On Sun, 31 Dec 2017 13:36:32 +0900, Randy Bush said:
thomas watson: i think there is a world market for maybe five computers
"The Yale Book of Quotations quotes an I.B.M. source that this '... is a misunderstanding of remarks made at I.B.M.'s annual stockholders meeting on April 28, 1953. In referring specifically and only to the I.B.M. 701 Electronic Data Processing Machine ... Thomas Watson, Jr., told stockholders that 'I.B.M. had developed a paper plan for such a machine and took this paper plan across the country to some 20 concerns that we thought could use such a machine. As a result of our trip, on which we expected to get orders for five machines, we came home with orders for 18.'" http://freakonomics.com/2008/04/17/our-daily-bleg-did-ibm-really-see-a-world...