transputers again was The dissolution of Commodore 2904

MIPS is widely used in embedded applications.

"baroque 68ks" ?? Wash your mouth out. :-)

FWIW the 88k didn't provide enough "incentive". Not enough performance gain for a huge change in systems. Remember that this was when ST506 drives still lived in the smaller server boxes and ESDI discs meant that the boss had paid probably for his Ferrrari with petty cash. SCSI usually meant that you worked off taxes or lived somewhere on the money-insurance tree.

benefit not just in terms of mbuttively-greater machine throughput, but also machine reliability.

Using less power means that software previously requiring "big-iron" can become battery powered on a hand-held.

Availability of computing resources is the big issue. Even modest desktop systems consume around 100W, making their architecture ineligible as candidates for instant-on, portable computing.

I haven't yet found a portable, hand-held computer that matches a Psion 3(a-mx) in terms of providing on-demand computing with the potential for use as a sole personal computing device - which is what it was for about 6 months. All running on a pair of disposable batteries that provided 16 to 20 hours of actual use.

Newer handhelds have severe deficiencies in software being clunky, overly complex or simply too buggy; consume way too much power and generally don't want to talk to anything other than their own little universe. Forget peer-to-peer networking, data portability, document standards, ... . -- "Bernd Felsche - Innovative Reckoning, Perth, Western Australia ASCII ribbon campaign "Laws do not persuade just because X against HTML mail they threaten." and postings Lucius Annaeus Seneca, c. 4BC - 65AD.