The DEC Logo

The company Digital Equipment corporation, also as DEC or digital designation, is a pioneer in the computer industry. Company headquarters was in May pool of broadcasting corporations, Massachusetts in an old cotton spinning mill ("“The Mill"”).

DEC was created 1957 by Ken Olsen. 1961 began the production of a very successful series of computers, which was continued later than VAX under the operating system VMS with the PDP-1.

In the year 1977 Ken Olsen, president of the Digital Equipment corporation delivered, the allegedly following memorable and in different wording gladly quoted statement:

"“There is NO reason anyone would want A computer into their home."”

German: "“There is no reason, why somebody wanted to have a computer in its house."”

It denies this however:

"“I'm quoted all the time as saying (early during the PC revolution) that there which NO reason ton have A computers into the home. What I said, I said very carefully and knew exactly what I which saying because I had prepared it. I said, "“I don't think incoming goods want our personal live run by computers."” If you steal something from the refrigerator RK midnight, you don't want it duck-talk into the computers. "“

Enterprise history

Into the 1960er years produced DEC a computer series, which should be substantially more favorable less efficiently, but in addition, than IBM Mainframe computers. The company with the production of the well-known PDP-8 created the break-through in the year 1964. The PDP-8 used 12 bits long words and for approx. 16,000 US Dollar was sold. This computer could be used even in smaller industrial companies and filled by the portability and the relatively simple structure market gaps, which were not to be reached with large computers so far. This is historically seen an important aspect, because the PDP-8 was the first computer, which was bought also by private people and used for a special purpose, while Mainframe computers were still so large and expensive that they were used only for several purposes by several users. Nowadays one calls the PDP-8 as world-wide the first mini-computer at all.

The abbreviation PDP stands for "“Programmed DATA Processor"”, which means actually nothing else as "„computer "“. DEC avoided however the word computer, in order to differ from the large competition IBM. IBM built computers and DEC PDPs - one wanted not unnecessarily to wake the attention of IBM.

The last model of the well-known PDP Rechnerserie was the PDP-11, which used 16 bits long words, because in the meantime ASCII had become generally accepted as de facto Standard in the computer industry. PDP-11-Rechner were meant as advancement of the PDP-8 for the same targeted applications and later in housings available, which were not larger than modern PCs. Place saving could be achieved by use of integrated circuits. For computing centres and larger data-processing systems the PDP-10 was meant (36-Bit architecture), which was sold under the name DECsystem 10 and DECsystem 20. Several also today still well-known operating systems could be operated on the PDP-11, among them also the Bell lab Unix as well as DECs own RSX and RSTS. Both RSTS and Unix could be acquired for training and training purposes very favorably or free of charge. Thus the PDP-11 developed to the play meadow of several generations of computer engineers and researchers.

The PDP-11 was equipped with a 64K large address area and contained an organized memory by page.

In the year 1976 DEC developed a completely new and extremely small 32-Bit architecture, which sold VAX 11/780 for the first time as the first in the 1978 was used. DEC could control the small computer market with this product for a considerable time, although competitor like e.g. DATA general (which of a former DEC coworker had been created, which suggested a 16-Bit architecture, which was rejected by management) tried to recover market shares. The success of DEC was based however not only on DECs of technical superiority, but above all also by the market tendency within the range of the workstations, which developed in favor of the small computers. Thereupon "„the Jupiter was broken "“- project off, which planned the development of a successor for the PDP-10, and DEC concentrated on the development and marketing of the VAX computers.

The VAX had even a command sentence very large for today's conditions and a great many addressing modes. Additionally to Paging and protected memory the VAX supports virtual memory: The name VAX stands for Virtual address eXtension. Both UNIX and DECs own VMS could be used.

At its best times (end of the 1980er years) the Digital Equipment corporation was the second largest computer company of the world and had over 100.000 employees. At this time the company guidance seemed approximate to implement a managerial policy, which suggested a feeling of invulnerability, and extended the product range by provided software for almost any appearing promising market gap. In addition also the development of its own network system (DECnet), software to the common file and printer use, relational data base systems and even software belonged to the transaction-based processing. Although the software was quite well durchdacht and implemented, was nevertheless difficult it to integrate, since it was developed with focus on DEC own products. This led to the fact that the software of many potential customers ignored and instead software was procured by other manufacturers. This problem was strengthened by Olsens aversion against advertisement and the thought that well thought software out itself sold, nor. Hundreds of millions US Dollar were put into the conversion of these software projects, while workstations near-handed at the same time increasingly on basis of RISC architecture to the performance of the VAX. By the success of the prop. guessing eras VAX/VMS of products dazzled, the competition became by Intel based personal computers (PC) as well as the fact that commercial hardware interspersed itself and on standards developing software, not perception. So the Digital Equipment corporation at the beginning of the 1990er had to accept years a surprising recession in sales and dismiss coworkers.

DEC tried somewhat later to implement a new generation of mass storage systems with the name RA-90. This development project second largest in entire firm history should contain some important technological innovations, which should flow at the same time into the new, at that time very modern seeming product. Unfortunately the product could not be marketed due to difficulties with the product Design in time, so that during the introduction on the market strong competition prevailed and the presenting project, which could have been a large profit for the company, an enormous mistake became.

As consequence thereupon a new CCU with 64-Bit RISC architecture develops (contrary to the 32-Bit CISC architecture, which was used in the VAX computers), which could be used both for servers and for workstations. The result, the alpha processor, which could shine even in the new millenium still by its speed, gave the possibility to the user of deciding for operating systems executable of three on new architecture: DECs VMS, UNIX and Microsoft Windows NT. DEC tried then to seize also within the range of the UNIX operating systems foot and marketed the own VMS as "“OpenVMS"”, as well as the own UNIX "“OSF/1"” first as "“digitally Unix"” and later than "“Tru64"”. Although strengthens Werbekampagnen were switched, it did not succeed to DEC to win in the overcrowded UNIX market sufficient portions. Additionally success Intel based Low ending PC server with Windows NT operating system made the sales more difficult of system on basis of the alpha processor. So DEC with the exception of faithful customers of many years could convince only few of the new system.

Ken Olsen was replaced as CEO by Robert Palmer, the enterprise wrote nevertheless further red numbers. The data base section of the enterprise was sold at Oracle. In May 1997 DEC complained against Intel with the statement, Intel the patent laws for alpha processors by the development of the Pentium CCU hurt. The enterprises agreed, and DEC sold its entire processor section at Intel. The network section of the enterprise was sold at Cabletron.

DEC was sold on 26 January 1998 at Compaq (http://www.heise.de/newsticker/meldung/1880).

Compaq again was taken over 2002 of Hewlett-Packard (http://www.heise.de/newsticker/meldung/20791).

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