[tachyonbeam]

I guess that's the difference between a workstation that's designed for performance and versatility before cost, and a PC, which is made to be affordable first. When the PC industry started, it was very much about repurposing whatever low-cost CPUs and off-the-shelf components were available, and finding ways of packaging this into a semi-usable machine for less than $1000. Things have changed quite a bit since, but much of the do-it-cheap rushed-to-market type of compromises are still with us.

[kragen]

Sure, the PCs that started the PC industry — things like the Apple I and the MITS Altair — were indeed "about repurposing whatever low-cost CPUs and off-the-shelf components were available, and finding ways of packaging this into a semi-usable machine for less than $1000." But, long before 1993, most CPUs and components used in PCs were being produced specifically for PCs, with uses in things like lab equipment, industrial control, and workstations a rather smaller secondary market.