Personal Computer Memory Card International Association
Company type | Standards organization |
---|---|
Founded | 1989 |
Founder | Ian H. S. Cullimore |
Defunct | 2009 |
Fate | Dissolved |
Successor | USB Implementers Forum |
The Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA) was a group of computer hardware manufacturers, operating under that name from 1989 to 2009. Starting with the PCMCIA card in 1990 (the name later simplified to PC Card), it created various standards for peripheral interfaces designed for laptop computers.
History
PCMCIA was based on the original initiative of the British mathematician and computer scientist
By early 1990, some thirty companies had joined the initiative already, including Poqet, Fujitsu, Intel,
From 1990 onwards, the association published and maintained a sequence of standards for
The PCMCIA association was dissolved in 2009 and all of its activities have since been managed by the USB Implementers Forum, according to the PCMCIA website.[3]
Name
PCMCIA stands for Personal Computer Memory Card International Association, the group of companies that defined the standard. This acronym was difficult to say and remember, and was sometimes jokingly referred to as "People Can't Memorize Computer Industry Acronyms".[4] To recognize increased scope beyond memory, and to aid in marketing, the association acquired the rights to the simpler term "PC Card" from IBM. This was the name of the standard from version 2 of the specification onwards. These cards were used for wireless networks, modems, and other functions in notebook PCs.
Obsolescence
As of 2023, PCMCIA is now little used in new hardware, with most removable devices using USB instead. The Linux kernel project is now moving toward removing obsolete PCMCIA drivers from the mainline kernel.[5]
References
- ^ ISBN 3-7723-6652-X. 9-783772-366529.
- ISBN 3-7723-4313-9. 9-783772-343131.
- ^ USB Implementers Forum (ed.). "USB-IF Announces Intent to Acquire PCMCIA Assets" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2016-08-10.
- ISBN 0-672-32289-7.
- ^ Larabel, Michael (2023-03-11). "Linux 6.4 Slated To Start Removing Old, Unused & Unmaintained PCMCIA Drivers". www.phoronix.com. Retrieved 2023-06-26.
External links
- "The Official PCMCIA Association Website". Personal Computer Memory Card International Association. Archived from the original on 2008-12-25. Retrieved 2016-08-14.