Number 288 - May 2007

The Garage
Berry F. Phillips (bfpdata@laccess.net), Computer Club of Oklahoma City (www.ccokc.org)
IT was born in a garage! If you had driven by the garage, you would not have noticed there was anything strange about the garage since it looked like all the other garages. However, if you were a neighbor you would be aware of certain unusual activity. You would have noticed cars lining the street, and people going into the garage carrying various equipment. If a neighbor was blessed or cursed, with an active imagination several fantasy explanations could come to mind. Perhaps it was a band practicing but there was no sound of music. Perhaps it was some kind of a terrorist group but no smoke or explosions or sounds of automatic rifles being fired. Well, the garage could be used for all kinds of purposes but one thing is certain; It was not being used as a garage!    The garage was located in Menlo Park, San Mateo County, California and was a maternity ward for the birthing in March 1975 of the Homebrew Computer Club. The 1999 made-for-television movie. "Pirates of the Silicon Valley (and the book on which it was based, "Fire In the Valley: The Making of the Personal Computer") describes the role the Homebrew Computer Club played in creating the first personal computer.    Hackers were attracted to the garage like steel to a magnet (in those days it was just another name for a computer enthusiast like nerd or geek). In the old days a hacker is one who "hacks" through a computer problem and who writes his own code to fix it. In modern times a hacker has unfortunately a negative connotation and should be correctly called a cracker, a combination of the words, criminal and hacker. The hackers wanted to "homebrew" their own machines using parts from the Altair computer kit, computer chips such as Intel 8080, or any other computer equipment. While members of the Homebrew Computer Club were hobbyists, most had electronic engineering or programming backgrounds. I am reminded of Bill Gates' Open Letter to Hobbyists which lambasted the early hackers time for modifying and pirating commercial software programs. Several founders of microcomputer companies including Bob Marsh, Adam	Osborne, Lee Filsenstein, Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniack were founding members of the Homebrew Computer Club. Thirty years later, a reunion celebration was held as part of the Vintage Computer Festival sponsored by the Computer Museum. Upon completion of activities in the exhibit hall, there was an autograph signing and vintage computer equipment for sale that took many a hacker back to those early days they "homebrewed" their computer.    The Homebrew Computer Club's newsletter, one of the major forces that influenced the formation of Silicon Valley, was created and edited by members. The first issue was published in 1975 and ended after 21 issues in December 1977. There have been other Homebrew Computer Clubs, like the one in the Netherlands that started with a dozen members and operates today with 180 thousand members, the largest association in the world. Their small newsletter grew into the magazine, "Computer Total."    Today, many original members of the Homebrew Computer Club meet as the 6800 Club named after the Motorola (now Freescale) 6800 microprocessor. Who would have thought that a garage would be a maternity ward for the Information Technology Industry? I have decided to elevate the status of the lowly garage in my mind especially since I found out many of our largest corporations were also born in a garage! I am thinking now that a garage should not be for cars or junk but a shrine dedicated to American ingenuity and innovation!    This article has been provided to APCUG by the author solely for publication by APCUG member groups. All other uses require the permission of the author (see e-mail address above)    Toggle Ed Note:    Several computer group newsletters including this one have endured for many, many years although our membership is still quite modest.
Number 288 - May 2007