1975–1980: Founding Core was founded by Prewitt to sell and program
mini computers, assemble
micro-computers,
computer peripherals, and integrate them into business
computer systems. The company's objective was to distribute computer supplies via mail order, deliver pre-developed (off-the-shelf) software, and provide hardware maintenance services. Supplies included
printer ribbons,
paper,
diskettes, and
tape cartridges. Software ranged from mortgage interest calculators, word processing, games, and utilities to payroll, accounting, and Industry-Specific Applications. Users of the IBM 5100 Series were referred to Core by IBM sales representatives. In September 1982, Core announced the availability of the first
hard disk drives and
local area network (LAN) for the
IBM 5100 Series. Previously sold IBM systems were storage-limited and lacked network option; the
5100 had tape, while the
5110 and
5120 restricted to 1.2 Mb floppy disks. Core drives were available starting at 10 Mb and increased up to 160 Mb in removable and fixed configurations. Core-Net, the
LAN built into each Core
storage system, allowed interconnection of up to eight IBM 5100 Series systems, enabling shared storage and data. This configuration pre-dated LANs of the period for the
IBM PC and
compatibles. In 1983, Core introduced two major solutions as IBM was withdrawing from marketing the IBM 5100 series. First software called PC51 allowed 5100 series computer programs written in
BASIC to run unmodified on the IBM PC and compatibles under
MS-DOS. Second, a LAN card for the
IBM PC and compatibles that provided connection to the IBM 5100 Series network.
1984–1986: Educating the marketplace, IBM VAD, hard disk drives, PC and backup In 1984, Core entered the
personal computer (PC) marketplace. The company's first product introduced the year before, called PC-51, was an operating system (and language) for the
IBM PC and
compatibles. It enabled a PC to function like an IBM 5110/5120 system. A few weeks after the introduction of the new
IBM AT in August 1984, Core discovered problems in the factory-issued hard disk drive. As the media and marketplace became aware of IBM's disk problems, Core began offering alternative solutions during a period of limited competition. For more than six months, the IBM AT model with the
CMI was in short supply. Delays were attributed to lack of drives, technical problems with the machine, and other issues. Core desired a major partner and established a collaboration with
Control Data Corporation (CDC) to work on the introduction of the drives for the PC marketplace. The announcement was made in February 1985. Purchasers of the IBM AT reported some dealers were installing inferior drives into the computer without disclosing this fact. Core developed the DiskP program, later replaced by the COREtest (DOS based), to identify sub-standard products by providing a visual demonstration of the speed and comparative measurements of hard disk drives and controllers. Many computer publications, hardware manufacturers, distributors, dealers and independent evaluation firms employed COREtest for product comparison, which led to widespread citation of COREtest in computing publications and evaluation reports. ==References==