TechTalk: Past Failures Marvels Today

[cube_b3]

So when I have nothing to do I start thinking about random things and it is often quite fun.

Several things have been done in the past that people did not like, but a few years later a more efficient company launches the same product and boom it is a success.

1) I've not personally seen this but read somewhere that Microsoft launched tablet computers in early 2000 but for some reason they failed, but Apple launched it 10 years later and made it the best thing in the world.

2) SEGA launched SEGA.NET Almost a decade before XBLA.
It offered online games, dlc for videogames (zip drive was planned) - while probably not a failure but it wasn't considered as much of a game changer as internet on Xbox even though XBLA offers several features taken from SEGA.NET

3) The return of 3D - I personally didn't see 3D out side of the Science lab where we had the blue and green glasses.
But apparently in America it was a big thing was back when.

So I was wondering if people hear also knew of things invented in the past that are popularized/ or perfected today.

[cube_b3]

So I thought we would talk a lot more about Microsoft Tablet here?
Since no one posted I just googled my curiosity while the history of tablets stretch back to 1940s, with the first Tablet coming out in the 1960s called Rand Tablet. But the only things it has in common with tablets today is the name tablets. Honestly it looks more like a touch pad connected to a monitor.

As far as I can make sense of things Tablets similar to an iPad did not exist till Microsoft launched it ten years back, nonetheless they can be seen in science fiction such as 1960s "2001: A Space Odyssey".

I couldn't find any good pictures of the old microsoft tablet though, so if someone could share them I would like that.
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I guess i'll investigate origins of 3D entertainment next as I am very familiar with Sega.Net/XBLA.

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If anyone wants to share other fun tech stuff, i'd love to hear it.

[pixel]

I couldn't find any good pictures of the old microsoft tablet though, so if someone could share them I would like that.

[Lartrak]

3D imaging predates the motion picture.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stereoscope

I've always thought that was pretty amazing.

Another one is the fax machine. Dates back to the 1840s, and was in commercial use before the telephone was invented.

I guess they aren't exactly failures, but it's pretty neat to think about.

[cube_b3]

Well now I know what it finally looked like.

Isn't the internet running on Fax?

I picked up the phone a few times when receiving a fax and it sounded just like the modem connecting.
I've researched extensively into tablet and am writing an article on it, once I'm done I'll show it to you guys.