IBM 5550
Encyclopedia
IBM 5550 is a personal computer
series that IBM
marketed in Japan
, Korea
, Taiwan
and China
in the 1980s and 1990s, for business use customers. In Japan, its was introduced in 1983 and promoted as "Multistation 5550" because it had three roles in one machine: a PC
, a word processing machine which was traditionally marketed as a machine different from a PC in Japan, and an IBM-host attached terminal.
that had been marketed by IBM
since 1981, using Intel 8088
, was not powerful enough to process the far eastern languages of Japanese, Korean and Chinese. Nor was the resolution of IBM PC's VGA
display high enough to show the comples characters of these languages.
The IBM 5550 was first introduced in Japan in March 1983,, using Intel 8086
microprocessor and was called "Multistation 5550" because it had three roles in one machine: a PC
, a word processing machine which was traditionally marketed in Japan as a machine different from a PC, and an online
terminal.
After the Japanese 5550 models, Korean, Traditional Chinese and Simplified Chinese models were also introduced. IBM 5550 initially used its own architecture, but, later since 1987, was changed to use IBM Personal System/2
's Micro Channel Architecture
, being re-named as Personal System/55.
In Japan, Kiyoshi Atsumi
, a film actor, was used to promote the 5550. IBM later introduced IBM JX
for home users in Japan, Australia and New Zealand, and DOS/V
for both business and home users in Japan.
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
series that IBM
IBM
International Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas...
marketed in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
, Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
and China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
in the 1980s and 1990s, for business use customers. In Japan, its was introduced in 1983 and promoted as "Multistation 5550" because it had three roles in one machine: a PC
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
, a word processing machine which was traditionally marketed as a machine different from a PC in Japan, and an IBM-host attached terminal.
General
The IBM PCIBM PC
The IBM Personal Computer, commonly known as the IBM PC, is the original version and progenitor of the IBM PC compatible hardware platform. It is IBM model number 5150, and was introduced on August 12, 1981...
that had been marketed by IBM
IBM
International Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas...
since 1981, using Intel 8088
Intel 8088
The Intel 8088 microprocessor was a variant of the Intel 8086 and was introduced on July 1, 1979. It had an 8-bit external data bus instead of the 16-bit bus of the 8086. The 16-bit registers and the one megabyte address range were unchanged, however...
, was not powerful enough to process the far eastern languages of Japanese, Korean and Chinese. Nor was the resolution of IBM PC's VGA
Video Graphics Array
Video Graphics Array refers specifically to the display hardware first introduced with the IBM PS/2 line of computers in 1987, but through its widespread adoption has also come to mean either an analog computer display standard, the 15-pin D-subminiature VGA connector or the 640×480 resolution...
display high enough to show the comples characters of these languages.
The IBM 5550 was first introduced in Japan in March 1983,, using Intel 8086
Intel 8086
The 8086 is a 16-bit microprocessor chip designed by Intel between early 1976 and mid-1978, when it was released. The 8086 gave rise to the x86 architecture of Intel's future processors...
microprocessor and was called "Multistation 5550" because it had three roles in one machine: a PC
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
, a word processing machine which was traditionally marketed in Japan as a machine different from a PC, and an online
ONLINE
ONLINE is a magazine for information systems first published in 1977. The publisher Online, Inc. was founded the year before. In May 2002, Information Today, Inc. acquired the assets of Online Inc....
terminal.
After the Japanese 5550 models, Korean, Traditional Chinese and Simplified Chinese models were also introduced. IBM 5550 initially used its own architecture, but, later since 1987, was changed to use IBM Personal System/2
IBM Personal System/2
The Personal System/2 or PS/2 was IBM's third generation of personal computers. The PS/2 line, released to the public in 1987, was created by IBM in an attempt to recapture control of the PC market by introducing an advanced proprietary architecture...
's Micro Channel Architecture
Micro Channel architecture
Micro Channel Architecture was a proprietary 16- or 32-bit parallel computer bus introduced by IBM in 1987 which was used on PS/2 and other computers through the mid 1990s.- Background :...
, being re-named as Personal System/55.
In Japan, Kiyoshi Atsumi
Kiyoshi Atsumi
Kiyoshi Atsumi , born Yasuo Tadokoro , was a Japanese film actor....
, a film actor, was used to promote the 5550. IBM later introduced IBM JX
IBM JX
The IBM JX was a personal computer released in 1984 into the Japanese, Australian and New Zealand markets. Designed in Japan, it was based on the technology of the IBM PCjr and was designated the IBM 5511.-General:...
for home users in Japan, Australia and New Zealand, and DOS/V
DOS/V
DOS/V was a Japanese computing initiative starting in 1990 to allow personal computers to handle double-byte Japanese text via software alone. It was developed by IBM for its PS/55 machines . Kanji fonts and other locale information were stored on the hard disk rather than on special chips as in...
for both business and home users in Japan.
Its features
IBM 5550's features are:- Intel 8086 microprocessor
- 15-inch CRTCathode ray tubeThe cathode ray tube is a vacuum tube containing an electron gun and a fluorescent screen used to view images. It has a means to accelerate and deflect the electron beam onto the fluorescent screen to create the images. The image may represent electrical waveforms , pictures , radar targets and...
display of 24 lines of 80 characters each, each character 24×24 or 16x16 dots - Up to three 5¼ inch double-density (720 KB) floppy disk drives
- Japanese DOSDOSDOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
or OS/2OS/2OS/2 is a computer operating system, initially created by Microsoft and IBM, then later developed by IBM exclusively. The name stands for "Operating System/2," because it was introduced as part of the same generation change release as IBM's "Personal System/2 " line of second-generation personal... - Application programs, such as Japanese Bunsho Program for word processing, 3270 emulation or 5250 emulation for IBM host communication, etc.
Its models
- 5551-A/B/C/D/E/G/H/J/K/M/P (Basic models, placed beside the display. Later became a smaller size like 5540)
- 5541-B/E/J/K/M/P (Smaller size models, on which the display can be placed. Later made even smaller)
- 5561-G/H/J/K/M/P (Larger size models)
- 5530-G/H (Stand-alone models, without the communications adapter. Used 3½ inch floppy disk)
- 5535-M (Laptop, using 3½ inch floppy disk)
Competition
In Japan, Multistation 5550 competed against:- FujitsuFujitsuis a Japanese multinational information technology equipment and services company headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. It is the world's third-largest IT services provider measured by revenues....
FMR Series - NEC PC-9801 Series and NEC N5200/5300 Series
See also
- IBM PCIBM PCThe IBM Personal Computer, commonly known as the IBM PC, is the original version and progenitor of the IBM PC compatible hardware platform. It is IBM model number 5150, and was introduced on August 12, 1981...
, IBM PC/AT and IBM PS/2 - IBM JXIBM JXThe IBM JX was a personal computer released in 1984 into the Japanese, Australian and New Zealand markets. Designed in Japan, it was based on the technology of the IBM PCjr and was designated the IBM 5511.-General:...
, AX architectureAX architectureAX was a Japanese computing initiative starting in around 1986 to allow PCs to handle double-byte Japanese text via special hardware chips, whilst allowing compatibility with software written for foreign IBM PCs. It was developed by a consortium including Sony, Hitachi, Sharp, Oki, Casio, Canon,...
and DOS/VDOS/VDOS/V was a Japanese computing initiative starting in 1990 to allow personal computers to handle double-byte Japanese text via software alone. It was developed by IBM for its PS/55 machines . Kanji fonts and other locale information were stored on the hard disk rather than on special chips as in... - List of IBM products
External links
- Introducing Multistation 5550 (in Japanese describes the models in detail)