Wow! 40 years. I actually used an Osborne 1 back in the day. I think it might have been more widely accepted if the screen was just a little bit bigger and had a little bit better resolution. The 90K (yes, K) single-sided single-density floppies didn't help either.
My first laptop was in 1989. It was a Sony, I think. With a 386 CPU, a few hundred MB RAM, two 5.25" floppy drives, an internal 1200 bps or 2400 bps modem, and a ~15 cm x ~25 cm cm monochrome screen. DOS ran on one of the floppies, with the other for programs and data.
LOL I came late to portable computing, with my purchase of a Surface Book in 2016. Ah well, better late than never!
Late for me as well: 2004, Compaq Presario B3800, and... it still works on my wife's treadmill! It was a turning point, as I have only used laptops ever since...
Cool that you're able to say you worked with the first laptop. And the Grid Compass 1101 doesn't even look that bad. I bought my first laptop in 2000, it was quite an expensive one from Gateway.
Well, no way was the Osborne considered a "laptop". It was, however, portable - or more commonly referred to as "luggable". That said, not sure being old enough to say you used an Osborne "back in the day" is cool. My aging joints would say otherwise every morning!
Well, I'm sort of proud that I can say I lived in a period that certain things have been invented, that's what I meant. Think of video game consoles, VCR, CD player, Plasma TV etc.
I understood. I was just yanking your chain! I was very fortunate to be an electronics technician, actively involved in IS/IT technologies throughout the 70s, 80s, and 90s and beyond - especially while in the USAF as they spearheaded the whole ARPANET project.
Being in the backwash of the cutting edge is exhilarating and terrifying at the same time. I was involved in the first implementation of new technologies for many years - sort of like being one of the first riders in the first car of brand new roller coasters. One thing is for certain - it all made great resume/CV material for when I got out of the Air Force helping me land a fantastic job with a major IT defense contractor where I learned and was involved in even more great things.
