Download

Computer Timeline

  • 1801

    Joseph Marie Jacquard created a loom that used wooden punch cards.
  • 1822

    Charles Babbage invents a calculating machine that is steam-driven and can compute numbers.
  • 1936

    Alan Turing came up with an idea for a machine that he called the Turing machine and that it would be able to compute anything.
  • 1937

    At Iowa State University a professor attempted to build the first computer without any cams, belts, or shafts.
  • 1941

    Professor, J.V. Atanasoff, and graduate student, Clifford Berry, designed a computer that could solve 29 problems simultaneously.
  • 1943

    John Mauchly and J. Presper Eckert built an Electronic Numerical Integrator and Calculator (ENIAC). This machine was made up of 18,000 vacuum tubes to control the electronic current flow.
  • 1946

    The first commercial computer for business and government use.
  • 1950

    The Standards Eastern Automatic Computer (SEAC) was created. This was the first computer with a program that could store things on it.
  • 1953

    Computer scientist Grace Hopper developed the first computer language. This allowed the users to use words instead of numbers.
  • 1958

    Jack Kirby and Robert Noyce invented the circuit, which is now called the computer chip.
  • 1964

    Douglas Engelbart introduced a prototype of the modern computer that included a mouse and a graphical user interface (GUI).
  • 1973

    Robert Metcalfe develops how to be able to connect multiple computers and hardware.
  • 1975

    Paul Allen and Bill Gates offered to write software for the Altair 8800 using basic language. Later that year they created Microsoft.
  • 1976

    Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak start Apple Computers and introduce the world to the Apple I, the first computer with a single-circuit board.
    Queen Elizabeth II sent out her first email to demonstrate networking technology.
  • 1981

    IBM released their first personal computer, the Acorn that has an Intel chip.
  • 1982

    Computers became more personalized and brought down to scale so that people could use them.
  • 1984

    Apple launches Macintosh
  • 1990

    Tim Berners-Lee develops HyperText Markup Language (HTML). Tim also prototyped the word WorldWideWeb (www).
  • 1991

    Apple released the Powerbook series of laptops.
  • 1993

    Apple released Newton (Personal Data Assistant). Newton was Apple's attempt at a handheld computer.
  • 1995

    IBM released the ThinkPad 701C.
    Microsoft launched Windows 95.
  • 1996

    Google was founded
  • 1998

    Apple released the iMac.
  • 2000

    The USB flash drive was introduced.
  • 2001

    Apple introduces the Mac OS X operating system, soon after Microsoft came out with Windows XP
  • 2004

    Mozilla Firefox 1.0 was launched.
    Facebook was also launched.
  • 2005

    YouTube was founded.
    Google acquired the mobile phone operating system of Android.
  • 2006

    Apple released the MacBook Pro, which was their first intel-based, dual-core mobile computer.
  • 2007

    Apple released the first iPhone, bringing computer functions to a handheld device.
  • 2011

    Google released the Chromebook.
    Apple announced the iPhone 4S
  • 2014

    The University of Michigan Micro Mote (M3), the smallest computer in the world was created.
  • 2019

    Apple announces iPadOS. This is creating the iPad's very own operating system.