Abstract
The microprocessor changed what is now known as Silicon Valley from a mostly agricultural and defense electronics region into a center of innovation for many new technologies. How did that happen and what challenges were faced along the way?
This IEEE Life Member panel will discuss and debate the development of microprocessor technologies in the 70's, 80's and 90's.
The IBM Selective Sequence Electronic Calculator (in use from 1948-1952) pioneered some features of the modern computer such as self-modifying instructions and stood on the indistinct dividing line between the modern computer and the calculating machines that came before. It was also a pioneer in another sphere, the movie business.
The IEEE SV Tech History committee fulfilled its mandate by holding four technical meetings in 2014. It was a close call as three of those meetings occured in the last three months of the year.
Our committee’s charter is to have at least four technical meetings per year that will educate, inform and raise the level of awareness of technology history indigenous to greater silicon valley. In addition, we are open and receptive to holding joint meetings with other IEEE Societies, groups, committees as well as tech non profit organizations. Our website complements our meetings and provides in
Editor's NOTE: This article was written by Ted Hoff, PhD EE and edited by Alan J. Weissberger, Chairman of the IEEE SV History Committee.From Ted Hoff:
The errors listed below are in approximately the same order as they appear in Malone's book.
On August 6, 2014, Michael Malone, Author of The Intel Trinity, spoke at the Commonwealth Club of Silicon Valley. The program was held in the upper galleries of the Tech Museum in San Jose, CA.
Similar to his earlier speech at the
A group of students at the Harvard Innovation Lab have created a time-lapsed visualization of the impact of computers, IT, and technology on our lives. The video provides a historical review of the office desk, beginning from the 1980s all the way to present day.
When was the last time you walked into a data center and were stopped dead in your tracks by the beauty of a computer? Right, probably never. That is why you will most likely never see a computer in any art history books...but there is one that may well change that.
Even though there is amazing beauty in the intricate mesh of microelectronic circuits inside, most people never really get to see that. Instead, we have come to view a computer as nothing more than a box that we plug things into.
Introduction:
This CHM conversation (with NY Times moderator John Markoff asking the questions) was more about the challenges faced by Ms Arati Prabhakar, PhD then it was about DARPA. It would've been very appropriate for a Women in Engineering meeting. However, there were several important topics related to Ms Prabhaker's two terms of employment at DARPA, which we've attempted to capture in this event summary article. Note the addendum on Sil
Gary A. Kildall, PhD (1942 – 1994), developed and then demonstrated the first working prototype of CP/M (Control Program for Microcomputers) in Pacific Grove in 1974.
I consider this set of 150 products announced on April 7, 1964, to be the most important introduced by an American company in the 20th century. And I am not alone in that view. How we used computers around the world was shaped directly by these machines and software, including your cell phone.
On March 3, 2014, Eric Schmidt and Jared Cohen (co-authors of The New Digital Age) engaged in a stimulating conversation with Facebook's COO Sheryl Sandberg. The event took place at the Computer History Museum (CHM) as part of the museum's Revolutionary series (see description below). This very interesting and wide ranging discussion, was mostly related to the promise and perils of the digital revolution, especially the Internet as it impacts the developing world.
When I first wrote programs in 1953, there was no software and few programmers. I entered programs in the computer’s binary language (octal notation) directly into the machine’s registers. And the machine was all mine: there was no operating system to allocate its resources among multiple programs or operate the input-output devices.
During January some of you might have noticed a running dialogue among historians and other interested parties about who invented the “first” computer. There was no agreement reached on the correct answer to that question. Discussions about “firsts” pop up about every five years, almost like short-lived brush fires on the side of the road as historians travel on to do their serious work. Over the past forty years I have seen articles and books, even one lawsuit on patents, over the question of “firsts.”
The United Kingdom has finally pardoned Alan Turing for a gay sex conviction which tarnished the brilliant career of the code breaker credited with helping win the war against Nazi Germany and laying the foundation for the computer age.
Computer visionary Doug Englebart was posthumously honored on December 9th at the Computer History Museum (CHM) in Mt View, CA. The date of this event was significant, because December 9 was the 45th Anniversary of the “Mother of All Demos.^” Doug's wife, daughter, and several people that worked with Doug or knew of his work made brief speeches to honor him.
The History of Science Society held its annual meeting two weeks ago (November 21st to November 24th) in Boston MA. The meeting celebrated among other things the centenary of the journal Isis, the organ around which the society was eventually formed. The meeting covered a broad range of topics in the history of science from all historical periods ancient to recent.
LEO, more formally known as Lyons Electronic Office, was the world's first business computer, having been developed by the British company J. Lyons & Co. Ltd. between 1947-1954. John Simmons was very much the genius behind this adventure into business process re-engineering. His papers are archived at the Modern Record Centre at Warwick University in Coventry, England. Many of these contain valuable information about the ideas behind the LEO development.
I consider this set of 150 products announced on April 7, 1964, to be the most important introduced by an American company in the 20th century. And I am not alone in that view. How we used computers around the world was shaped directly by these machines and software, including your cell phone.
Ever get the urge to mess with Visicalc or WordStar again? Play the original Donkey Kong or Adventure on your computer? Now you can!
