This article introduces a new column of the IEEE Circuits and Devices Magazine, which will be devoted to the use of the personal computer in electrical engineering industry and education. We believe that the material to be included in this section will be of significant interest to a large number of individuals and can have a positive impact on how the personal computer is integrated into the engineering profession. We define a personal computer here as a computer inexpensive enough that an engineer/educator/ student would be willing to buy a basic version for the home, while a company/institution would be willing to place one on the workdesk. In addition to the uses to which the individual personal computer can be put, communication between such personal computers is a matter of central interest to this column, whether by serial data transfer locally or over telephone lines, or in a local network within an organization.