From DIY computers to illegal copies: The controversy over tinkering with microcomputers in Taiwan, 1980-1984

Honghong Tinn

doi:10.1109/MAHC.2011.38

From DIY computers to illegal copies: The controversy over tinkering with microcomputers in Taiwan, 1980-1984

Honghong Tinn

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

12 Scopus citations

Abstract

In the early 1980s, tinkerers assembling and modifying microcomputers opened up this black-boxed technology and helped popularize microcomputers in Taiwan. Such activities, however, prompted copyright suits between Apple Computer and Taiwanese computer manufacturers. This article delineates the debate around those suits and examines how this practice shaped new social meanings of microcomputers in Taiwan.

Original language	English (US)
Article number	5771313
Pages (from-to)	75-88
Number of pages	14
Journal	IEEE Annals of the History of Computing
Volume	33
Issue number	2
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1109/MAHC.2011.38
State	Published - Apr 2011
Externally published	Yes

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
issue, and the two anonymous referees for their helpful comments. I also acknowledge the support of US National Science Foundation grant number 0847981, a Graduate School Research Travel Grant, and Hu-Shih Memorial Awards from the East Asia Program at Cornell University.

Keywords

Apple Computer
Apple II
History of computing
Taiwan
compatibles
microcomputers
software
tinkering

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From DIY computers to illegal copies: The controversy over tinkering with microcomputers in Taiwan, 1980-1984

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Keywords

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