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Why did IBM fail at PCs?

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing July 3, 2017October 4, 20211980s, 1990s, acer, AIX, apple, compaq, datacenter, dell, hp, IBM, intel, lenovo, mainframe, Packard Bell, Personal Computer, proprietary unix, thinkpad, unix, VHS, XT

If you ask why did IBM fail, I assume you mean why did IBM ultimately fail in the personal computer market. IBM is still in business, after all. But its exit from the PC market after 24 years, including a period of dominance in the 1980s, does seem curious. And it raises another question: What does IBM do now?

I experienced IBM’s fall in this market firsthand. I sold computers at retail in 1994 and 1995. IBM’s computers at that time were no worse than anyone else’s, but I had an extremely difficult time selling them. Many consumers didn’t trust IBM and didn’t want to get somehow locked in. There was nothing wrong with those machines, but it sure was a lot easier to just sell them a Compaq.

What is retro gaming?

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing June 30, 2017March 26, 2024

What is retro gaming? What are retro games? The specifics depend on your age, but it generally means playing older video or computer games today, whether that means playing the games on older hardware or recent hardware. The part people argue about is what’s old enough to constitute retro.

There isn’t a lot of agreement or consensus about that, and I have some ideas why.

St. Louis thrift stores

Dave Farquhar Saving money, St. Louis June 29, 2017June 25, 2017collectibles, kingston, saving money, Value Village, vintage computer, watson

St. Louis has a number of good thrift stores. They’re good for saving money, and if you’re looking for collectibles, there’s something more thrilling about finding it in a thrift store than a collectibles shop. Here are my recommendations for St. Louis thrift stores.

Where to buy vintage computers

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing June 28, 2017April 19, 20261541, 1980s, commodore, dell, electric trains, estate sales, garage sale, garage sales, IBM, ibm pcjr, intel, Kansas City, Missouri, recycling, survivors, Tandy, Texas Instruments, TI, Value Village, vintage computer, vintage trains

Collecting vintage computers can be fun. I also personally think it’s great that people are interested in preserving that history. Where to buy vintage computers hasn’t changed much over the years. It just may take a bit more work than it used to.

Some people think old computers are priceless. Others think they’re worthless. I don’t recommend wasting your time with people who think a Dell Pentium III laptop is worth $300. Think of the times you found a jewel for five bucks and keep moving.

What to do about Petya ransomware if you already deployed MS17-010

Dave Farquhar Uncategorized June 27, 2017February 19, 2026Bo Jackson, breach, NSA, Office Space

Got MS17-010 deployed? Good, that means you’re immune to the Petya ransomware. I still want you to do something.

The IBM PS/1 (or IBM PS1)

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing June 27, 2017March 22, 20241990s, acer, amiga, apple, best buy, compaq, dell, IBM, Packard Bell, Personal Computer, playstation, sony, sony playstation, Tandy, tandy 1000, thinkpad, video game

The IBM PS/1, sometimes called the IBM PS1, was a line of 1990s personal computer systems, not to be confused with the Sony Playstation video game console that’s also often called the PS1. The PS/1 was IBM’s second attempt at a mass market consumer PC, after the ill-fated PCjr.

You can neatly divide the PS/1 into two generations. While they ran the same software, they had major philosophical differences. Perhaps more than any other computer line, they represent IBM’s change of heart in the early 1990s as it tried to survive in an extremely competitive and crowded market.

Prong stuck in an outlet? Here’s the fix.

Dave Farquhar DIY June 26, 2017September 15, 2023

The other day we went to unplug a lamp so we could plug a vacuum cleaner in. But something didn’t quite feel right. When we looked at the plug, we could see why. One of the prongs was missing. When we looked at the outlet, the prong was still there. The prong broke off in the outlet. There’s some bad, or at least time-wasting, advice out there on how to fix a prong stuck in an outlet or socket. Here’s how we fixed it.

Don’t try to work on an outlet without turning off the breaker first. If you’re patient, you can extract the broken prong stuck in an outlet with needle nose pliers and potentially avoid having to replace the whole outlet.

Cleaning N64 game cartridges

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing June 23, 2017March 28, 2023

Cleaning N64 game cartridges is a controversial topic. It doesn’t have to be. There are some techniques floating around that can be harmful. But I also bristle when I see people say there’s one and only one right way. Here are some techniques for cleaning N64 game cartridges, based on my decades of experience fixing computers and game systems.

Computers in 1985: It was a very good year

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing June 22, 2017December 28, 2024

In some ways, 1985 was a really pivotal year for computing. The industry was changing fast, but in 1985, many relics from the past were still present even as we had an eye for the future. Here’s a look back at computers in 1985 and what made that year so interesting.

I think 1985 was interesting in and of itself, but it also made the succeeding years a lot more interesting. A surprising amount of the technology that first appeared in 1985 still has an impact today.

Cheap closet doors

Dave Farquhar DIY, Landlording June 21, 2017March 6, 2018baseboard

It’s not uncommon for fixer-upper houses to be missing closet doors, or have irreparable closet doors. I’m not sure why people beat up on their closet doors, but it seems to happen. I do know a legal bedroom has to have a closet with a door. If you need to fix a missing or busted door fast and cheap, here’s just the thing. I’m happy to share what I do when I need cheap closet doors.