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Prime Computer founded in 1972 (Source) ("Prime Computer", Wikipedia)
Dick Pick and Don Fuller of Microdata begin working together in 1973 when Dick develops the software and firmware for Microdata's hardware. (According to the later lawsuit.) The first Reality sold in 1973 ("Microdata Corporation", Wikipedia) "Microdata Announces Reality"
1973 Dave Ostby goes to work for ESCOM as a programmer (cf Revelation by Cosmos) [I believe ESCOM was founded by Wally Haugaard, who had graduated in 1959 from Chico High, CA. Wally was later associated with a company called Infotec in Puyallup and Sumner and evidently later in Edgewood, his wife was named Barbara -wsj]
http://books.google.com/books?id=2otFgtEgfiEC&pg=PA44#v=onepage
Nov 1975, the list of "Authorized Reality dealers" is only a list of twenty-two phone numbers. Anyone wanna help me track them ALL down?
1975/6 John Drumheller goes to work for "the distributor of Microdata Reality Computers in Seattle" (Source) [Was this ESCOM ?]
Microdata signs Informatica Nacional SA of Mexico City as the sole distributor of the Reality system in Mexico ComputerWorld 22 Mar 1976
http://books.google.com/books?id=9eJxx_ZGKngC&pg=PA327#v=onepage
Steve VanArsdale started in "Pick" in 1976
"Phoenix Arizona Republic", 31 Oct 1976
Rod Burns opens ESCOM Arizona in Phoenix
Dec 1976, Dick Pick and Microdata part ways.
Don Fuller, President of Microdata 1977, Ted Sabarese a key OEM (Ted founded the Ultimate Corporation in New Jersey)
May 1977 Devcom is formed in Seattle with John Drumheller, Rodney A Burns Jr, and Wallace "Wally" Haugaard (Source) They create Information, a Pick-compatible operating system, by using assembler and Fortran. It ran on the Prime machine, on top of Primos. (Source)
August 1977, Microdata sues Pick and Associates for "misappropriation of trade secrets."
http://books.google.com/books?id=p5mHeKTvE5sC&pg=PA31#v=onepage
August 1977
Keystone Data Systems is the Philadelphia-area Microdata Reality dealer
"Escom Inc... distributor of Microdata Minicomputer Systems.... Phoenix, Seattle, Portland, Spokane, Anchorage, and Vancouver, BC" giving their address as "12838 SE 40th Place, Bellevue, WA"
"Late 70s" Jim Whelan, Rod Burns, John Drumheller found Devcom in Seattle. Built a Pick-compatible operating system to run on top of the Prime computer. It was later purchased by Prime and called Prime Information. Jim Whelan later became president of Seattle Labs, and died of lymphoma in 1997. Rod Burns died and the "Rod Burns Award" presented annually at the annual trade show is named for him.
Arthur Anderson agrees to purchase Reality systems valued at $2.8 million ComputerWorld 21 Nov 1977
1978 The Intertechnique version of Pick is created.
Nov 1978, Pick and Associates, counter sues Microdata for "antitrust violations" ComputerWorld 13 Nov 1978
May 1979 mention of the Prime Information system http://books.google.com/books?id=BO24urtO-OoC&pg=PT74#v=onepage&q&f=false
"In the fall of 1979, Richard Pick, owner of Pick & Associates Inc., decided to get out of computer manufacturing to concentrate on research and software development." Tim Sullivan takes over the Evolution line and with three associates, calls their new company Evolution Computer Systems Corp. His three associates were: "Wayne W. Wahlenmeier, 35, came from a Pick competitor, Applied Digital Data Systems Inc., where he was western regional manager. From the same company came Lawrence R. Weiss, 42, Southern California district sales manager, and Harry Slamkowski, the Applied Digital senior account manager who happened to handle the Pick account." INC Magazine, 1 Oct 1982
"The Ultimate Corp has completed two agreements with Pick Computer Works (PCW) for additional rights to the Pick R80 operating system." ComputerWorld 19 Jan 1981
Based in Hauppauge, New York - ADDS (Applied Digital Data Systems), a subsidiary of NCR, becomes the next Pick licensee, bringing out their first system in 1981.
Introduction to Mentor software 7/1983
ADDS Mentor installation guide 11/1984
"Microdata Settles Suit Against Pick", ComputerWorld 4 May 1981, page 108
Litigation between Dick Pick's firm and Microdata is settled 1981, with no money changing hands.
The Ultimate A1 "based on a virtual memory operating system developed by Pick Computer Works", costing 48,000 for a single terminal system (58,000 for 7 terminals) is profiled in Computerworld 2 Nov 1981
The ADDS Viewpoint 90 Terminal, configurable to mimic many other terminals, sells for less than $1100.
Nov 1982 Prime Computer announced the purchase of Prime Information from DevCom the makers of that software it had been marketing for several years on its hardware. http://books.google.com/books?id=OrmcqtZUTMoC&pg=PA82
Earlier trade shows for the Pick system were in Las Vegas in 1982 and 1983
Gus Giobbi on LinkedIn states that the IDBMA started Jan 1983. However is not this link that announcement?
Picture of Bill Thurman from 1983 I believe. Possibly 1984.
In 1983 Bill Thurman started a company called "Climax Computer Corporation". It was producing computers at it's Irvine factory in 1984
http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=lNZAAAAAIBAJ&sjid=haYMAAAAIBAJ&pg=1986,1606791&dq=climax-computer&hl=en They also had a product called "Screenstor" which provided dumb terminals with some kind of additional memory or something. Their biggest client, at least at the end of their life, was the Ford modeling agency (in New York City). Bill Thurman died of a stroke in 1993. His obituary is in the LA Times at this link. His widow Phyllis was for many years the managing editor of Database Trends.
Reference from 1984 to the "International Database Management Association" on Appaloosa
http://www.oldcomputerbooks.com/pages/books/M697/wahlenmeier/pickworld-magazine-pick-operating-systems-pick-systems-pick-users-groups-volume-1-no-2-june-1984 Reference to "PICK Spectrum 1984" (Trade Show) in the magazine PICKWORLD, Volume 1, No 2, June 1984 with a photograph of Dick Pick on the cover
Pick Open Architecture is announced 1984
Cosmos (out of Bellevue, Washington) begins marketing Revelation "that is based on the Pick system"
Prior to their move to Bellevue, their mailing address was 123 Ferntree Drive West, Morton, Washington
This is an extremely remote rural location.... very odd.
Runoff and Jet (1984)
Somewhere around 1985-ish a 3-user Pick version came out on the XT system. (See Dennis Gallagher's post here.)
ComputerWorld Magazine, 18 Feb 1985, "International Spectrum USA Computer Conference and Exhibition" March 20-22 New Orleans, LA
7 Oct 1985 - ADDS brings out its Adds Mentor 1720 3-user system and 1740 8-user system.
Reference to the "second annual" "Pick International Spectrum" "next week", so said in The Sydney Morning Herald 21 Oct 1985. It is "being run by IDBMA (International Data Base Management Association) which holds Pick Spectrum shows regularly in the United States, London and now Australia."
"International Spectrum USA 86" at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas, March 24-26 1986
Picture of Dick Pick from 1985
InterSystems Cache wins the 1998 "Best New Database" Award from Deloitte and Touche
March 2006 "International Spectrum's 25th Annual MultiValue Conference & Exhibition"
1992 Prime Computer renamed Computer Vision and sells Prime Information to Vmark Corporation (Source)
1990 "National Association of Pick", from page 1 of National Association of Pick Membership Directory: "Jackson Dement, President; Frank Mineo, Director; Bill Thurman, Director; Bob Van Epps, Director; Dawn Wellhouser, Executive Director"
http://www.computerwoche.de/heftarchiv/1986/14/1163900/ Reference in Computer World (German edition) Apr 1986 to the "Spectrum Manufacturers Association"
Prime Information is mentioned in a newsletter in Feb 1987 http://digitalcommons.brockport.edu/lits_news/31/
List of Licensed Pick Operating Systems, as published in "Computerworld" 24 March 1986
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