Description
The Linder Charlie Hobbs collection, ranging in date from 1958 to 1982, consists of documents related to minicomputers, computer
memory, military computers, graphics terminals, timesharing systems, semiconductors, and the computer industry during the
1960s and 1970s. Types of materials include brochures, pamphlets, press kits, annual reports, technical reports, manuals,
industry reports, and conference proceedings. Most of the promotional materials and press kits were collected through Hobbs’s
work as a consultant at Hobbs Associates, Inc. A very large number of companies are represented in this collection, including
Informatics, Litton, Philco, Bit, Digital Equipment Corporation, Packard Bell, Shugart, Univac, International Business Machines,
Memorex, General Electric, Comdex, and many others. The collection includes materials from the Aeronutronic division of Ford
Motor Company and manuals and promotional materials related to military computers manufactured by companies like Univac and
Honeywell. The collection also includes technical reports published by Stanford Research Institute (SRI) and System Development
Corporation (SDC) as well as proposals and reports submitted to army and naval departments, such as the Office of Naval Research.
Finally, there is information about the computer industry during the 1970s, including documentation specifically about the
Japanese computer industry.
Background
Linder Charlie Hobbs was an engineer, computer services consultant, and venture capitalist from Orange County, California.
Born on February 4, 1925 in Alabama, Hobbs attended the Georgia Institute of Technology and earned a degree in Electrical
Engineering in 1948. Hobbs also earned a master’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Pennsylvania in
1952 and an MBA from the University of Pennsylvania in 1956. During his early career, Hobbs worked as an engineer at the Radio
Corporation of America, in the Univac division of Sperry Rand, and in the Aeronutronic division of Ford Motor Company. He
started a consulting firm in 1962 called Hobbs Associates, Inc., which specialized in computer services and was located in
Corona Del Mar, California. Hobbs was also a partner at Hobbs Development Associates, a venture capital firm, from 1982 to
2000. He passed away on February 7, 2014 in Corona Del Mar.
Restrictions
The Computer History Museum (CHM) can only claim physical ownership of the collection. Users are responsible for satisfying
any claims of the copyright holder. Requests for copying and permission to publish, quote, or reproduce any portion of the
Computer History Museum’s collection must be obtained jointly from both the copyright holder (if applicable) and the Computer
History Museum.