An Illustrated History of Computers Part 1 ___________________________________

John Kopplin 2002 The first computers were people! That is, electronic computers (and the earlier mechanical computers) were given this name because they performed the work that had previously been assigned to people. "Computer" was originally a job title: it was used to describe those human beings (predominantly women) whose job it was to perform the repetitive calculations required to compute such things as navigational tables, tide charts, and planetary positions for astronomical almanacs. Imagine you had a job where hour after hour, day after day, you were to do nothing but compute multiplications. Boredom would quickly set in, leading to carelessness, leading to mistakes. And even on your best days you wouldn't be producing answers very fast. Therefore, inventors have been searching for hundreds of years for a way to mechanize (that is, find a mechanism that can perform) this task.

This picture shows what were known as "counting tables" [photo courtesy IBM]

A typical computer operation back when computers were people.

The abacus was an early aid for mathematical computations. Its only value is that it aids the memory of the human performing the calculation. A skilled abacus operator can work on addition and subtraction problems at the speed of a person equipped with a hand calculator (multiplication and division are slower). The abacus is often wrongly attributed to China. In fact, the oldest surviving abacus was used in 300 B.C. by the Babylonians. The abacus is still in use today, principally in the far east. A modern abacus consists of rings that slide over rods, but the older one pictured below dates from the time when pebbles were used for counting (the word "calculus" comes from the Latin word for pebble).

A very old abacus

A more modern abacus. Note how the abacus is really just a representation of the human fingers: the 5 lower rings on each rod represent the 5 fingers and the 2 upper rings represent the 2 hands.

In 1617 an eccentric (some say mad) Scotsman named John Napier invented logarithms, which are a technology that allows multiplication to be performed via addition. The magic ingredient is the logarithm of each operand, which was originally obtained from a printed table. But Napier also invented an alternative

to tables, where the logarithm values were carved on ivory sticks which are now called Napier's Bones.

An original set of Napier's Bones [photo courtesy IBM]

A more modern set of Napier's Bones

Napier's invention led directly to the slide rule, first built in England in 1632 and still in use in the 1960's by the NASA engineers of the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo programs which landed men on the moon.

A slide rule

Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) made drawings of gear-driven calculating machines but apparently never built any.

A Leonardo da Vinci drawing showing gears arranged for computing

The first gear-driven calculating machine to actually be built was probably the calculating clock, so named by its inventor, the German professor Wilhelm Schickard in 1623. This device got little publicity because Schickard died soon afterward in the bubonic plague.

Schickard's Calculating Clock

In 1642 Blaise Pascal, at age 19, invented the Pascaline as an aid for his father who was a tax collector. Pascal built 50 of this gear-driven one-function calculator (it could only add) but couldn't sell many because of their exorbitant cost and because they really weren't that accurate (at that time it was not possible to fabricate gears with the required precision). Up until the present age when car dashboards went digital, the odometer portion of a car's speedometer used the very same mechanism as the Pascaline to increment the next wheel after each full revolution of the prior wheel. Pascal was a child prodigy. At the age of 12, he was discovered doing his version of Euclid's thirty-second proposition on the kitchen floor. Pascal went on to invent probability theory, the hydraulic press, and the syringe. Shown below is an 8 digit version of the Pascaline, and two views of a 6 digit version:

Pascal's Pascaline [photo 2002 IEEE]

A 6 digit model for those who couldn't afford the 8 digit model

A Pascaline opened up so you can observe the gears and cylinders which rotated to display the numerical result

Computer History Year/Enter

Computer History Inventors/Inventions

Computer History Description of Event

1936 1942 1944 1946

Konrad Zuse - Z1 Computer

First freely programmable computer.

John Atanasoff & Clifford Berry Who was first in the computing ABC Computer biz is not always as easy as ABC. Howard Aiken & Grace Hopper The Harvard Mark 1 computer. Harvard Mark I Computer John Presper Eckert & John W. 20,000 vacuum tubes later... Mauchly ENIAC 1 Computer Frederic Williams & Tom Baby and the Williams Tube turn Kilburn on the memories. Manchester Baby Computer & The Williams Tube John Bardeen, Walter Brattain & Wiliam Shockley The Transistor No, a transistor is not a computer, but this invention greatly affected the history of computers.

1948

1947/48

1951

John Presper Eckert & John W. First commercial computer & Mauchly able to pick presidential winners. UNIVAC Computer International Business Machines IBM 701 EDPM Computer John Backus & IBM FORTRAN Computer Programming Language Stanford Research Institute, Bank of America, and General Electric ERMA and MICR Jack Kilby & Robert Noyce The Integrated Circuit Steve Russell & MIT Spacewar Computer Game Douglas Engelbart Computer Mouse & Windows ARPAnet Intel 1103 Computer IBM enters into 'The History of Computers'. The first successful high level programming language. The first bank industry computer - also MICR (magnetic ink character recognition) for reading checks. Otherwise known as 'The Chip' The first computer game invented. Nicknamed the mouse because the tail came out the end. The original Internet. The world's first available

1953

1954

1955 (In Use 1959)

1958 1962 1964

1969 1970

Memory 1971 Faggin, Hoff & Mazor Intel 4004 Computer Microprocessor Alan Shugart &IBM The "Floppy" Disk Robert Metcalfe & Xerox The Ethernet Computer Networking Scelbi & Mark-8 Altair & IBM 5100 Computers

dynamic RAM chip. The first microprocessor.

1971 1973

Nicknamed the "Floppy" for its flexibility. Networking.

1974/75 1976/77 1978

The first consumer computers.

Apple I, II & TRS-80 & More first consumer computers. Commodore Pet Computers Dan Bricklin & Bob Frankston VisiCalc Spreadsheet Software Seymour Rubenstein & Rob Barnaby WordStar Software IBM The IBM PC - Home Computer Microsoft MS-DOS Computer Operating System Apple Lisa Computer Apple Macintosh Computer Microsoft Windows Any product that pays for itself in two weeks is a surefire winner. Word Processors.

1979

1981

From an "Acorn" grows a personal computer revolution From "Quick And Dirty" comes the operating system of the century. The first home computer with a GUI, graphical user interface. The more affordable home computer with a GUI. Microsoft begins the friendly war with Apple.

1981

1983 1984 1985

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Short Summary of the History of Computers

History & Evolution of Computers

1. History
o

Attempts to create a self-motivating and calculating machine that would emulate many of the thinking patters of human beings has been a centuries-long quest for many inventors. The eighteenth century Turk was alleged to be a chess-playing automaton which defeated the likes of Napoleon Bonaparte and Benjamin Franklin in chess matches; it was later revealed that the Turk was a hoax controlled by a man inside the machine. Still, the idea for creating a human-like thinking machine remained alive and well into the twentieth century. Konrad Zuse, a German engineer, developed the first truly programmable computer in 1941. It used a stream of paper tape with holes punched into it to perform calculations based on a complex algorithm. The first commercial computer was the famous UNIVAC of 1951, invented by John Presper Eckert and John W. Mauchly. It used a series of vacuum tubes to perform complex calculations and filled several rooms with its bulk; the computing power of UNIVAC is equivalent to today's pocket calculators.

Time Frame
o

In the 1950s most computers relied on vacuum tubes to perform electronic calculation functions, which kept the size of computers to the equivalent of a large room. If vacuum tubes were not allowed sufficient space to allow air to cool them, they would blow out and shut the computer down completely until the burned-out or defective tube was replaced; a difficult prospect with 20,000 or more tubes to choose from. By the close of the 1950s, the integrated circuit chip was invented by Jack Kilby and Robert Noyce, which reduced the size (and cost) of computers. Earlier in the decade, IBM had gotten into the computer market, but mainly sold to businesses (such as banks) that had room to spare in their buildings. The invention and adoption of the chip would allow IBM to become the premier producer of computing machines throughout the 1960s and 1970s.

Identification
o

IBM offered the first computer aimed at the individual consumer by the middle of the 1970s. The 5100 series computers were large, sensitive to changes in balance and temperature, extremely expensive and used magnetic media in the form of audio-style tapes to record and

save information. IBM was soon joined by a new start-up company called Apple, which offered wooden boxes filled with hand-soldered components bought at Radio Shack. By 1977, Apple had introduced two models of its computer, dropped the wood in favor of plastic and metal, and offered cheaper alternatives to IBM. Another company called Commodore offered its Pet computer in the same year. The entrance of Apple and Commodore into the market forced all competitors to adopt new technologies such as floppy disks for removable program and information storage.

Significance
o

The proliferation of computer platforms in the 1980s allowed another small start-up company to flourish. Specializing in what it called an "operating system," Microsoft found its footing in 1981 selling software to IBM. The ease with which the operating system allowed a user to interface with the computer, as well as the familiarity of many people with IBM's products from their work environment, allowed IBM to retain its market share and make important inroads on Apple and Commodore. Meanwhile, Microsoft was slowly amassing a fortune in software fees and royalties. IBM's machines were so popular that several clones appeared which used processes similar to IBM's and allowed them to run the increasingly popular Microsoft Disk Operating System (MS-DOS). Radio Shack carried Tandy computers, for instance, which closely mimicked the operations of more expensive IBM machines, but with better graphics, sound, memory and more features. These cheap imitators allowed the IBM platform to proliferate and prompted Commodore and Apple to counter with better, cheaper computers of their own. Apple introduces the Macintosh in 1984 and was the first home computer with a graphic user interface (GUI). Commodore's Vic20 and Commodore 64 line was augmented when the company bought the Amiga corporation and offered its own line of GUI-enhanced computers in 1985. These developments prompted Microsoft to offer its Windows platform later in 1985.

Size
o

As IBM machines and their clones expanded, they began to adapt to their rivals, Commodore and Apple, by offering better graphics, better sound, more user-friendly applications and more programs to choose from. By the 1990s, both Apple and Commodore faced stiff competition, though their computers were lauded by critics worldwide. The praise of critics was not enough for Commodore, which filed for bankruptcy in 1994, but still maintained its Amiga computer line. By the end of the decade, Commodore completely shuttered its doors, effectively killing the Amiga line. Apple was in better shape, but only slightly. Having lost market share to the increasingly-cheap Windows-bundled IBMcompatibles, Apple tried to expand its appeal through production of PDAs (personal data assistants), but continued to hemorrhage money. By 1997, several CEOs had tried and failed to revive the Apple brand which allowed Steve Jobs to take over as CEO. Jobs immediately effected a deal with Microsoft to allow the latter's Office products to be offered on Apple Macintoshes, which boosted the brand's appeal. By 1997, Apple had copied the models of IBM-clone producers Dell and Gateway to offer custom-built Macintoshes through their Apple Stores.

Considerations
o

By 2001, IBM-clones (now called simply PCs) were the dominant platform for computers yet, ironically, IBM itself was reduced to a minor player in the personal computing market over the course of several decades. Microsoft's adaptation of Apple-like GUI had made its corporation one of the most powerful in the world, leading many critics to charge that Microsoft was a monopoly. While Microsoft was embroiled in legal battles in the United States and Europe, Apple began expanding its profile through acquisition of film editing software companies and programs, but really revived itself with the advent of the iPod personal music player. The sales of iPods allowed Apple the funds necessary to revamp its Macintosh brand and begin to compete on a serious level with its rival, Microsoft-based PCs. At about this time, other so-called "open source" operating systems such as Red Hat and Linux allowed PC users to move away from Microsoft's stranglehold on the personal computing market. The proliferation of the internet in the late 1990s exploded throughout the 2000s despite the bursting of the "dot com bubble," and made seemingly inconsequential companies specializing in Internet search engines and browsing software household names. Many of the functions once reserved for Microsoft-based software were now available on the internet for less (or even for free) which reduced demand for many of Microsoft's products such as Word, Outlook and Excel. At the beginning of the decade, Apple computers were in about 2 percent of all households, schools and other institutions. By 2007, Apple controlled almost 8 percent of the personal computing market, allowing it to become a serious competitor to PC computers.
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