1986

• Microsoft releases MS-DOS 3.25.
• Apple Computer introduces the Macintosh Plus. It features a 8-MHz 68000 processor, 1 MB RAM, SCSI connector for hard drive support, a new keyboard with cursor keys and numeric keypad, and an 800 KB 3.5-inch floppy drive. Price is US$2600.
• Apple Computer introduces the LaserWriter Plus printer.
• John Sculley becomes chairman of Apple Computer.
• Compaq Computer reports third year revenues of US$503.9 million, a U.S. business record.
• Eric Graham shows his "Juggler" demo animation on the Amiga, showing the Amiga's capabilities of ray-traced animation merged with digitized sound.
• IBM announces the IBM RT Personal Computer, using RISC-based technology from IBM's "801" project of the mid-70s. It is one of the first commercially-available 32-bit RISC-based computers. The base configuration has 1MB RAM, a 1.2MB floppy, and 40 MB hard drive, for US$11,700. With performance of only 2 MIPS, it is doomed from the beginning.
• Microsoft releases MS-DOS 3.2. It adds support for 3.5-inch 720 KB floppy disk drives.

• The first issue of Amazing Computing for users of the Commodore Amiga is published.
• Compaq Computer introduces the Compaq Portable II.
• Quarterdeck Office Systems ships DESQview 1.1.
• Quarterdeck Office Systems ships DESQview 1.2.
• Microsoft moves from Bellevue to Redmond, Washington.
• Microsoft releases a French version of Windows 1.02.

• Apple Computer acquires rights to publish a French database program, 4th Dimension, in the US.
• The First International Conference on CD-ROM is held in Seattle, Washington, hosted by Microsoft.
• IBM begins shipping the IBM RT PC.
• Microsoft first sells shares to the public, for US$21 per share. The initial public offering raises US$61 million. Bill Gates quickly becomes the world's youngest billionaire.
• Silicon Graphics decides to switch from the Motorola 68000 line to MIPS Technologies' line of RISC processors.

• Burrell Smith and Michael Boich start Radius, Inc., to produce Apple Macintosh enhancement products.
• IBM announces the IBM PC Convertible, 80C88-based, 256K RAM, and two 720K floppy disks, for US$2000.
• IBM discontinues the IBM Portable PC.
• Satellite Software International ships Student WordPerfect for US$75.
• IBM boosts the speed of the IBM PC AT by replacing the CPU with a 8-MHz Intel 80286.
• Jim Manzi is named chief executive officer of Lotus Development Corp.
• Microsoft releases Microsoft Word 3.0 for DOS.
• Compaq Computer joins the Fortune 500 list faster than any company in history.
• Compaq Computer ships its 500,000th personal computer.
• Apple Computer discontinues the original Macintosh.
• Apple Computer discontinues the Macintosh 512K.
• Apple Computer introduces the Macintosh 512K Enhanced, for US$2000. It features an 8-MHz 68000 processor, 512 KB RAM, and 800 KB 3.5-inch floppy drive.
• Satellite Software International changes its name to WordPerfect Corporation.

• IBM ships TopView 1.1.

• Systems incorporating MIPS Technologies' R2000 processor begin shipping.

• Apple Computer discontinues the Macintosh XL.
• Jim Manzi is appointed chairman of Lotus Development.
• Byte by Byte releases Sculpt 3-D for the Amiga, the first 3-D modelling program to ship for the Amiga.
• Mitch Kapor, founder of Lotus Development, resigns.

• Intel ships the 80386.
• Microsoft announces Works for the Macintosh.

• Little-known company Advanced Logic Research announces the first 386-based PC, the Access 386.
• Compaq Computer introduces the first 16-MHz Intel 80386-based PC, the Compaq Deskpro 386.
• Apple Computer introduces the Apple IIGS, with the Apple 3.5 drive, for US$1000. It uses the Western Digital Center W65C816 (65816) microprocessor, operating at 1-MHz or 2.8-MHz.
• Apple Computer releases AppleWorks 2.0.
• Apple Computer introduces the Apple 3.5 drive for the Mac and the Apple IIGS.
• IBM announces the IBM PC-XT Model 286, with 640KB RAM, 1.2MB floppy drive, 20MB hard drive, serial/parallel ports, and keyboard for US$4000.
• Leon Williams is made president of MicroPro.
• Quarterdeck Office Systems ships DESQview 1.3.
• Steve Jobs decides to use the ill-fated erasable optical disk drives for the first NeXT machine.

• WordPerfect ships WordPerfect 4.2 for US$500.
• Microsoft announces Microsoft Word 3.0 for the Macintosh.
• The first AmiEXPO is held, in New York City.
• Impulse releases Silver 1.0 for the Amiga.
• Ashton-Tate ships the one millionth copy of dBase.

• Lotus Development releases a French version of Lotus 1-2-3 v2.0 in France.

• Aldus PageMaker is released for the PC.
• WordPerfect ships WordPerfect for the Apple IIgs for US$180.

• AT&T creates the first silicon fabrication of its CRISP architecture CPU, incorporating 172,163 transistors, and operating at 16-MHz.

• Amstrad takes over the Sinclair computer operation, in England.

• Microsoft purchases Dymanical Systems, Inc., makers of a TopView clone called Mondrian.

• Inmos releases the T800 Transputer, a RISC processor with integrated floating-point capabilities.

• Motorola begins work on the 88000 processor.

• Digital Research introduces its GEM operating environment for MS-DOS.

• MIPS Technologies unveils the 8-MHz R2000 32-bit CPU. With 110,000 transistors, it achieves a speed rating of 5 MIPS.

• MIPS Technologies begins volume shipments of the R2000 processor.

• NexGen begins work on the design of a fifth generation x86 processor, called the F86.

• Adobe introduces Adobe Illustrator, a PostScript drawing tool, for the Macintosh.

• Motorola announces the 68030 microprocessor. It uses about 300,000 transistors.

• Commodore releases Transformer software for the Amiga, which, along with the Commodore 1020 5 1/4-inch disk drive, provides limited MS-DOS compatibility.

• NEC Home Electronics introduces its NEC JC-1401P3A Multisync monitor, the first multisyncing monitor.

• Software Publishing Corporation introduces Harvard Presentation Graphics for the PC.

• Ashton-Tate buys Decision Resources.

• IBM begins work on what would become the IBM RS/6000 series.

• Gateway 2000 ships its first PC.

• NexGen is founded.

• Work begins on SCSI-2.

• The Small Computer System Interface (SCSI-1) standard is finalized as ANSI X3.131-1986.

• AT&T produces a 32-bit CISC processor, the WE32100.

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