The world of storage for personal computers has come a long way, especially now that smartphones are ubiquitous and everything is at your fingertips, with small external drives and unlimited storage space available in the cloud. In 1993, Ivo Attias Adam developed the adambyte powerbox, “the unlimited mobile storage solution for your PowerBook.” The powerbox was a travel storage component that could be attached to the first PowerBook computers of that era. In creating the powerbox, Ivo responded to the limited storage space of the PowerBook laptop. The powerbox had a high-performance hard drive, which allowed PowerBook users to have enough data storage space to run multimedia and other sophisticated programs. The powerbox had the same footprint as the PowerBook and would fit under the laptop and provide as much additional portable mobile storage space as the laptop itself. Powered by a standard PowerBook battery, the powerbox provided maximum data security and could run for 2-3 hours between charges. Its built-in charger could recharge both the powerbox and PowerBook batteries when connected via the jumper cable.
Ivo Attias Adams has worked in the world of computer archiving for most of his 40-year career in electronics. Born in Alexandria, Egypt, he moved to Milan and became an Italian citizen at the age of 15. There he began his electronics training at theORT Technical Institute. His first job in Milan was repairing televisions, and for most of his life he loved repairing electronic devices, taking apart computers and rebuilding them from various parts. At the age of 21, Ivo emigrated to Israel, studied economics at Hebrew University, and began his work in electronics in a then-new company called Elbit, which today produces computer systems for the military. Ivo described Elbit’s first computers in the 1960s this way, “A single computer was so big it would have filled an entire room!” Ivo’s career eventually took him to Paris, France, and then to the heart of Silicon Valley in California, where his work at companies like Shugart and Maxtor focused on developing and selling computer storage systems. Ivo spoke six languages and worked in international sales for these companies. It was during his many business trips that he recognized the need for more storage space on his personal laptop. He wanted to provide presentations with more functionality during business meetings and have the ability to use his laptop on long airline flights without running out of battery power. He developed the powerbox with this in mind.
Although adambyte as a company did not take off and the powerbox was never developed for sale beyond its prototypes, Ivo’s vision for mobile storage predated the generation of portable external hard drives that became popular in the early 21st century and the cloud storage we know today. Ivo was a true citizen of the world, a polyglot who lived in six countries on four continents and traveled extensively. But it was Italy that held a special place in his heart. He was fiercely proud of his Italian nationality and returned to Italy throughout his life to visit his parents, for work and for pleasure. In donating the powerbox prototypes to the All About Apple Museum, Ivo’s daughters have found the perfect permanent home for their Italian father’s creation.
