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Computer
The computer has in many respects become so common that it largely disappears from view. Originally a room-sized, esoteric, carefully-tended machine, breeding fear, awe and respect, over the years it has decreased in size, and with the rise of the personal computer it has now become a prosaic appliance little-more noted than a toaster or vacuum-cleaner. More...
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The Curious Case of the Kitchen Computer
The Honeywell Kitchen Computer is described in a number of places as a curiosity - a futuristic computer product that never sold. In fact, the Kitchen Computer was merely a publicity stunt, a spoof, continuing a long line of fantasy gifts offered by the up-market American department store Neiman Marcus. More... |
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A Bitter Pill to Swallow
The first tablet computers appeared at the end of the 1980s, and generated a huge amount of interest and serious amounts of investment. The tablet computer was seen to be the device everyone would want to use. Yet, in the space of just a few years, the tablet computer and the notion of pen computing sank almost without trace. More... |
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The Best Laid Plans of Mice and Men
Despite a well documented history of the computer mouse, its consumption does not appear to have been addressed. How did people react to it at first? Why did it take so long to become a mass-produced item? How did it become the single most accepted interface technology? What did the mouse represent, and what does it represent today? More... |
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Man in a Briefcase
Design discourse presented the laptop computer as the result of 'inevitable' technological progress, creating an unprecedented, revolutionary product. This article shows that the social drive for the development of portable computing came from the 'macho mystique' of concealed technology that was a substantial motif in popular culture at that time. More... |
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The (In)Difference Engine
At the time of writing there is a clear perception of all office computers as being more or less identical. This article shows how previous forms of the computer, inspired by science fiction, gender roles and status, have been systematically replaced by a 'universal' design informed only by the nondescript, self-referential world of office equipment. More... |
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Computer Memories
This paper looks at the computer as a truly global form. The similar beige boxes found in offices across the world are analysed from the perspective of design history rather than that of the history of science and technology, examining the changes that have occurred in the production and consumption of the computer in the context of the workplace. More... |
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