Editing IBM Multistation Keyboards (section)

==Background==

[[File:IBM-5550.jpg|thumb|right|IBM 5550 with peripherals]]

In the 1980s, IBM's original PCs had no means of supporting non-Latin alphabets on either the hardware or software level, and IBM Japan developed their own PCs that differed greatly from the American/European equivalents. The first such design was the IBM 5550 of 1983, known as the Multistation - marketed as a combination PC, word processor (dedicated word processors were supposedly popular with the Japanese market at the time) and terminal, and was roughly analogous to a PC/XT with terminal emulation hardware. These computers were also sold in other Far East markets such as Korea and China.

The Multistation was superseded by the IBM PS/55, which was a Japanese equivalent of the PS/2 launched in 1987. The PS/55's 5576-001 keyboard had similar layout options to the 5556 keyboards. The Multistation continued to be produced up until 1991.