not only was RadioShack the only computer store in town, but they also helped open up the IBM platform by selling the Tandy computer (produced by their parent company, Tandy). Prior to that they created and sold the TRS-80.
It's easy to toss rocks at them today. But it's hard to understate their importance to the early PC industry.
Ultimately Jobs was right. This sort of hobbyist market wasn't going to last (and RadioShack has completely missed the boat on the 3d printing and "maker" movements). We don't have smartphones with BASIC installed. Computer makers don't even care about that aspect of their devices (that is, that they are programmable). Things have changed quite dramatically.
It's easy to toss rocks at them today. But it's hard to understate their importance to the early PC industry.
Ultimately Jobs was right. This sort of hobbyist market wasn't going to last (and RadioShack has completely missed the boat on the 3d printing and "maker" movements). We don't have smartphones with BASIC installed. Computer makers don't even care about that aspect of their devices (that is, that they are programmable). Things have changed quite dramatically.