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Bill Moggridge, GRiD Compass Designer, Dies
judgecorp writes "Bill Moggridge, the British-born designer of the first laptop computer has died aged 69. The GRiD Compass was a computing landmark, designed to meet a US government request for a briefcase-sized computer, and first sold for $8000 in 1982. The GRiD compass was used widely, and taken into orbit on the Space Shuttle. It embodied industrial design principles and paved the way for subsequent laptops and devices. Moggridge's company ID Two, later IDEO, also designed the Palm V."
Because they were bought out by AST/Tandy (who wanted the government contracts, then didn't understand why they couldn't keep them when they didn't continue making computers to the same specifications).
I had one (paid an embarrasingly high price for it in my foolish youth --- should've invested the money instead) and it was definitely one of the nicest things I ever owned (echoing Penn Jillette's sentiments on this back when he used to write the back page editorial for _PC Computing_ magazine).
Nice touches:
- Bubble memory for hard-drive like data storage in an era before portable hard drives
- the battery was removable and the power supply was shaped exactly like the battery --- if one wished to use it on a desktop one could pull the battery, insert the power supply and have less clutter on one's desk
- excellent keyboard
- the GRiD OS and bundled / integrated apps were amazing for the time
- accessories stacked up and plugged together very neatly making for a nice desktop dock-like experience
The company was also an early pen computing innovator.
Other cameos:
- One flew in a Space Shuttle mission (first laptop in space)
- The Richmond, VA phone book's cover one year was of a soldier during the Gulf War I believe sihouetted against the sun w/ a GRiD laptop balanced on one knee
- one used to be in the ``football'' attache case which the President's nuclear weapon launch code system was kept in.
William
Sphinx of black quartz, judge my vow.