PHOTO: HP 110 portable computer clamshell laptop design introduced in 1984 became the standard configuration for portable computers. The HP 110 portable computer was designed in parallel with the HP IPC (HP Integral PC) transportable computer at the HP Corvallis, Oregon division between 1982 and 1984 after the successful introduction in 1980 of the small desktop HP 85 BASIC programmable PC with a 5-inch CRT graphical display and built-in thermal printer. (See "Hewlett-Packard HP 110," oldcomputers.net accessed Dec. 1, 2008 and "The HP-110, HP's first laptop computer," Hewlett-Packard virtual museum accessed Dec. 1, 2008)
As an R&D engineer, I was part of the above research and development engineering lab responsible for the HP 85, HP 110 and HP IPC computers. The HP Corvallis Division (see "HP Corvallis Division," HP Computer Museum accessed Dec. 1, 2008) had its roots in battery powered hand-held calculators and so we had the CMOS IC design and manufacturing capability to build a portable computer. Other companies were simultaneously trying to do the same thing.
However, the work by Alan Kay at Xerox PARC (Palo Alto Research Center) in the 1970s was the inspiration for our design. This is why I was interested to see the two page comic book spread in Steve Hamm, illustration by Joseph Lambert, "The Long Road To The Laptop," BusinessWeek, Nov. 17, 2008, p. 78-79 hyping the new book by Steve Hamm, "The Race for Perfect: Inside the Quest to Design the Ultimate Portable Computer," Amazon.com accessed Nov. 18, 2008. -- "BusinessWeek Senior Writer Steve Hamm's new book, The Race for Perfect: Inside the Quest to Design the Ultimate Portable Computer, chronicles the four-decade history of mobile computing. This graphic adaptation explores the role of Alan Kay, whose ideas shaped the development of today's laptops, handhelds, and smartphones."
Likewise, Doug Engelbart's visionary work at Stanford Research Institute had similarly inspired the Xerox PARC researchers. His 1968 demonstration of a hyperlinked mouse driven computer human interface was recently celebrated in a story by David Smith, "Humble mouse turns 40 and loses its touch," guardian.co.uk, Nov. 30 2008. Douglas Englebart was an Oregon State University graduate.
PHOTO: The Hewlett-Packard Integral PC was developed between 1982 and 1984 at the HP Corvallis, Oregon division in parallel with the HP 110 laptop computer. It was a sewing machine size "transportable computer" that had a built-in flat panel electroluminescent display, letter size fan-fold paper inkjet printer and it ran the HP-UX UNIX operating system with a graphical windows interface using a mouse. The design engineers envisioned the HP IPC as a transportable or luggable computer similar to the original Compaq PC that was in development during the same time period. The HP 110 was modeled after the laptop dreams of Alan Kay and other Xerox PARC researchers. (See previous post HP Integral PC 1984 (8/26/06))
PHOTO: (click on photo to enlarge) shows from left to right an HP-1630D Logic Analyzer, an HP Integral PC, and the HP-85A BASIC programmable computer with a 5 inch graphical CRT display and 5 inch wide thermal printer (developed 1977-1980). The owner of this workbench was clearly the target customer of Hewlett-Packard. Photo source: www.series80.org The Retrolab
I recall going to many early HP design meetings in 1982 and struggling to figure out what portable computer format would win in the future. I had recently read in the Bell Labs Journal that cell phones were about to be introduced and so I drew up a proposal for a combined handheld computer and cell phone. My idea was openly laughed at during a review by the division general manager. With hindsight, the laptop clamshell design won over the luggable all-in-one format and the iPhone and Blackberry Storm are proving the viability of the combined cell phone and computer, albeit over a quarter of a century after I first envisioned it.
The mouse was not a given. In fact, I assigned a summer college engineering intern to work on the design. Fortunately, the HP IPC was able to use a mouse built by an HP division in Silicon Valley for all HP computers. In typical HP fashion, we were working on a mouse that had a ball with white dots on it that could be optically sensed while the ball rolled. Nearly everybody was working on what today are called a "mechanical mouse" that use a ball that rotates two discs whose rotation can be sensed by an optical circuit. Both designs have been superseded by the so-called "optical mouse" that uses a small digital camera to sense motion across a mouse pad. HP was a pioneer in this technology that eventually got spun off to first Agilent and then Avago Technologies.
Some other links:
- Dean Wrzeszcz, "Opinions: Counting on Human Error - and My Wits," Gay City News, Nov. 26, 2008 -- described his recent quest to buy a HP Pavilion dv6607nr, for $449 at Best Buy's day-after-Thanksgiving sale. In 1982 when I started designing portable computers at HP, I would have never guessed I would be reading such an amazing customer testimonial in the future.
- Microsoft Vista copied from HP Vista? (7/29/06) -- example of early HP window computer interface application.
- "Hewlett Packard 110 portable computer Serial Number 2419A01829," Computer History Museum, accessed Dec. 1, 2008
- "Hewlett Packard 110 portable computer Serial Number 2440A23638," Computer History Museum, accessed Dec. 1, 2008
- "Hewlett Packard 2225B portable printer," Computer History Museum, accessed Dec. 1, 2008
- "Hewlett Packard 9114 portable disk drive," Computer History Museum, accessed Dec. 1, 2008
- "HP Corvallis Division," HP Computer Museum accessed Dec. 1, 2008
- HP Computer Museum Australia -- Portable 110
