Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!rutgers!rochester!cornell!batcomputer!pyramid!weitek!sci!phil
From: phil@sci.UUCP (Phil Kaufman)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc
Subject: Re: The New Chips
Summary: PC CHIP SELECTION FACTS!
Keywords: Intel IBM
Message-ID: <14728@sci.UUCP>
Date: 4 Feb 88 16:32:00 GMT
References: <4746@watdragon.waterloo.edu> <1430@husc2.UUCP> <4227@utai.UUCP> <2193@chinet.UUCP>
Distribution: na
Organization: Silicon Compilers Systems Corp. San Jose, Ca
Lines: 27


A POX UPON THOSE WHO SPECULATE, HYPOTHESIZE, AND IMAGINE AND THEN
PRESENT THEIR THOUGHTS AS FACTS.

All of the discussion about why and how IBM selected the 8088 for
the first PC that has floated about on the net is about 1% truth and
99% rewritten history and absolute garbage. While I was not at IBM
at that time I was the General Manager of Intel's Microprocessor Operation
and do know some of the REAL facts!

Fact: IBM did not own any of Intel at the time and no discussions about
purchasing any of Intel were held until years later.

Fact: IBM is paranoid about accepting confidential information from
anyone and would not even look at the preliminary plans for the 80286
that existed at the time.

Fact: IBM purchased 25,000 sets of parts for the prototype run of the
first PC - not exactly what one would do for a placeholder product.

Fact: The available CP/M software and full family of chips, including
the 8087 math processor, seemed from all wecould determine to be the
deciding factor (also, compatible 8 and 16-bit bus versions of the chip).


NOW, lets get this discussion off of these news groups and either drop
it entirely or form comp.rumors.fantasy.