Significant Inventions in Computers

By BigOlStinker

  • First Computer

    First Computer
    Difference Engine invented by Charles Babbage aka "father of the computer" The design describes a machine to calculate a series of values and print results automatically in a table.

  • First Working Programmable Computer

    First Working Programmable Computer
    Z3 invented by Konrad Zuse. Z3 was a secret project of the German government, put to use by the German Aircraft Research Institute in order to perform statistical analyses of wing flutter.

  • First Trackball

    First Trackball
    The Trackball invented by Ralph Benjamin for fire-control radar plotting system named Comprehensive Display System(CDS)

  • First Programmable Computer

    First Programmable Computer
    Colossus was invented by Tommy Flowers. It was used by the British to read secret German messages (encrypted by the Lorenz cipher) during World War II.

  • First Real-Time Graphics Display Computer

    First Real-Time Graphics Display Computer
    The AN/FSQ-7, developed by IBM, was by far the largest computer ever built. It consisted of 2 Whirlwind II computers installed in a 4-story building. t was a control and command system used in the air defense network. It calculated one or more predicted interception points for assigning aircraft or CIM-10 Bomarc missiles to intercept an intruder using the ATABE (Automatic Target and Battery Evaluation) algorithm.