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Bill Moggridge RIP

Chuck(G)

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From the AP:

Bill Moggridge, a British industrial designer who designed an early portable computer with the flip-open shape that is common today, has ied. He was 69.

The Smithsonian's Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum said Moggridge, its director since 2010, died on Saturday from cancer.

Moggridge is credited with the design of the Grid Compass, a computer that had a keyboard and yellow-on-black display that sold for $8,150 when it was released in 1982. It was encased in magnesium and seen as rugged, and was used by the U.S. military.

Full story here.

So, you Grid Compass owners, open your system's lid today and think of Bill.
 
How well known was he?

He was fairly well known in the industrial design world his company has a nice tribute. And of course, with the Cooper-Hewitt museum. Very little known in the computer world, I think.

Tandy bought Grid and sued the pants off of Toshiba for patent infringement back in the day.

When I was at IIT in Chicago, I was envious of the ID students who got to use all sorts of interesting toys. ID had the best looking women too.
 
I bet that this computer will get the a price up in a few days.
Yep, I wouldn't be surprised either. It's always the ignoranti that drive prices up. From the listing:

The Historical GriD Disc Drive with at its time a massive 10 meg harddrive.
(sigh) At least he didn't say "whopping".

He was already well recognized in 1988. I hadn't heard of him either (what do I know), but the Wikipedia article gives some idea of the man's fame.

Moggridge was given an honorary doctorate from CCA (California College of the Arts) in San Francisco in 2012.

In 2010, he was given the Prince Philip Designers Prize.

Moggridge was given a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009 at the National Design Awards, in a ceremony at the White House, presided over by First Lady Michelle Obama.

In 1988 Moggridge was named a Royal Designer for Industry by the RSA (Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce).
 
Sad news; I don't own a Grid but I've watched videos of them on YT and the design looks far ahead of what anyone else was attempting to do at the time.

Tandy bought Grid and sued the pants off of Toshiba for patent infringement back in the day.
Presumably they lost in the end, since the "clamshell" form factor has long been ubiquitous. I guess if they'd succeeded in enforcing that one then Grid (or Tandy rather) would be raking in the money these days with all the license payments they'd be getting as a result.
 
Presumably they lost in the end, since the "clamshell" form factor has long been ubiquitous. I guess if they'd succeeded in enforcing that one then Grid (or Tandy rather) would be raking in the money these days with all the license payments they'd be getting as a result.

As I recall, the basis of the lawsuit against Toshiba was the design of the clamshell hinge, not the idea of the clamshell itself. I can remember seeing a mock-up of a clamshell computer in the very early 1980s. I don't think it went anywhere--too many technical problems, but it shows that the idea was around.
 
As I recall, the basis of the lawsuit against Toshiba was the design of the clamshell hinge, not the idea of the clamshell itself. I can remember seeing a mock-up of a clamshell computer in the very early 1980s. I don't think it went anywhere--too many technical problems, but it shows that the idea was around.
I have a Sharp PC-5000, the second clamshell portable after the Grid AFAIK; unusual latching hinge, but works well. Also one of very few systems to use bubble memory cartridges instead of disks...
 
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