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1822 – 1833	Charles Babbage is commonly referred to as the “Father of Computers.” In 1791 Babbage, an English mathematician and inventor, with some help from Ada Byron (daughter of Lord Byron, the famous poet) developed the ideas for two mechanical calculators. The “Difference Engine” was designed to solve equations by the method of differences, and the “Analytical Engine” for general computing. Accurate parts could not be manufactured at the time so neither machine was ever built, however Babbage’s and Byron’s planning and preliminary work lead to important computing concepts still in use today.

1854	George Boole created a system for symbolic and logical reasoning called Boolean Algebra which became the basis for computer software design.

1880 – 1890	It took the US Census Bureau 7 years to compile the information gathered in 1880. Time estimates put the 1890 census at 10-12 years. Knowing that would never work, the Census Bureau held a public competition to produce a better way of tabulating census results. Herman Hollerith, a census employee, won the contest by suggesting the use of punch cards and a punch card reader. Using his system the results took 6 weeks to tabulate. Meanwhile, Hollerith went on to found the Tabulating Machine Company. After changing names several times they finally decided in 1924 on International Business Machines and are now known as IBM.

1925	Vannevar Bush designed an analog computer for solving differential equations.

1940’s	World War II provided the means for the development of more intricate computers. Soon the first decrypting and electronic computers made their way into military applications. Admiral Grace Hopper was a Naval Officer and a pioneer in Computer Programming. She realized computers could be used for business applications. Up until that time computers were used solely for military or scientific applications. Her programming language, “Flowmatic,” evolved into COBAL (Common Business Oriented Language,) a common and still popular language for programming today.

1945	A Bug was found in a computer relay and the term “debugging” was coined.

1946	The ENIAC (Electrical Numerical Integrator and Calculator) was the most famous of the early computers and it contained 18,000 vacuum tubes. It was used by the Army for ballistic calculations.

1947	The first stored program machine, the Manchester Baby, is developed.

1951	The second generation of machines are developed along with programming languages like Fortran (Formula Translation) and LISP (List Processor.) The most famous of the general purpose computers, UNIVAC (Universal Automatic Computer,) is delivered to the Census Bureau.

1959	With the invention of the transistor, computers began to shrink in size and cost while operating faster and becoming more reliable.

1960’s	More programming languages made their way into the mainstream and IBM introduced System 360 which would be the first of the “Family of Computers.”

1964	The mouse and Windows are invented.

1967	The first computers using integrated circuits hit the market.

1968	The Intel Corporation was born.

1969	Work began on ARPAnet, a precursor of the Internet.

1974	Intel Corporation introduces the first CPU integrated circuit chip named the 8080, which is considered by many as the beginning of the personal computer industry.

1975	In July, the MITS Altair, appeared on the cover of Popular Electronics Magazine. It had no monitor or keyboard, only LED lights and flip switches. Microsoft and Apple Corporations were founded and the first mass produced computer, the IBM 5100, hit the market.

1976	The Apple II is introduced.

1981	IBM introduces the IBM PC (Personal Computer,) with DOS 1.0 (Disk Operating System.)

1982	The Compaq Portable and the first IBM Clones hit the market.

1984	Apple Macintosh is introduced. IBM Portables are available.

1985	Microsoft Windows hits the market and the term “Hackers” is coined.

1988	Laptops and smaller versions of desktops drive the market.

1990	Microsoft introduces Windows 3.0, which included a graphical user interface (GUI) allowing for multiple programs to be accessed at once giving the user the ability to switch between programs also known as multi-tasking.

1990’s	Smaller, Faster, Cheaper! The Internet becomes commonplace. Not only are PC’s necessary in business, many homes have multiple Personal Computers.

2000’s	High-speed land lines and wireless communication will drive the industry to create even faster, smaller, cheaper equipment. Security and virus protection will be of chief concern. Infrared technology will eliminate all the wires. Voice recognition software will virtually eliminate the keyboard and mouse. The standardization of HDTV (High Definition TV) and broadband cable will make the internet a part of your home cable package giving you access to thousands of TV and radio stations, as well as television shows, movies on-the-fly, the internet, music and more!

Timeline