I remember things differently ...
"There was no email or messaging back then"
Yes, there was. Maybe not in program loaders disguised as operating systems, but that doesn't mean they didn't exist. And even with those toy computers, the BBS world was tiny, but there. If you had a modem, of course.
"nor was there the remote access"
Yes, there was. TehIntraWebTubes was well over a decade old by then.
"hasty sending of a patch"
Yes, there was. (Sometimes the "hasty" was via motorcycle ... good bandwidth, but bad latency.)
"A small business computer was size of a washer and dryer and cost around $100,000."
My Heath H11 had a 16 bit PDP11 CPU, was about the size of three modern large desk-side computers and cost me just under $3,500 (I had a lot of accessories and maxed it out on RAM ... the base kit was about $1300). It was my xmas gift to myself in 1977.