Jeremy Reimer

Senior Niche Technology Historian

I'm a writer and web developer. I've worked in lots of jobs. I was a daycare worker, high school mathematics and physics teacher, video game tester, hardware and software prototyper for a video security company, full-time Ars Technica writer, technical writer and finally a software developer. Now, I work as a technical writer for a video game company while writing for Ars on the side. I'm also the author of a science fiction trilogy: Edge of Infinity, Heart of the Maelstrom, and Beyond the Expanse are all available on Amazon, iTunes Book Store, Nook, and Smashwords.

A history of the Internet, part 3: The rise of the user

The reins of the Internet are handed over to ordinary users—with uneven results.

Jeremy Reimer – 9/22/2025 | 94

A history of the Internet, part 2: The high-tech gold rush begins

The Web Era arrives, the browser wars flare, and a bubble bursts.

Jeremy Reimer – 6/10/2025 | 101

An Ars Technica history of the Internet, part 1

In our new 3-part series, we remember the people and ideas that made the Internet.

Jeremy Reimer – 4/14/2025 | 161

First post: A history of online public messaging

From BBS to Facebook, here’s how messaging platforms have changed over the years.

Jeremy Reimer – 4/29/2024 | 167

Revisiting Apple’s ill-fated Lisa computer, 40 years on

On its 40th anniversary, we look back at the machine that brought the GUI to personal computers.

Jeremy Reimer – 1/19/2023 | 295

A history of ARM, part 3: Coming full circle

In our series finale, ARM achieves its goal of bringing computing power to the masses.

Jeremy Reimer – 1/17/2023 | 175

A history of ARM, part 2: Everything starts to come together

What had started as twelve people and a dream was now a billion-dollar company.

Jeremy Reimer – 11/21/2022 | 174

A history of ARM, part 1: Building the first chip

In 1983, Acorn Computers needed a CPU. So 10 people built one.

Jeremy Reimer – 9/23/2022 | 329

Remembering Apple’s Newton, 30 years on

On its 30th anniversary, we look at the groundbreaking product’s enduring legacy.

Jeremy Reimer – 6/1/2022 | 197

That time Roger Ebert said games will never be as worthy as movies

From the archives: 15 years ago around Thanksgiving, Ebert set video game Internet ablaze.

Jeremy Reimer – 11/28/2020 | 151

Half an operating system: The triumph and tragedy of OS/2

From the archives: IBM doesn’t make consumer desktop OSes anymore for a reason.

Jeremy Reimer – 11/29/2019 | 245

A history of the Amiga, part 12: Red vs. Blue

Amiga was now an independent company again, but trouble was brewing.

Jeremy Reimer – 3/29/2018 | 195

A history of the Amiga, part 11: Between an Escom and a Gateway

The Amiga didn’t go away with Commodore, but its future was uncertain.

Jeremy Reimer – 11/13/2017 | 164

The A-EON Amiga X5000: An alternate universe where the Amiga platform never died

A new Amiga computer emerges that is both modern and an Amiga.

Jeremy Reimer – 5/24/2017 | 409

A history of the Amiga, part 10: The downfall of Commodore

The Amiga was a machine ahead of its time, but Commodore was in trouble.

Jeremy Reimer – 1/22/2017 | 505

People still use the Amiga today, and new Viva Amiga documentary shows why

Debuting at MAGfest this weekend, new film gathers devs and fans across Amiga decades.

Jeremy Reimer – 1/8/2017 | 140

A history of the Amiga, part 9: The Video Toaster

Jeremy Reimer’s long-running History of the Amiga series is back to tackle the killer app.

Jeremy Reimer – 3/18/2016 | 120

Heirs of Infocom: Where interactive fiction authors and games stand today

Mobile devices are helping authors present their stories to a new audience.

Jeremy Reimer – 6/23/2013 | 68

A history of the Amiga, part 8: The demo scene

Where else could you have “a hand in creating things that were so damn cool?”

Jeremy Reimer – 4/28/2013 | 241

1998’s most intriguing OS, 15 years later: Hands-on with Haiku alpha 4

Nostalgia runs high, but is the BeOS reboot more than an interesting diversion?

Jeremy Reimer – 1/8/2013 | 91

From Altair to iPad: 35 years of personal computer market share

Data shows that smartphones and tablets have been adopted far faster than PCs.

Jeremy Reimer – 8/14/2012 | 163

Butterfly milking and pig nibbling: building the strange world of Glitch

The Web-based, free-to-play, massively multiplayer game Glitch is headed by a …

Jeremy Reimer – 11/7/2011 | 42

“For the swarm!” Inside the world of professional StarCraft players

First in Korea and now in the US, StarCraft players have gone pro. Ars attends …

Jeremy Reimer – 8/29/2011 | 76

The Dawn of Starcraft: e-Sports come to the world stage

Ars's own Jeremy Reimer is addicted to StarCraft—not so much playing, but …

Jeremy Reimer – 3/31/2011 | 163

Looking back at the Infocom era: A review of Get Lamp

Jason Scott's Get Lamp is a wonderful documentary about the text-based …

Jeremy Reimer – 9/29/2010 | 68

Shadow of the 16-bit Beast: an Amiga gaming retrospective

The Amiga was born a game machine, but it entered a world where the video game …

Jeremy Reimer – 6/13/2010 | 136

Know anyone who worked as game dev for the Commodore Amiga?

Did you, or anyone you know, ever work in game development for the Commodore Amiga? If so, I’d like to hear from you. In August 2007, I started writing the history of the Amiga computer for Ars Technica. Seven installments were published, starting with the founding of the company, carrying on through the Commodore purchase … Continued

Jeremy Reimer – 12/20/2009 | 33