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Period: to
history computers
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Complex Number Calculator
The Complex Number Calculator (CNC) is completed. In 1939, Bell Telephone Laboratories completed this calculator, designed by researcher George Stibitz. In 1940, Stibitz demonstrated the CNC at an American Mathematical Society conference held at Dartmouth College. -
The Zuse Z3 Computer
Konrad Zuse finishes the Z3 computer. The Z3 was an early computer built by German engineer Konrad Zuse working in complete isolation from developments elsewhere. -
The Atansoff-Berry Computer (ABC)
The Atanasoff-Berry Computer (ABC) is completed. After successfully demonstrating a proof-of-concept prototype in 1939, Atanasoff received funds to build the full-scale machine. Built at Iowa State College (now University), the ABC was designed and built by Professor John Vincent Atanasoff and graduate student Cliff Berry between 1939 and 1942. -
Harvard Mark-1
Harvard Mark-1 is completed. Conceived by Harvard professor Howard Aiken, and designed and built by IBM, the Harvard Mark-1 was a room-sized, relay-based calculator. -
Standard Eastern Automatic Computer (SEAC)
The National Bureau of Standards constructed the SEAC (Standards Eastern Automatic Computer) in Washington as a laboratory for testing components and systems for setting computer standards -
UNIVAC I
The UNIVAC I delivered to the U.S. Census Bureau was the first commercial computer to attract widespread public attention. -
IBM 726 Dual Tape Drive
The IBM 726 was one of the first practical high-speed magnetic tape systems for electronic digital computers. Magnetic tape allows for inexpensive mass storage of information and so is a key part of the computer revolution. -
IBM 650
The IBM 650 magnetic drum calculator established itself as the first mass-produced computer, with the company selling 450 in one year. Spinning at 12,500 rpm, the 650´s magnetic data-storage drum allowed much faster access to stored material than drum memory machines. -
COBOL Design Team
A team drawn from several computer manufacturers and the Pentagon developed COBOL, Common Business Oriented Language. Designed for business use, early COBOL efforts aimed for easy readability of computer programs and as much machine independence as possible -
Fairchild NPN Transistor
Fairchild Camera and Instrument Corp. produced the first widely accepted epitaxial gold-doped NPN transistor. The NPN transistor served as the industry workhouse for discrete logic. -
CDC 6600
CDC´s 6600 supercomputer, designed by Seymour Cray, performed up to 3 million instructions per second — a processing speed three times faster than that of its closest competitor, the IBM Stretch -
ILLIAC IV
The first large-scale array computer, the ILLIAC IV achieved a computation speed of 200 million instructions per second, about 300 million operations per second, and 1 billion bits per second -
Engineers at PARC Circa
PARC attracted some of the United States’ top computer scientists, and produced many groundbreaking inventions that transformed computing -
Intel 8008
Intel´s 8008 microprocessor made its debut. A vast improvement over its predecessor, the 4004, its eight-bit word afforded 256 unique arrangements of ones and zeros. -
Xerox Alto
The first work station with a built-in mouse for input. The Alto stored several files simultaneously in windows, offered menus and icons, and could link to a local area network -
Apple I
Steve Wozniak designed the Apple I, a single-board computer. About 200 of the machines sold before the company announced the Apple II as a complete computer. -
Shugart ST506 5MB Hard Disk Drive
Seagate Technology created the first hard disk drive for microcomputers, the ST506. The disk held 5 megabytes of data, five times as much as a standard floppy disk, and fit in the space of a floppy disk drive. -
Osborne I
Adam Osborne completed the first portable computer. The price made the machine especially attractive, as it included software worth about $1,500. It weighed 24 pounds and cost $1,795. -
Commodore 64
The C64 with 64KB of RAM and featured impressive graphics had thousands of software titles were released over the lifespan of the C64. -
IBM 3480 Cartridge Tape System
Magnetic tape allows for inexpensive mass storage of information and so is a key part of the computer revolution. -
VideoToaster
The Video Toaster was a video editing and production system for the Amiga line of computers and included custom hardware and special software -
Software & Languages
Designed by Finnish university student Linus Torvalds, Linux was released to several Usenet newsgroups. Almost immediately, enthusiasts began developing and improving Linux, such as adding support for peripherals and improving its stability. -
Graphics & Games
Made for a record $100 million, it was the most expensive movie ever made at the time. Most of this cost was due to the expense of computer-generated special effects (such as image morphing) throughout the film -
Yahoo! founders Jerry Yang and David Filo
Yahoo is founded. Founded by Stanford graduate students Jerry Yang and David Filo.Yahoo would quickly expand to become one of the Internet’s most popular search engines. -
Yahoo
Yahoo! Inc. is an American multinational internet corporation. The company is perhaps best known for its web portal, search engine (Yahoo! Search). It was founded in 1995. -
Google
Google announces it has indexed over one billion pages making it the Internet's largest search engine. -
Froogle
Google introduces Froogle, which allows users to search for stuff to buy. -
MySpace
MySpace official site is launched. MySpace is a social site. Almost every teen had one. -
You Tube
You Tube is the best way to broadcast yourself. Alot of people use it to look at videos. -
Microsoft Windows Vista
Microsoft releases Microsoft Windows Vista to corporations. Microsoft Windows Vista is an upgrade to Microsoft Windows XP. Windows Vista contains a dramatic new look for users used to previous versions of Microsoft Windows that has been designed to help create an overall better experience. -
Netscape
Netscape is an Internet browser that was popular during the early 1990's and was in a constant browser war between Microsoft Internet Explorer. -
Skype
Skype is a proprietary voice-over-Internet Protocol service and software application originally created by Niklas Zennström, and owned by Microsoft since 2011.
