How did the altair work?

Answer 1

It was a typical microcomputer built around the Intel 8080 microprocessor. The only user/operator interface it came with was front panel lights and switches... no keyboard, no display, no printer, no disks, no tape, no serial I/O, no parallel I/O, nothing... these had to be added later often from third party companies. The machine was delivered unassembled as a kit and you had to solder every single part in place! Assembly could take a couple months to a year depending on your skills (and more time to fix it if you made a mistake).