While it takes an individual to dream up an idea, it takes a team of dedicated people with the same goals in mind to make it a reality. And in no business does this ring more true than in the high-flying computer industry.

Bill Gates is and always will be associated with Microsoft and the success of the software colossus. And to a certain extent this is true--the company embraces his take-no-prisoners attitude. But the fact is it took a team of about two dozen developers to get the original Windows operating system out the door. The summer of 1985 before the launch is fondly known as the "the lost summer" by the team of 20-something-year-olds because of the insane hours they spent on the product that would forever change the landscape of the computer industry.

The 386 microprocessor design team at Intel didn't have it any easier. Andy Grove may have been the driving force behind the chip giant, but he wasn't the one who had to give "birth to an elephant." That is how one member of the 386 design team referred to the massive effort it took to bring together every phase of the design process.

The idea that started Compaq began with three guys, a restaurant and a napkin. This team of former Texas Instruments engineers was hell-bent on getting into the exploding PC arena and they did it together and built the world's largest PC company. They were early to market with a portable computer and first to open it up to a wide range of compatible components and software applications.

And the first killer app, aka Lotus 1-2-3, was the brainchild of a few programmers who leveraged each other's expertise to bring an electronic spreadsheet to the masses.

These products brought the computer industry up one level at a time, and no one individual can take full credit. Read on and be part of the inside circle that brought these products from conception to market.