The Ten Most Important Events In Computer History
1. The Designs of Charles BabbageIn the mid 1800's Charles Babbage designed his first computers. These were: Engine No. 1, Difference Engine No. 2, and the Analytical Engine. However, Babagge never produced his designs.
Although Charles Babbage’s computers offer almost no resemblance to the modern computers that we use today many of Babbage’s ideas were instrumental in the development of the modern computer. Some of these ideas include: the separation of processing and storage units, how a computer is assembled, and the coding used to program data / information into and out of a computer. |
Reproduction of Babbage's Difference Engine No. 2
Source: Swade, Doron. Modern Construction, Difference Engine No. 2, 2005. Photograph. Computer History Museum. Overview - The Babbage Engine. Computer History Museum, 2008. Web. 27 Mar. 2012. <http://www.computerhistory.org/babbage/overview/>. |
2. The 1st Binary Computer Is DevelopedIn 1938 the 1st binary computer, Konrad Zuse’s Z1, was developed and produced. This computer laid the foundation for the development of the 1st electro-mechanical computer (like the Bombes– A WWII computer used to decrypt German Codes), before this time all computer were just mechanical.
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Konrad Zuse's Z1
Source: La Z4 En 1950 En Zurich. Photograph. Historia De La Informática. 2 Nov. 2010. Web. 27 Mar. 2012. <http://histinf.blogs.upv.es/2010/11/02/konrad-zuse/>. |
3. The Development of the Electro-Mechanical ComputerWWII brought about much destruction and devastation, but it also brought about much invention and innovation including the 1stpurely electronic computer the Colossus. What was the Colossus? The Colossus was a computer developed on the premises of being able to decode and decrypt secret German codes during WWII. Some of the Colossus’ features included: the use of vacuum tubes And Boolean Algebra. Another early electronic computer of important significance is the Manchester Small-Scale Experimental MACHINE; also known as “The Baby.” "The Baby” was significant because it was one of the first computers to use a type of RAM or Random Access Memory.
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WWII Bombes Computer
Source: Photograph. Alan Turning, Father of the Modern Computer. Web. 29 Mar. 2012. <http://www.rutherfordjournal.org/article040101.html>. |
4. The Introduction of RAMIn 1970 Intel introduced today's most common form of RAM (Random-Access Memory) in the 1103 Chip. What is RAM? RAM is an extremely essential part of the modern computer. RAM is important because it allows for extra storage space on your computer, most importantly it helps read coding / data for the CPU (central processing unit).
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RAM (Random Access Memory)
Source: RAM. Photograph. Memory. Blogspot. Web. 29 Mar 2012. <http://memory-guides.blogspot.com/2011_08_01_archive.html>. |
5. Computers Hit the Commercial MarketAfter WWII, in the 1950’s, computer for the commercial use began to become produced. Some commercial uses of this new technology were: Banking and Accounting. One major investor in these new computers was the J. Lyons Company, which focused on the innovation of commercial computing processes. In fact, the J. Lyons Company produced the first commercial computer that was used to run a daily office routine. One interesting Fact about the early commercial computers is that the IBM 650 and the IBM 701 costs approximately four million dollars in today’s economy (this number had been adjusted according to the inflation of the U.S. economy).
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IBM Logo
Source: Photograph. The 'Big Blue' 14 Jan. 2011. Web. 29 Mar. 2012. <http://theilluminati-india.blogspot.com/2011/01/big-blue.html#!/2011/01/big-blue.html>. |
6. The Era of the Transistor ComputerThe next major advancement in computer was the transistor computer. This advancement impacted computer because they were able to become more compact or smaller in size due to the fact that vacuum tubes were being replaced with transistors.
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Transistor Computer
Source: 3rd Generatie. Photograph. PC Hardware. Web. 29 Mar. 2012. <http://users.skynet.be/fa442628/Geschiedenis.htm>. |
7. The Creation of the Microchip and the MicroprocessorIn the 1960’s computer technology took a drastic leap with the development, production, and use of the microchip and the microprocessor. This technology is most significantly noted because it allowed the computer to become smaller in size. most people believe that this technology changed was one of the major components that led to the personal computer. The microchip and microprocessor are two very important components to the development of the modern computer. These two new computer components revolutionized computer forever by allowing them to become smaller in size and
more powerful in their computing capabilities. Whatis a microchip? To put it simply a microchip is an integrated circuit. This means that all of the components of a computer are built into a single microchip. What is a microprocessor? A microprocessor is a microchip that contains the CPU or Computer Processing Unit. |
Microchip
Source: Macro View of Computer Circuits. Motherboard or Microchip Closeup. Photograph. Stock Podium. Web. 29 Mar. 2012. <http://www.stockpodium.com/en/image-photo-9420800/Macro-View-of-Computer-Circuits--Motherboard-or-microchip-closeup/>. |
8. Apple is FoundedIn 1976 Apple was co-founded by Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs. Apple started out as a small hobbyist group that built pre-assembled computers for a store knows as the Byte Shop. As the group built more and more computers the designs and powers of the computers they built rapidly improved. In 1997 Apple was given a large sum of money by Mike Markkula, this helped to found the Apple Company and later that year Apple launched the Apple II, a revolutionary computer for its time. Apple was the first company to use a GUI interface. In 1984 Apple expanded is popularity with the launch of the Apple Macintosh, one of the most user friendly computer of the time. Today Apple is one of the computer leaders in the world and its innovation is still seen in many of its newer products like the iPod, the iPhone, and the
iPad. |
Apple Logo
Source: Photograph. Vector Point. Web. 29 Mar. 2012. <http://vectorpoint.co.uk/archives/2394>. |
9. Apple IIThe 1970’s the personal computer was born and brought about major change in how we know of and think of the computer today. A notable computer of this era was the Apple II, which had full color graphics. It was so popular, at the time, that over four million Apple II’s were eventually sold to consumers worldwide. Apple II was released in
June 1977. Some of its features included: a color display, a built in keyboard, casing for the computer to protect it, a fully programmed computer, expansion slots (used for the expansion of memory, processing, acceleration, and graphics). Some computer historians say that the Apple II is arguably the first user friendly computer of its kind and the first practical business computer due to the programs built into it and the amount of storage that is encompassed. |
Apple IIGS
Source: Photograph. Apple IIGS. Web. 29 Mar. 2012. <http://oldcomputers.net/appleiigs.html>. |
10. The Portable Computer and Mobile DevicesSo what could be more significant than the advancement in personal computer? The answer to this question is the advancement in personal portable computer. Between the 1980’s and the 1900’s the notebook and laptop made their mark in the history of computers. The first personal portable computer for the consumer was the Osborne I, which was came to market in 1981. Another significant development in computer technology was the development of a flip form laptop. The first of its kind was the Gavilan SC, produced in 1983.In the 2000’s computers were revolutionized with the development of Smartphones and Netbooks.
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Osborne 1
Source: Photograph. Old-Computers.Com. Web. 29 Mar. 2012. <http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=181&st=1>. |