Difference between revisions of "Digital Equipment Corporation"

From Computer History Wiki
Jump to: navigation, search
m (Follow ext links guideline)
 
(47 intermediate revisions by 7 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
−
'''Digital Equipment Corporation''', or DEC, was a company started in 1957, in an old wooden mill in Maynard, Massachusetts.
+
'''Digital Equipment Corporation''', or '''DEC''', was a large computer company (at one time, the second-largest in the world after [[International Business Machines|IBM]]). They made [[minicomputer]]s, their signature product (and the one that led to their success), for a period, the most popular kind of computers in the world. Their product range eventually extended from small [[mainframe]]s to [[personal computer]]s.
  
−
==See Also==
+
It was started in 1957, in an old wool mill in Maynard, Massachusetts. The original product line was modules, [[System Module]]s. Once those were established, they started producing computers using them.
−
[[:Category:DEC hardware|DEC hardware]]
 
  
−
[[:Category:DEC software|DEC software]]
+
They reached the peak of their success in the 1980s, with their [[VAX]] line. However, they were unable to successfully adapt to the rise of personal computers, which turned computers into commodities, and were bought by [[Compaq]] in 1998.
  
−
[[:Category:DEC operating systems|DEC operating systems]]
+
{{semi-stub}}
  
−
[[:Category:Computer Manufactures|Computer Manufactures]]
+
==See also==
 +
 
 +
* [[List of Programmed Data Processors]]
 +
* [[Taxonomy of DEC consoles]]
 +
* [[DEC indicator panel]]
 +
* [[DEC Semiconductor Chips]]
 +
* [[DEC part number]]s
 +
* [[DEC engineering drawing numbers]]
 +
* [[DEC Software-related Order Codes]]
 +
* [[Edited Option/Module List]]
 +
* [[DEC acronyms]]
 +
* [[:Category:DEC Documentation Errors|DEC Documentation Errors]]
 +
* [[:Category:DEC Hardware|DEC Hardware]]
 +
* [[:Category:DEC Boards|DEC Boards]]
 +
* [[:Category:DEC Architectures|DEC Architectures]]
 +
* [[:Category:DEC Buses|DEC Buses]]
 +
* [[:Category:DEC Systems|DEC Systems]]
 +
* [[:Category:DEC Processors|DEC Processors]]
 +
* [[:Category:DEC Memories|DEC Memories]]
 +
* [[:Category:DEC Peripherals|DEC Peripherals]]
 +
** [[:Category:DEC Storage Controllers|DEC Storage Controllers]]
 +
** [[:Category:DEC Disk Drives|DEC Disk Drives]]
 +
** [[:Category:DEC Tape Drives|DEC Tape Drives]]
 +
* [[:Category:DEC Terminals|DEC Terminals]]
 +
* [[:Category:DEC Software|DEC Software]]
 +
** [[:Category:DEC Operating Systems|DEC Operating Systems]]
 +
* [[DEC Modules by bus]]
 +
* [[Digital Technical Journal]]
 +
 
 +
==Further reading==
 +
 
 +
* Glenn Rifkin, George Harrar, ''The Ultimate Entrepreneur: The Story of Ken Olsen and Digital Equipment Corporation'', Contemporary, Chicago, 1988 - The best general history of DEC, but stops at 1987
 +
* Edgar H. Schein, ''DEC is Dead, Long Live DEC'', Berett-Koehler, San Francisco, 2003
 +
* Clayton M. Christensen, ''The Innovator's Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail'', Harvard Business School, Boston, 1997 - Briefly discusses DEC's inability to adapt to the world with personal computers
 +
* Alan R. Earls, ''Digital Equipment Corporation (Images of America)'', Arcadia, Charleston, 2004 - Mostly covers the early years
 +
 
 +
==External links==
 +
 
 +
===Books===
 +
 
 +
* [https://www.computerhistory.org/pdp-1/_media/pdf/dec.digital_1957_to_the_present_(1978).1957-1978.102630349.pdf Digital Equipment Corporation - Nineteen Fifty-Seven To the Present], 1972-78 - Thumbnail entries, but good coverage
 +
<!-- http://www.bitsavers.org/pdf/dec/_Books/DEC_1957_To_The_Present_1978.pdf -->
 +
<!-- https://s3data.computerhistory.org/pdp-1/dec.digital_1957_to_the_present_(1978).1957-1978.102630349.pdf -->
 +
* Jamie Parker Pearson, [http://gordonbell.azurewebsites.net/digital/digital%20at%20work%201992.pdf ''Digital at Work: Snapshots from the First Thirty-Five Years''], Digital, Burlington, 1992 - good overview with many direct quotations from DEC engineers
 +
<!-- https://www.computerhistory.org/pdp-1/_media/pdf/dec.digital_at_work.1992.102630350.pdf -->
 +
* C. Gordon Bell, J. Craig Mudge, John. E. McNamara, [http://gordonbell.azurewebsites.net/Computer_Engineering/contents.html Computer Engineering: A DEC View of Hardware Systems Design], Digital Press, Bedford, 1978 - a fair amount of technical detail
 +
<!-- http://www.bitsavers.org/pdf/dec/_Books/Bell-ComputerEngineering.pdf -->
 +
 
 +
===Websites===
 +
 
 +
* [https://gordonbell.azurewebsites.net/Digital/DECMuseum.htm Gordon Bell's CyberMuseum for Digital Equipment Corp]
 +
** [https://gordonbell.azurewebsites.net/Digital/timeline/dechistory.htm Digital 41 Year History CD]
 +
** [https://gordonbell.azurewebsites.net/CGB%20Files/DEC_Is_Dead_Bell_Appendix_Schein_Book.pdf Appendix for Edgar H. Schein “DEC is Dead, Long Live DEC”] - An interesting take on where/how DEC went wrong
 +
* [https://digital.com/digital-equipment-corporation/ The Tragic Tale Of DEC, The Computing Giant That Died Too Soon]
 +
* [http://www.decconnection.org/digitalstechnology.htm Digital's Technology Heritage]
 +
* [https://www.ultimate.com/phil/pdp10/dec.disks DEC disk history]
 +
* [http://www.vaxarchive.org/hardware/cables.html Cables Reference Guide]
 +
* [http://www.avanthar.com/healyzh/decemulation/decemu.html The DEC Emulation Website]
 +
 
 +
{{Nav DEC}}
 +
 
 +
[[Category: Manufacturers]]
 +
[[Category: Computer Manufacturers]]
 +
[[Category: Digital Equipment Corporation]]
 +
[[Category: PDP-10 Users]]

Latest revision as of 18:10, 30 August 2024

Digital Equipment Corporation, or DEC, was a large computer company (at one time, the second-largest in the world after IBM). They made minicomputers, their signature product (and the one that led to their success), for a period, the most popular kind of computers in the world. Their product range eventually extended from small mainframes to personal computers.

It was started in 1957, in an old wool mill in Maynard, Massachusetts. The original product line was modules, System Modules. Once those were established, they started producing computers using them.

They reached the peak of their success in the 1980s, with their VAX line. However, they were unable to successfully adapt to the rise of personal computers, which turned computers into commodities, and were bought by Compaq in 1998.

See also

Further reading

  • Glenn Rifkin, George Harrar, The Ultimate Entrepreneur: The Story of Ken Olsen and Digital Equipment Corporation, Contemporary, Chicago, 1988 - The best general history of DEC, but stops at 1987
  • Edgar H. Schein, DEC is Dead, Long Live DEC, Berett-Koehler, San Francisco, 2003
  • Clayton M. Christensen, The Innovator's Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail, Harvard Business School, Boston, 1997 - Briefly discusses DEC's inability to adapt to the world with personal computers
  • Alan R. Earls, Digital Equipment Corporation (Images of America), Arcadia, Charleston, 2004 - Mostly covers the early years

External links

Books

Websites


v • d • e Digital Equipment Corporation
18-bit machines - PDP-1 • PDP-4 • PDP-7 • PDP-9 • PDP-15

12-bit machines - PDP-5 • PDP-8 • LINC-8 • PDP-12

36-bit machines - PDP-3 • PDP-6 • PDP-10

16-/32-/64-bit machines - PDP-11 • VAX • MIPS • Alpha

Also: Buses • Peripherals • Part numbers • Engineering drawings

Retrieved from "https://gunkies.org/w/index.php?title=Digital_Equipment_Corporation&oldid=35206"