Contributions of Adam Osborne: The inventor of first portable computer

Imagine it’s early 1981. You are a business person and you want a new personal computer. So, what type of computer do you want? Well, you should want something affordable, something portable, perhaps, something that ranks with the latest standards of time, and definitely which gives you all kinds of business software. Who delivered? It’s Adam Osborne.

Yes, we are talking about the man who was an entrepreneur famous for the first portable computer, but was also a writer who took successful steps to publish computer books and software.

It was March 6, 1939. Adam Osborne was born to British parents in Thailand. During his childhood he attended school and graduated from the University of Birmingham in 1961, after which he received his PhD from the University of Delaware.

After completing his education, he began his career as a chemical engineer working for Shell Oil. However, then left it in the early 1970's to pursue an interest in writing on computers and technology.

He founded Osborne and Associates in 1972, specializing in easy-to-follow computer manuals. Before that he was recognized to have written the documentation for the first microprocessor in 1971. His first and probably most influential book was "An Introduction to Microcomputers." It is known that some of the early work by Bill Gates and Paul Allen came out of this manual. Rejected by other publishers, the book eventually sold 300,000 copies.

At that time, personal computers were expensive. Osborne thought that it should be cheap and portable. He began to work on it and collaborated with Les Felsenstein, dean of the Homebrew Computer Club. Mr. Les Felsenstein eventually designed the first portable computer. And the day arrived. They launched their first portable computer, Osborne 1, in April 1981.

Osborne 1, the first ever portable computer, was a huge revolution of its time. Interestingly, it was designed in a way so that it could fit in an airline seat! It was released at a groundbreaking price of $1,795.

His efforts and aspirations were met with great success. The world also saw something new that had never been seen before. But it was not a completely successful project, especially if you think about the long run. Sad reality is it didn’t compete with other competitors such as IBM PC, Kaypro and Compaq.

The story of Adam Osborne's career's ups and downs is similar to the story of other normal people. But what sets him apart is his consumer-friendly thinking. The result is this: Osborne 1. And for that he will always be remembered.

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