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Jacquard Loom
1801: In France, Joseph Marie Jacquard invents a loom that uses punched wooden cards to automatically weave fabric designs. Early computers would use similar punch cards. -
Charles Babbage
1822: English mathematician Charles Babbage conceives of a steam-driven calculating machine that would be able to compute tables of numbers. The project, funded by the English government, is a failure. More than a century later, however, the world's first computer was actually built. -
Herman Hollerith
1890: Herman Hollerith designs a punch card system to calculate the 1880 census, accomplishing the task in just three years and saving the government $5 million. He establishes a company that would ultimately become IBM. -
Turing Machine
1936: Alan Turing presents the notion of a universal machine, later called the Turing machine, capable of computing anything that is computable. The central concept of the modern computer was based on his ideas. -
J.V. Atanasoff
1937: J.V. Atanasoff, a professor of physics and mathematics at Iowa State University, attempts to build the first computer without gears, cams, belts or shafts. -
Hewlett-Packard
1939: Hewlett-Packard is founded by David Packard and Bill Hewlett in a Palo Alto, California, garage, according to the Computer History Museum. -
Atanasoff & Berry
1941: Atanasoff and his graduate student, Clifford Berry, design a computer that can solve 29 equations simultaneously. This marks the first time a computer is able to store information on its main memory. -
Period: to
ENIAC
1943-1944: Two University of Pennsylvania professors, John Mauchly and J. Presper Eckert, build the Electronic Numerical Integrator and Calculator (ENIAC). Considered the grandfather of digital computers, it fills a 20-foot by 40-foot room and has 18,000 vacuum tubes. -
UNIVAC
1946: Mauchly and Presper leave the University of Pennsylvania and receive funding from the Census Bureau to build the UNIVAC, the first commercial computer for business and government applications. -
Transistor Invented
1947: William Shockley, John Bardeen and Walter Brattain of Bell Laboratories invent the transistor. They discovered how to make an electric switch with solid materials and no need for a vacuum. -
1st Computer Language - COBOL by Grace Hopper
1953: Grace Hopper develops the first computer language, which eventually becomes known as COBOL. Thomas Johnson Watson Jr., son of IBM CEO Thomas Johnson Watson Sr., conceives the IBM 701 EDPM to help the United Nations keep tabs on Korea during the war. -
FORTRAN Language Developed
1954: The FORTRAN programming language, an acronym for FORmula TRANslation, is developed by a team of programmers at IBM led by John Backus, according to the University of Michigan. -
First Computer Chip
1958: Jack Kilby and Robert Noyce unveil the integrated circuit, known as the computer chip. Kilby was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2000 for his work. -
First "Modern Computer" with Mouse and GUI
1964: Douglas Engelbart shows a prototype of the modern computer, with a mouse and a graphical user interface (GUI). This marks the evolution of the computer from a specialized machine for scientists and mathematicians to technology that is more accessible to the general public. -
UNIX OS developed
1969: A group of developers at Bell Labs produce UNIX, an operating system that addressed compatibility issues. Written in the C programming language, UNIX was portable across multiple platforms and became the operating system of choice among mainframes at large companies and government entities. Due to the slow nature of the system, it never quite gained traction among home PC users. -
DRAM Chip unveiled by Intel
1970: The newly formed Intel unveils the Intel 1103, the first Dynamic Access Memory (DRAM) chip. -
Floppy Disk Invented
1971: Alan Shugart leads a team of IBM engineers who invent the "floppy disk," allowing data to be shared among computers. -
Ethernet developed
1973: Robert Metcalfe, a member of the research staff for Xerox, develops Ethernet for connecting multiple computers and other hardware. -
Period: to
Personal Computers hit the market
1974-1977: A number of personal computers hit the market, including Scelbi & Mark-8 Altair, IBM 5100, Radio Shack's TRS-80 — affectionately known as the "Trash 80" — and the Commodore PET. -
First Mini Computer & Founding of Microsoft
1975: The January issue of Popular Electronics magazine features the Altair 8080, described as the "world's first minicomputer kit to rival commercial models." Two "computer geeks," Paul Allen and Bill Gates, offer to write software for the Altair, using the new BASIC language. On April 4, after the success of this first endeavor, the two childhood friends form their own software company, Microsoft. -
Apple gets started & Apple I released
1976: Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak start Apple Computers on April Fool's Day and roll out the Apple I, the first computer with a single-circuit board, according to Stanford University. -
Radio Shack's TRS-80
1977: Radio Shack's initial production run of the TRS-80 was just 3,000. It sold like crazy. For the first time, non-geeks could write programs and make a computer do what they wished. -
Apple II
1977: Jobs and Wozniak incorporate Apple and show the Apple II at the first West Coast Computer Faire. It offers color graphics and incorporates an audio cassette drive for storage. -
VisiCalc
1978: Accountants rejoice at the introduction of VisiCalc, the first computerized spreadsheet program. -
MicroPro's WordStar
1979: Word processing becomes a reality as MicroPro International releases WordStar. "The defining change was to add margins and word wrap," said creator Rob Barnaby in email to Mike Petrie in 2000. "Additional changes included getting rid of command mode and adding a print function. I was the technical brains — I figured out how to do it, and did it, and documented it. " -
Acorn & Distribution
1981: The first IBM personal computer, code-named "Acorn," is introduced. It uses Microsoft's MS-DOS operating system. It has an Intel chip, two floppy disks and an optional color monitor. Sears & Roebuck and Computerland sell the machines, marking the first time a computer is available through outside distributors. It also popularizes the term PC. -
Apple's Lisa & Gavilan SC
1983: Apple's Lisa is the first personal computer with a GUI. It also features a drop-down menu and icons. It flops but eventually evolves into the Macintosh. The Gavilan SC is the first portable computer with the familiar flip form factor and the first to be marketed as a "laptop." -
Windows & Commodore Amiga 1000
1985: Microsoft announces Windows, according to Encyclopedia Britannica. This was the company's response to Apple's GUI. Commodore unveils the Amiga 1000, which features advanced audio and video capabilities. -
dot-com
1985: The first dot-com domain name is registered on March 15, years before the World Wide Web would mark the formal beginning of Internet history. The Symbolics Computer Company, a small Massachusetts computer manufacturer, registers Symbolics.com. More than two years later, only 100 dot-coms had been registered. -
Compaq Deskpro 386
1986: Compaq brings the Deskpro 386 to market. Its 32-bit architecture provides as speed comparable to mainframes. -
HTML
1990: Tim Berners-Lee, a researcher at CERN, the high-energy physics laboratory in Geneva, develops HyperText Markup Language (HTML), giving rise to the World Wide Web. -
Pentium Microprocessor
1993: The Pentium microprocessor advances the use of graphics and music on PCs. -
Gaming Machines
1994: PCs become gaming machines as "Command & Conquer," "Alone in the Dark 2," "Theme Park," "Magic Carpet," "Descent" and "Little Big Adventure" are among the games to hit the market. -
GOOGLE
1996: Sergey Brin and Larry Page develop the Google search engine at Stanford University. -
Apple vs. Microsoft
1997: Microsoft invests $150 million in Apple, which was struggling at the time, ending Apple's court case against Microsoft in which it alleged that Microsoft copied the "look and feel" of its operating system. -
Wi-Fi
1999: The term Wi-Fi becomes part of the computing language and users begin connecting to the Internet without wires. -
Mac OS X & Windows XP
2001: Apple unveils the Mac OS X operating system, which provides protected memory architecture and pre-emptive multi-tasking, among other benefits. Not to be outdone, Microsoft rolls out Windows XP, which has a significantly redesigned GUI. -
AMD Atholon 64
2003: The first 64-bit processor, AMD's Athlon 64, becomes available to the consumer market. -
Firefox & Facebook
2004: Mozilla's Firefox 1.0 challenges Microsoft's Internet Explorer, the dominant Web browser. Facebook, a social networking site, launches. -
YouTube & Android
2005: YouTube, a video sharing service, is founded. Google acquires Android, a Linux-based mobile phone operating system. -
MacBook Pro, iMac, & Nintendo Wii
2006: Apple introduces the MacBook Pro, its first Intel-based, dual-core mobile computer, as well as an Intel-based iMac. Nintendo's Wii game console hits the market. -
iPhones!!!
2007: The iPhone brings many computer functions to the smartphone. -
Windows 7
2009: Microsoft launches Windows 7, which offers the ability to pin applications to the taskbar and advances in touch and handwriting recognition, among other features. -
iPad
2010: Apple unveils the iPad, changing the way consumers view media and jumpstarting the dormant tablet computer segment. -
Instagram
As older generations (and with it, media, marketing, and politics) moved its conversations onto Facebook, Instagram became a digital oasis for millennials and Gen-Zers to share more of their personal lives. After being acquired by Facebook in 2012, the photo-sharing network has grown to over a billion registered users as of earlier this year. That’s more people than own iPads, making Instagram the most important piece of tech to start off from 2010. -
Chomebooks!
2011: Google releases the Chromebook, a laptop that runs the Google Chrome OS. -
Spotify
Remember what life was like before you could instantaneously play any song from any device? Neither do we. Online music piracy was finally starting to decline as more and more people wanted access to their collections through their locked-down iPhones. Spotify was born to fill that need.Founded in Sweden, the service launched in a few countries around the world in 2010 before landing in the U.S. in 2011. -
Uber!
The Model S, Tesla’s first electric car, felt like a monumental release in automotive technology. But the most impactful change in transportation wasn’t a new car. It was sharing cars. In 2012, Uber rolled out across almost every major city in the U.S. and around the world, fundamentally shifting how people got around. Its major competitor, Lyft, also launched in 2012, firmly planting these ride-sharing services as a permanent fixture of life in the city. -
Facebook hits 1,000,000,000
2012: Facebook gains 1 billion users on October 4. -
Tesla Model S
The Tesla Model S is debuted. -
Chromecast
The Chromecast isn’t needed by most people today. Access to Netflix, Hulu, and YouTube is in every device, including your TV. That wasn’t the case in 2013. For its time, it was a revolution. It was impossibly small and simple, a hack that turned any TV into a smart one. It was a workaround that pushed us forward to the cord-cutting future we currently live in. -
xBox One
xBox One debuts -
Apple Watch & Windows 10
2015: Apple releases the Apple Watch. Microsoft releases Windows 10. -
Amazon Echo
Smart speakers came out of nowhere. Who would have thought these simple devices would have taken voice assistants to such great heights? It all started with the original Echo and Amazon’s Alexa assistant. -
Quantum Computing Advances
2016: The first reprogrammable quantum computer was created. "Until now, there hasn't been any quantum-computing platform that had the capability to program new algorithms into their system. They're usually each tailored to attack a particular algorithm," said study lead author Shantanu Debnath, a quantum physicist and optical engineer at the University of Maryland, College Park. -
Tesla Model X
Tesla model X debuts - fully electric SUV -
AirPods
We all laughed at the name of the iPad. We all thought the Apple Watch should have been circular. And then, there was the golf-tee shaped AirPods. They were laughable in 2016, as was the idea of how easily people would lose them. Skip ahead to the present, and they’re everywhere you look. They kicked the wireless earbud game into a high gear, with companies ranging from Amazon to Samsung following suit. -
DARPA
2017: The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is developing a new "Molecular Informatics" program that uses molecules as computers. "Chemistry offers a rich set of properties that we may be able to harness for rapid, scalable information storage and processing," Anne Fischer, program manager in DARPA's Defense Sciences Office, said in a statement. -
Tesla Model 3
Tesla Model 3 debuts -
Nintendo Switch
In the first half of the 2010s, no one would have guessed that a Nintendo console would be the console of the decade. The Wii’s time in the spotlight was waning, and the Wii U was a complete flop at launch in 2012. The Switch, though, did just about everything right. It brought together the best aspects of Nintendo’s strengths, from fantastic first-party games to a bright-eyed approach toward hardware. -
TikTok
Looking ahead to the next decade, Tik Tok feels like the piece of tech most ready to blast into the stratosphere. As Gen Z kids break into adulthood, they’ll likely bring this social media platform with them. Still wondering what Tik Tok is? In some sense, it’s the spiritual successor to Vine. Short-form videos for lip syncing, comedy, and skits that are already creating a new generation of super-star social media celebrities. -
SD Card - 1 TB
Lexar annoucnes the first SD card in which could store 1 terabyte! -
Google claims to have achieved Quantum supremacy.
In quantum computing, quantum supremacy is the goal of demonstrating that a programmable quantum device can solve a problem that no classical computer can solve in any feasible amount of time (irrespective of the usefulness of the problem). -
Tesla Model Y
Tesla Model Y debuts