The Birth of the Machine That Changed the World: "Twenty-five years ago today the nation?s largest computer company introduced to the world its smallest computer ever, the IBM Personal Computer. The rollout of the PC was perhaps the most momentous product introduction of the past half century. But was it a phenomenal market coup or a serious business blunder? A shot of adrenaline for the personal computer industry or a technical hodgepodge that would leave a generation of computer users tearing out their hair?"