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Kaypro Corporation, commonly called Kaypro, was an American home/personal computer manufacturer of the 1980s. The company was founded by Non-Linear Systems to develop computers to compete with the then-popular Osborne 1 portable microcomputer. Kaypro produced a line of rugged, "luggable" CP/M-based computers sold with an extensive software bundle which supplanted its competitors and quickly became one of the top selling personal computer lines of the early 1980s. While exceptionally loyal to its original consumer base, Kaypro was slow to adapt to the changing computer market and the advent of IBM PC compatible technology. It faded from the mainstream before the end of the decade and was eventually forced into filing for bankruptcy in 1992. ==History== Kaypro began as Non-Linear Systems, a maker of electronic test equipment, founded in 1952 by Andrew Kay, the inventor of the digital voltmeter. In the 1970s, NLS was an early adopter of microprocessor technology, which enhanced the flexibility of products such as production-line test sets. In 1981, Non-Linear Systems began designing a personal computer, called KayComp, that would compete with the popular Osborne 1 transportable microcomputer. In 1982, Non-Linear Systems organized a daughter company named the Kaypro Corporation and rechristened the computer with the same name. Despite the numbering, the company's first model used the Roman numeral II—one of the most popular microcomputers at the time was the Apple II. The Kaypro II was designed to be portable like the Osborne. (When battery-powered laptop computers became available, the larger machines came to be called ''transportable '' or ''luggable'', rather than ''portable''.) Set in an aluminum case with a keyboard that snapped onto the front covering the CRT, it weighed 29 pounds (13 kilograms) and was equipped with a Zilog Z80 microprocessor, 64 kilobytes of RAM, and two 5¼-inch double-density floppy-disk drives. The keyboard used the CP/M layout of Control but no Alt key. It ran on Digital Research, Inc.'s CP/M operating system, and sold for about US $1,795 (). The company advertised the Kaypro II as "the $1595 computer that sells for $1595". Although the press mocked its design—one magazine described Kaypro as "producing computers packaged in tin cans"—by mid-1983 the company was selling more than 10,000 units a month, briefly making it the fifth-largest computer maker in the world. The Kaypro II's market success was due to a number of factors: It had a larger screen than the Osborne; it was a relatively inexpensive, simple to set up closed architecture system at a time when first-time computer buyers made up almost the entirety of the market; it came bundled with popular third-party application software (PerfectWriter, PerfectFiler, and PerfectCalc, later to be replaced by MicroPro's WordStar and CalcStar); and it was supported by a network of trained dealers. The boxy units were so popular that they spawned a network of hobbyist user groups across the United States that provided local support for Kaypro products; the company worked with the user groups and would have a salesman drop by if in the area. Kaypro's success contributed to the eventual failure of the Osborne Computer Corporation and Morrow Designs. A much more rugged seeming, "industrialized" design than competitors such as the Osborne made the Kaypro popular for commercial/industrial applications. Its RS232 port was widely used by service technicians for on-site equipment configuration, control and diagnostics. Kaypro published and subsidized ''ProFiles: The Magazine for Kaypro Users'', a monthly, 72-page, four-color magazine that went beyond coverage of Kaypro's products to include substantive information on CP/M and MS-DOS; frequent contributors included Ted Chiang, David Gerrold, Robert J. Sawyer, and Ted Silveira.〔Many issues are archived at https://archive.org/search.php?query=collection%3Akayproprofiles&sort=-publicdate, retrieved 2014-09-10〕 Another popular magazine that covered Kaypro computers was ''Micro Cornucopia'', published at Bend, Oregon.〔55 issues are archived at https://archive.org/search.php?query=MicroCornucopia%20AND%20mediatype%3Atexts, retrieved 2014-09-10〕 Arthur C. Clarke used a Kaypro II to write and collaboratively edit (via modem from Sri Lanka) his 1982 novel 2010: Odyssey Two and the later film adaptation.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=About Sir Arthur )〕 A book, ''The Odyssey File - The Making of 2010'', was later released about the collaboration. Following the success of the Kaypro II, Kaypro moved on to produce a long line of similar computers into the mid 80s. Exceedingly loyal to its original core group of customers, Kaypro continued using the CP/M operating system long after it had been abandoned by its competitors. In late 1984 Kaypro introduced its first IBM PC compatible, the Kaypro 16 transportable. While admitting that "it's what our dealers asked for", the company stated that it would continue to produce its older computers. Other PC compatibles were the Kaypro PC, Kaypro 286i (the first 286 IBM PC AT compatible), the Kaypro 386, and the Kaypro 2000 (a rugged aluminum-body battery-powered laptop with a detachable keyboard). The slow start into the IBM clone market would have serious ramifications. After several turbulent years, with sales dwindling, Kaypro filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in March 1990. Despite restructuring, the company was unable to recover and filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in June 1992. In 1995, its remaining assets were sold for $2.7 million.〔 * US Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit (2000).(''Arrow Electronics v. Justus 9955210'' ). Retrieved April. 1, 2006.〕 The Kaypro name briefly re-emerged as an online vendor of Microsoft Windows PCs in 1999, but was discontinued in 2001 by its parent company (Premio Computers Inc. ) because of sluggish sales.〔PC World. (May 22, 2001) http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,50725-page,1/article.html - Accessed: March 15, 2007〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Kaypro」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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