Computer / Design / Nerds


IBM 2401s

Apparently, the Eames liked the look of the IBM 2401s too. 
This is a card from the Eames Computer House of Cards from the IBM Pavilion at the 1970 World’s Fair in Osaka, Japan

IBM showroom, pre- and post- Eliot Noyes

IBM logos by Paul Rand

Eames chair at IBM

More Eames but not IBM this time

Wall of computer nerd buttons




I have my own nerd button -- a Paul Rand design for IBM. The image is from the IBM Pavilion at the 1964 World's Fair.
As mentioned in previous posts, Eliot Noyes was instrumental in getting Paul Rand and the Eames Office involved with IBM.
More about IBM and the 1964 World's Fair can be found here.  

Speaking of Noyes, this non-IBM computer utilized a Noyes-designed IBM Selectric in its design.

 Squee, the robot squirrel, by Edmund Berkeley, 1951 

Prototype mouse (replica), 1964. Douglas Carl Engelbart, the inventor of the mouse, passed away last week
More about Engelbart here.

This Honeywell computer for the kitchen was listed at $10K in the 1969 Neimen-Marcus catalog.
In addition to storing recipes, there was a built-in cutting board. None were sold through the catalog, 
though handful were sold through other venues.  

Yes!

Commodore PET


There was an Apple II in the Computer History Museum collection, but no Apple 1.

I wonder if they bought the Apple 1 that sold at Christie's earlier this week for $387K?
Source: Christie's

NeXt was a computer company co-founded by Steve Jobs in the late 1980s. 
Paul Rand was paid $100K for his work on the NeXT logo.  That was a big number back then.
In 1993, Steve Jobs was interviewed about working with Paul Rand. 
Jobs said: “I asked him if he would come up with a few options, and he said, ‘No, I will solve your problem 
for you and you will pay me. And you don’t have to use the solution. If you want options, go talk to other people.’”
You can watch the entire video here.
Steven Heller also wrote a piece on the NeXT logo for Print.