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It’s generally not such a good idea to say something can’t or won’t be done, especially in the world of science and technology.

things people say - predictions

  • “I think there is a world market for maybe five computers.” — Thomas Watson, chairman of IBM, 1943.
  • “Where a calculator on the ENIAC is equipped with 18,000 vacuum tubes and weighs 30 tons, computers in the future may have only 1,000 vacuum tubes and weigh only 1.5 tons.” — Popular Mechanics, 1949
  • “I have traveled the length and breadth of this country and talked with the best people, and I can assure you that data processing is a fad that won’t last out the year.” — The editor in charge of business books for Prentice Hall, 1957.
  • “But what…is it good for?” — Engineer at the Advanced Computing Systems Division of IBM, 1968, commenting on the microchip.
  • “There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home.” — Ken Olson, president, chairman and founder of Digital Equipment Corp., 1977.
  • “640K ought to be enough for anybody.” — Attributed to Bill Gates, 1981, but believed to be an urban legend.

Read the rest of the list here.

This entry was posted by Gary Pool on April 21, 2010 at 10:46 pm under Fun. Tagged , . Both comments and pings are currently closed.