Urban legend: I think there is a world market for maybe five computers

Re:Urban legend: I think there is a world market for maybe f... by graymatters on Friday January 24, 2025 @08:30PM (#42818591)

The premise of the article (if it can be called that) is incorrect. He made the statement about the 5 computers in a TV interview (and it was not related to business trip referred in the article). I saw the recording of the interview some 10-15 years ago. Don’t remember which network. Perhaps NBC?

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Re:Urban legend: I think there is a world market for maybe f... by anamexis on Friday January 24, 2025 @09:00PM (#42818729)

Well, the article is certainly better sourced than you thinking you saw a counter example 10-15 years ago on TV.

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Re:Urban legend: I think there is a world market for maybe f... by ivan_gammel on Saturday January 25, 2025 @05:38AM (#42820812)

What you say doesn’t make sense at all. The article describes a shareholder meeting in 1953, when IBM was already aware that the market is much bigger. It had to happen significantly earlier, but not later than in 1940s, because the concept of programmable electronic machine (a computer, not calculator) was established only then. And they were selling a lot of calculators by then. At that time there was no such thing as TV broadcasting casually interviewing various people.

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