ThinkPad Book

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#1 Post by **schen** » Fri Mar 24, 2006 1:10 am

Just curious. Has anyone else here read the "ThinkPad: A Different Shade of Blue" book by Deborah Dell? If so, what did you guys think?

#2 Post by **draco2527** » Fri Mar 24, 2006 1:32 am

Yes, I have read the book (own 1 copy). I liked it and found it interesting, but it all depends on you!

It has some interesting facts! If you do decide to read it, let me know what you think!

WillAdams · #3 Post by **WillAdams** » Sat Jan 25, 2014 5:04 pm

I picked this up a couple of years ago, and found it quite interesting --- an interesting counterpoint to Jerry Kaplan's _StartUp_ which chronicled Go Corporation and PenPoint.

#4 Post by **thePCxp** » Sat Jan 25, 2014 5:14 pm

I haven't read it yet but I've heard of it. I really want that book.

Temetka · #5 Post by **Temetka** » Sat Jan 25, 2014 7:26 pm

This looks like an interesting read. Too bad I am unable to find it in e-book form.

automobus · #6 Post by **automobus** » Sat Jan 25, 2014 8:00 pm

I sure did. I even used excerpts from it, in a comment on lenovosocial retired blog "Design Matters", objecting to something or other Lenovo was doing. There is a lot of good in the book. But, like too many computer-related books, it badly needed a copy editor.

The book mentioned an advertisement for ThinkPad 570, with a circle saw blade. I very much want to see that ad, but I do not know where to find it. I did not find it in National Geographic Magazine, and I did not look elsewhere.

dogbarber · #7 Post by **dogbarber** » Mon Mar 03, 2014 7:51 pm

Anyone read it?

Norway Pad · #8 Post by **Norway Pad** » Tue Mar 04, 2014 12:58 am

Not yet. Bought it on eBay a couple of weeks ago, so expecting it to arrive any day now. Looking forward to it, very open minded as to what it will give me.

WillAdams · #9 Post by **WillAdams** » Tue Mar 04, 2014 8:43 pm

Yes, it's quite interesting, and an interesting addendum to Jerry Kaplan's _StartUp_.

Makes one very sad for what might have been, and the current state of the computer industry.

Every so often I'll look around, hoping to find a copy of OS/2 for Pens.

dogbarber · #10 Post by **dogbarber** » Wed Mar 12, 2014 7:38 pm

So I bought a used copy of Thinkpad: A Different Shade of Blue on ebay for the price of one dollar. Plus another 3 bucks shipping.

It came in the mail today and I opened it up to find this:

https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=E ... oto%2c.jpg

It's a first edition signed by the co-author to someone. It's in great shape. a few dust jacket scuffs proabably fom being pitched in and out of boxes when this guy was moving around.

I'd say that doubles it's value to 2 dollars now....

Brad · #11 Post by **Brad** » Wed Mar 12, 2014 9:01 pm

Nicely done.

Would look good in anyone's ThinkPad museum.

Brad

dogbarber · #12 Post by **dogbarber** » Wed Mar 12, 2014 9:24 pm

I've had a few folks PM asking if this was for sale.

I posted this in the Off Topic section just to share with everyone. I have/had no plans on selling it. If I wanted to sell it I would have placed it in the Marketplace forum.

...but I guess if someone wants to offer a million bucks then it's all theirs.

I find it interesting that Purdy was saying "Go Mobile!" in this little excerpt. He was thinking of course of laptops and their portability back in 1999. he had no idea then what "mobile" would truly come to mean today with the processing power we have in our pockets!

#13 Post by **BillMorrow** » Thu Mar 13, 2014 4:16 am

an excellent find..

now show us your thinkpad museum.. please..

#14 Post by **RealBlackStuff** » Thu Mar 13, 2014 5:09 am

Some more 'old' info: http://www.slashgear.com/lenovo-thinkpa ... -05250593/

It includes the saw blade IBM 570 (1st left in the 8th row down of old pictures).

automobus · #15 Post by **automobus** » Thu Mar 13, 2014 9:20 am

Thanks RBS. That is a nice high-resolution photo. But the advertisement had words following the photo. Bonus points to one who finds the full-page ad.

Norway Pad · #16 Post by **Norway Pad** » Mon Mar 24, 2014 2:37 am

WillAdams wrote:Makes one very sad for what might have been, and the current state of the computer industry.

Definitely an interesting read so far. I am surprised to see how IBM stumbled and snoozed when it came to developing portables in the mid-80's. And it makes one gasp when you read about actions like selling a 20% share in Intel and the IBM board turning down an initiative to buy 40% of Microsoft. Makes you 'really' wonder what could have been. But it's of course easy to look back in retrospect and see what could have been done differently. We just have to trust that the business decisions made were well founded on the information that was available at the time.

And these days the IBM business decision is to sell themselves out of the x86 segment for good. So maybe in 10-15 years time we can discuss that, after seeing where it brings IBM over the next decades.

WillAdams · #17 Post by **WillAdams** » Mon Mar 24, 2014 9:46 pm

Things which the book makes me sad about:

- that IBM wiped their brilliant ``Pad'' and did models which didn't support stylus input
- that Go Corporation's PenPoint didn't make it in the marketplace
- that OS/2 for Pens was never widely available for sale
- that IBM doesn't have a version of OS/2 waiting to deliver to all these people who desperately need a working alternative for their EOL'd Windows XP licenses

Temetka · #18 Post by **Temetka** » Fri Mar 28, 2014 1:46 am

The TransNote and 240 still look superbly awesome to me.

ThinkPad Book

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Thinkpad: A Different Shade of Blue

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A signed copy of the Thinkpad book for a buck.

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