Osborne 1

The Osborne 1 was the first commercially successful portable microcomputer, released on April 3, 1981 by Osborne Computer Corporation. It weighed 10.7 kg (23.5 lb), cost $1,795 USD, and ran the CP/M 2.2 operating system. Powered directly from a mains socket as it had no on-board battery, though it was still classed as a portable device as it could be packed away and transported by hand to another location.

The computer shipped with a large bundle of software that was almost equivalent in value to the machine itself, a practice adopted by other CP/M computer vendors at the time.

Competitors such as the Kaypro II that used double sided drives and larger 9" screens that could hold a full 80x25 display quickly appeared.

History

The Osborne 1 was developed by Adam Osborne and designed by Lee Felsenstein. It was first announced in early 1981. Osborne, an author of computer books, decided he wanted to break the price of computers.

The Osborne's design was based largely on the Xerox NoteTaker, a prototype developed at Xerox PARC in 1976 by Alan Kay. The computer was designed to be portable, with a rugged ABS plastic case that closed up, and a handle. The Osborne 1 was about the size and weight of a sewing machine and was advertised as the only computer that would fit underneath an airline seat. It is now classified as a "luggable" computer when compared to later laptop designs such as the Epson HX-20.

Osborne

Osborne may refer to:

People

Places

Australia

Canada

United States

Things

Glen Osborne, Pennsylvania

Glen Osborne (formerly named Osborne) is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, along the Ohio River. The population was 547 at the 2010 census.

History

The area that now comprises the borough was first surveyed by Nathaniel Breading following the Revolutionary War. Early settlers of the area included Henry Pratt in 1786 and James Park in 1805. The area became known as "Glen Osborne," the glen referring to a Scottish term for a valley formed by a stream, and "Osborne" for local landowner Frank Osborne. By 1851, the Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne and Chicago Railroad was built through what was then part of Pitt and Ohio townships and a station opened in the community named "Osborne" to prevent confusion from a similarly-named station. In 1883 following petitioning by local residents, the borough of Osborne was incorporated.

In 2008, borough officials led by then-mayor William P. Boswell petitioned the state to allow the renaming of the borough to Glen Osborne to reflect the name residents have been using for over one hundred years. A judge granted the name change on May 21 of that year leading to the immediate replacement of road signs and phasing out of the old name on stationery and welcome signs in the borough.

Osborne (electoral district)

Osborne is a former provincial electoral division in the Canadian province of Manitoba. It was created by redistribution in 1957, and was abolished in 1999.

The riding was located in south-central Winnipeg. When it was abolished, most of its territory was given to the new ridings of Fort Rouge and Lord Roberts.

List of provincial representatives