In tech, nothing lasts forever. But when judged against the frenetic pace at which new businesses rise and fall, some things feel like they come pretty close.

HP’s invention of the personal laser printer four decades ago was the culmination of one of the most successful corporate “skunk works” projects ever undertaken. A group of engineers far from HQ came up with a hit product that created a new market. It came complete with a business model, based on making money from follow-on sales of ink cartridges, that proved an even more effective innovation. 

The profits from laser printers supported HP for many years, and now look likely to outlast it. Xerox’s unsolicited bid for HP Inc this week, if successful, will finally bring the curtain down on a company that long defined Silicon Valley’s unique approach to innovation — though HP’s printers will go on throwing off cash, this time to help support the huge debt load Xerox plans to take on to buy its much bigger rival.