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Stepped Reckoner Designed
Built by Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz across over 20 years well before the first modern computer, this machine was designed to make calculations faster and easier. This digital mechanical calculator was the first that could perform addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division as separate operations. history-computer.com/MechanicalCalculators/Pioneers/Lebniz.html -
Leibniz Wheel Invented
Invented by Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz and used first in his stepped reckoner, these devices were used in several calculation machines up until the 1970s, even after computers were commonly used. historyofinformation.com/expanded.php?id=453 -
Work On Difference Engine Started
Designed By Charles Baggage, and partially built, this calculating machine was advanced enough to almost be considered a computer. This device was able to mechanize several multi-variable calculations simultaneously to solve complicated problems. britannica.com/technology/Difference-Engine -
Arithmometer Patented
Patented by Thomas de Colmar before the first computer, these devices were the first calculators that were commercially successful. Despite a weak launch and this device not being the first to perform all four basic arithmic operations, it eventually became very popular in later decades. mhs.ox.ac.uk/staff/saj/arithmometer -
First Use of Unit Record Equipment
Developed by Herman Hollerith for a census, these devices became commonly used at the start of the 1800s, as a precursor to the modern computer. Punched cards were processed in decks through these machines, allowing for large-scale processing of data. enacademic.com/dic.nsf/enwiki/426186 -
Z1 Design Started
The Z1 was the first of several computers created by Konrad Zuse that made large advances in computing. This binary computer was the first electro-mechanical computer that could be programmed. It used floating point numbers and Boolean logic. zuse.zib.de/z1
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Bombe First Designed
Based in part on the Polish Bomba, this device was developed by Alan Turing, as well as Gordon Welchman. It was used during World War II to decipher German messages that were encrypted with Enigma machines. This device was electromechanical and operated using character computations. The memory was in the form of the physical state of the rotors. cryptomuseum.com/crypto/bombe -
Z3 Completed
Z3 was the first workable digital computer that performed programmed operations automatically. It had a 22 bit word length and was designed by Konrad Zuse. It was a binary floating point computer that used 2,400 mechanical relays. history-computer.com/ModernComputer/Relays/Zuse.html -
Development of First Z4 Started
The Z4 was the first digital computer to be sold commercially. Designed by Konrad Zuse, the Z4 was found to be very reliable, and could work without supervision. It had a 32 bit word length and 2,200 relays. Like its predecessor the Z3, it was a binary floating point computer that used mechanical relays. history-computer.com/ModernComputer/Relays/Zuse.html -
Atanasoff-Berry Computer Completed
The ABC, built by John Vincent Atanasoff with the help of Clifford E. Berry, was the first electronic computer. This early digital computer was designed to automatically solve linear equations with large amounts of variables. http://www4.ncsu.edu/~belail/The_Introduction_of_Electronic_Computing/Atanasoff-Berry_Computer.html -
Colossus Mark 1 Is Operational
Colossus was the first ever digital computer that was programmable and electronic on a large scale. It was developed by British cryptanalysts to help decipher intercepted German messages during World War II. It was a binary computer that used vacuum tubes. colossus-computer.com -
ENIAC Completed
Proposed in 1942 and designed to calculate firing tables for US artillery, the building of ENIAC started in 1943 and was the first computer built at a large-scale that could run without being slowed down by mechanical parts. It was able to solve different types of numerical problems and was massively faster than any electromechanical machine. This electronic computer was based on decimals and used nearly 18,000 vacuum tubes. computerhistory.org/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/78 -
First Manchester Computer Designed
The SSEM became the first electronic stored-program digital computer. It was the first of multiple Manchester computers that were developed over thirty years. Other Manchester Computers include the Manchester Mark 1, the first computer with index registers, and Atlas, the fastest computer of the time. The first transistor computer was also created, as well as the Ferranti Mark 1, the first general-purpose electronic computer that was available commercially. cs.manchester.ac.uk/about-us/history -
Work On EDSAC Started
Built after World War II in Cambridge University, this electronic digital computer was one of the first stored-program computers that were able to practically perform general purpose tasks. It used thermionic valves, and allowed productivity to increase massively. tnmoc.org/special-projects/edsac/edsac-history -
LEO I Runs First Business Operation
Based on the EDSAC and built by J. Lyons and Co., this computer was the first of the LEO series and the first business computer used for commercial applications. Very fast for its time, this computer was used to perform several different business applications. warwick.ac.uk/services/library/mrc/explorefurther/digital/leo/story -
Hard Drive Invented
Introduced first by IBM, this device was originally nearly the size of a room. Digital information was stored on magnetically coated disks that rotated quickly. The hard drive allowed data to be accessed in any order. Improvements were made until they were small and eventually commonly found in computers. efilecabinet.com/a-brief-history-of-data-storage -
EDSAC II Becomes Operational
This computer succeeded the EDSAC, and pioneered having bit slice hardware architecture and a microprogrammed control unit in a computer. It was built by the creators of EDSAC. This computer showed that microprogramming could be used practically as a foundation in a computer. http://cva.stanford.edu/classes/cs99s/papers/wilkes-edsac2.pdf -
Burroughs MCP Released
Created nearly 60 years ago by Burroughs and Unisys in ESPOL, this OS was last updated just a few years ago. This OS was the first to do several things, such as managing more than one processor and commercially implementing visual memory. unisys.com/offerings/clearpath-forward/clearpath-forward-products/clearpath-mcp-software/clearpath-mcp-release-18
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IBM System/360 OS Operating System Announced
This operating system was developed by IBM and is one of the earliest operating systems that required at least a single direct access storage device. It was made for mainframe IBM computers and could support different machines. britannica.com/technology/IBM-OS-360 -
Programma 101 Released
The P101, produced by Olivetti, is a programmable device that can be considered the first personal computer. This desktop calculator could perform the basic functions as well as more complicated calculations such as square roots. Logical operations were also performed, and in a customized language. The memory was in the form of a magnetic card reader and recorder. inexhibit.com/case-studies/olivetti-programma-101-at-the-origins-of-the-personal-computer -
Multics Released
Developed by MIT, General Electric, and Bell Labs, this was a time-sharing OS that became popular and went on to influence the creation of many modern operating systems. Systems used this OS until the year 2000, but the source code was released seven years later, and updates are still being made. multicians.org/history.html -
Development of Unix Started
This OS, created by Ken Thompson at AT&T nearly 50 years ago, became an important piece of software. Different versions were made for company and academic use. Used very commonly, Unix led to the creation of several similar operating systems, including Linux. infoworld.com/article/2632713/unix/unix-turns-40--the-past--present--and-future-of-a-revolutionary-os -
Intel 4004 CPU's First Produced
Intel Corporation released this 4-bit BDC based CPU as their first microprocessor that was available for commercial purchase. These chips contained 2,300 transistors and could be customized with software to perform many different tasks. intel.com/content/www/us/en/history/museum-story-of-intel-4004 -
First Floppy Disks Used
First produced as 8-inch square disks by IBM, these portable devices made storing data faster and easier by using magnetic film. Floppy disks advanced to be smaller, and metal cases replaced the plastic ones. zetta.net/about/blog/history-data-storage-technology -
MOS Technology 6502 First Introduced
These 8-bit, 64 KB CPUs sold for only $25, which was significantly cheaper than other CPUs that were made before these. With it being easy to program, faster, and smaller MOS was able to sell millions of these chips, which helped the development of home computing. archive.archaeology.org/1107/features/mos_technology_6502_computer_chip_cpu.html -
Intel 8086 Released
This CPU was a massive success that allowed Intel to distinguish itself from other chip companies. The production of this 16-bit chip continued to the 1990's despite not doing well to start, as it eventually became an industry standard that had a large impact on personal computing. The 8086 featured the debut of x86 architecture. pcworld.com/article/146957/components/article -
MS-DOS Released
This DOS was the first OS developed by Microsoft, before even Windows 1.0. It was created for use in IBM compatible computers and was most recently updated in 1994. The MS-DOS command line is still commonly used. computerhope.com/jargon/m/msdos.htm -
CD First Released
The compact disc was created by Sony and Philips and consisted of an optical disc made out of plastic. Digitized audio was stored on a metallic surface and read with a laser. An extremely large amount of pits on the surface of the CD were encoded with binary data. cd-info.com/cd -
Initial Release of Windows
The first version of Windows, Windows 1.0, was initially an extension for MS-DOS. Since then, many different versions of Windows have been released, the most recent of which was Windows 10 in 2014. Over a billion people use a Windows OS, and it is found on most PCs as the the most common desktop OS. britannica.com/technology/Windows-OS
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Linux Released
Linux is a completely free, open-source operating system developed by Linus Torvalds for PCs that were based on Intel x86. It is a popular OS, and has been ported to more platforms than any other, and is used on many supercomputers. It is very similar to Unix linux.com/what-is-linux
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Pentium P5 Introduced
The P5 was a fifth-generation chip produced by Intel, and was the first processor that had x86 superscaler microarchitecture and the first Pentium processor. This processor had multiple improvements over previous architecture and was designed to surpass 100 MIPS scribd.com/document/52312226/P5-microarchitecture -
DVD Introduced
This data storage device was created mainly, like the CD, by Sony and Philips. Video and other data can be stored on these optical disks. The DVD became very commonly used for audio and video storage, which can be stored in small pits on the surface of a disc. There are four basic DVD types. cd-info.com/dvd -
Salesforce.com Founded
This American company provides cloud computing services. Salesforce acts as a customer relationship platform and has multiple cloud products. It is one of the earliest and most valuable cloud computing companies. secfilings.nasdaq.com/edgar_conv_html%2f2017%2f03%2f06%2f0001108524-17-000006.html#FIS_BUSINESS -
USB Flash Drive Becomes Available
This data storage device featured flash memory and a USB interface. These tiny devices are very light and usually rewritable and removable. They can be so small that losing them is sometimes an issue. Despite their small size, one of these devices can store much more information than a DVD or CD. backupify.com/history-of-data-storage -
First Pentium 4 Model Released
The Pentium 4 series succeeded the Pentium III and formed a basis for new technology for the next few years. The Pentium 4 1.4 and 1.5 were released first, and on the same day. New models came out as late as 2006. NetBurst architecture was used, which introduced SMT in desktop processors. pcmech.com/article/a-cpu-history/6/ -
Amazon Web Services Launches
AWS is an Amazon subsidiary that is able to provide different cloud computing platforms to those who by it. Many different types of cloud services were made availably globally, including the Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud. The Amazon EC2 is a main part of AWS and allows users to run applications on virtual computers in the Cloud. This release helped popularize cloud computing. aws.amazon.com -
Dropbox Created
This file hosting service provides personal cloud storage across devices. Built focusing on creativity and collaboration, this service has become very popular, and is in the top 100 most trafficked sites. Dropbox can be used for free, but paying users can access a full terabyte of storage. alexa.com/siteinfo/dropbox.com
dropbox.com -
Eucalyptus Released
This is an open-source, paid piece of software made for Linux and Windows. It is used to build hybrid, private, cloud computing environments, and features that are compatible with AWS. New versions have been released as late as 2017. searchcloudprovider.techtarget.com/definition/Eucalyptus -
OpenStack Officially Released
This is an open-source, free piece of software that is used in cloud computing. With OpenStack, both private and public clouds can be created. Though initially started by NASA and Rackspace, several hundred other companies have helped work on the project, which had a stable release on August 30, 2017 as Pike. openstack.org
