featuring the Otrona Attaché, the Commodore 64, the Apple II Plus, and the Osborne Executive!
