G. Anandalingam and Henry C. Lucas
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195177404
- eISBN:
- 9780199789559
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195177404.003.0008
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Strategy
This chapter explores what happened to IBM — the early victor in the computer industry — and how complacency and a focus on a single technology the mainframe computer, almost ruined the company. ...
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This chapter explores what happened to IBM — the early victor in the computer industry — and how complacency and a focus on a single technology the mainframe computer, almost ruined the company. Digital Equipment succeeded because Ken Olson and his colleagues recognized that because the central processing unit of a computer was rapidly becoming cheaper to design and fabricate, small computers could offer a price/performance advantage over larger mainframe computers, the staple of the industry in 1960. Seemingly blinded by its own success and victory over mainframes, when personal computers came along, Olson felt they were a “toy” and did not pursue the market aggressively. Although DEC was a winner with minicomputers, it exhibited a sense of managerial optimism, hubris, and invulnerability when confronted with PCs, leading to the winner’s curse. DECs PCs were late to market, and were not particularly competitive.Less
This chapter explores what happened to IBM — the early victor in the computer industry — and how complacency and a focus on a single technology the mainframe computer, almost ruined the company. Digital Equipment succeeded because Ken Olson and his colleagues recognized that because the central processing unit of a computer was rapidly becoming cheaper to design and fabricate, small computers could offer a price/performance advantage over larger mainframe computers, the staple of the industry in 1960. Seemingly blinded by its own success and victory over mainframes, when personal computers came along, Olson felt they were a “toy” and did not pursue the market aggressively. Although DEC was a winner with minicomputers, it exhibited a sense of managerial optimism, hubris, and invulnerability when confronted with PCs, leading to the winner’s curse. DECs PCs were late to market, and were not particularly competitive.
Marc H. Meyer
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195180862
- eISBN:
- 9780199851270
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195180862.003.0002
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Knowledge Management
There are few examples of reshaping a withering traditional enterprise as dramatic as IBM's renewal of its mainframe computer business. It is perhaps the greatest industrial turnaround story in ...
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There are few examples of reshaping a withering traditional enterprise as dramatic as IBM's renewal of its mainframe computer business. It is perhaps the greatest industrial turnaround story in American business during the 1990s. Also, it clearly shows the differences between reinvigorating an existing product to better serve current users and uses and extending that product line to capture new users and new uses. The three areas of innovation are the focus of successive sections of this book and are challenges faced by every corporation, large or small, in the journey toward internally generated growth. IBM's turnaround is an amazing story of how a management team was able to integrate innovations in all three dimensions, first to save its core business in transactions processing and then to leverage new technology to new market applications. These new applications focused on Web-centric, on-demand computing across major industry vertical markets.Less
There are few examples of reshaping a withering traditional enterprise as dramatic as IBM's renewal of its mainframe computer business. It is perhaps the greatest industrial turnaround story in American business during the 1990s. Also, it clearly shows the differences between reinvigorating an existing product to better serve current users and uses and extending that product line to capture new users and new uses. The three areas of innovation are the focus of successive sections of this book and are challenges faced by every corporation, large or small, in the journey toward internally generated growth. IBM's turnaround is an amazing story of how a management team was able to integrate innovations in all three dimensions, first to save its core business in transactions processing and then to leverage new technology to new market applications. These new applications focused on Web-centric, on-demand computing across major industry vertical markets.
Peter Manning
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195144840
- eISBN:
- 9780199849802
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195144840.003.0011
- Subject:
- Music, Theory, Analysis, Composition
The pioneering phase of computer music, spearheaded by the development of the MUSICn series of programs, came to an end with the diversification of technologies that led to cheaper and ultimately ...
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The pioneering phase of computer music, spearheaded by the development of the MUSICn series of programs, came to an end with the diversification of technologies that led to cheaper and ultimately more versatile alternatives to the mainframe computer. Although these programs could still not be executed in real time, improvements in processing power were steadily reducing the time delay between submitting tasks and auditioning the results. Composers, accordingly, became more adventurous in their use of these programs, highlighting in turn the drawbacks of relying on a basic alphanumeric coding system for the input of score data.Less
The pioneering phase of computer music, spearheaded by the development of the MUSICn series of programs, came to an end with the diversification of technologies that led to cheaper and ultimately more versatile alternatives to the mainframe computer. Although these programs could still not be executed in real time, improvements in processing power were steadily reducing the time delay between submitting tasks and auditioning the results. Composers, accordingly, became more adventurous in their use of these programs, highlighting in turn the drawbacks of relying on a basic alphanumeric coding system for the input of score data.
Paul Dourish and Genevieve Bell
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- August 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780262015554
- eISBN:
- 9780262295345
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262015554.001.0001
- Subject:
- Computer Science, Programming Languages
Ubiquitous computing (or ubicomp) is the label for a “third wave” of computing technologies. Following the eras of the mainframe computer and the desktop PC, it is characterized by small and powerful ...
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Ubiquitous computing (or ubicomp) is the label for a “third wave” of computing technologies. Following the eras of the mainframe computer and the desktop PC, it is characterized by small and powerful computing devices that are worn, carried, or embedded in the world around us. The ubicomp research agenda originated at Xerox PARC in the late 1980s; these days, some form of that vision is a reality for the millions of users of Internet-enabled phones, GPS devices, wireless networks, and “smart” domestic appliances. This book explores the vision that has driven the ubiquitous computing research program and the contemporary practices which have emerged—both the motivating mythology and the everyday messiness of lived experience. Reflecting the interdisciplinary nature of the authors’ collaboration, it takes seriously the need to understand ubicomp not only technically but also culturally, socially, politically, and economically. The authors map the terrain of contemporary ubiquitous computing, in the research community and in daily life; explore dominant narratives in ubicomp around such topics as infrastructure, mobility, privacy, and domesticity; and suggest directions for future investigation, particularly with respect to methodology and conceptual foundations.Less
Ubiquitous computing (or ubicomp) is the label for a “third wave” of computing technologies. Following the eras of the mainframe computer and the desktop PC, it is characterized by small and powerful computing devices that are worn, carried, or embedded in the world around us. The ubicomp research agenda originated at Xerox PARC in the late 1980s; these days, some form of that vision is a reality for the millions of users of Internet-enabled phones, GPS devices, wireless networks, and “smart” domestic appliances. This book explores the vision that has driven the ubiquitous computing research program and the contemporary practices which have emerged—both the motivating mythology and the everyday messiness of lived experience. Reflecting the interdisciplinary nature of the authors’ collaboration, it takes seriously the need to understand ubicomp not only technically but also culturally, socially, politically, and economically. The authors map the terrain of contemporary ubiquitous computing, in the research community and in daily life; explore dominant narratives in ubicomp around such topics as infrastructure, mobility, privacy, and domesticity; and suggest directions for future investigation, particularly with respect to methodology and conceptual foundations.
Elie ofek, Eitan Muller, and Barak Libai
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- May 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780226618296
- eISBN:
- 9780226394145
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226394145.003.0008
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Financial Economics
This chapter examines successive innovation generations in a category. It shows that a new generation may diffuse faster than its predecessors, in terms of when absolute adoption numbers are ...
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This chapter examines successive innovation generations in a category. It shows that a new generation may diffuse faster than its predecessors, in terms of when absolute adoption numbers are achieved, due primarily to an increase in the long-run market potential rather than a drastic change in adoption forces. Looking at penetration levels (percent of long-run market potential) instead of absolute adoption can aid in comparing diffusion rates across generations. The chapter explains how a next generation can attract adopters from three demand sources. Specifically, those who are: previous generation adopters switching to or adding the new one (upgraders); part of the previous generation’s market potential that skip directly to the next generation (leapfroggers); new potential adopters originating from a market expansion effect (newcomers). A next-generation diffusion model is presented that captures the various demand sources, as well as the period of diffusion overlap and possible cannibalization between two successive generations. By combining expected customer lifetime value and long-run market potential parameters for the next generation with knowledge of the adoption forces of the previous generation, the model can be used to formulate innovation equity projections. Examples are drawn from the music player, mobile phone, home video-game and computer industries.Less
This chapter examines successive innovation generations in a category. It shows that a new generation may diffuse faster than its predecessors, in terms of when absolute adoption numbers are achieved, due primarily to an increase in the long-run market potential rather than a drastic change in adoption forces. Looking at penetration levels (percent of long-run market potential) instead of absolute adoption can aid in comparing diffusion rates across generations. The chapter explains how a next generation can attract adopters from three demand sources. Specifically, those who are: previous generation adopters switching to or adding the new one (upgraders); part of the previous generation’s market potential that skip directly to the next generation (leapfroggers); new potential adopters originating from a market expansion effect (newcomers). A next-generation diffusion model is presented that captures the various demand sources, as well as the period of diffusion overlap and possible cannibalization between two successive generations. By combining expected customer lifetime value and long-run market potential parameters for the next generation with knowledge of the adoption forces of the previous generation, the model can be used to formulate innovation equity projections. Examples are drawn from the music player, mobile phone, home video-game and computer industries.
