15/03/2007
URL: http://asia.cnet.com/time_capsules/computing/talkback/

Believe it or not, the world's first computing system was invented some time between 1000 BC and 500 BC. Called the abacus, this tool, known to have first existed in Mesopotamia and China, was an ingenious invention designed to perform speedy calculations through the movement of beads on a series of rods.

Toward the end of the 19th century, the common belief of scientists around the world was that Man had pretty much discovered just about everything. As William Thomson (Lord Kelvin), president of the Royal Society of the UK, put it in the 1890s: "Everything that needed to be invented is now invented." Well, they could not be more wrong. In just over one century, man landed on the moon, individual atoms could be viewed with microscopes, information could be transmitted wirelessly over the air, and you can now buy pizza, books and just about anything without ever leaving your home.

Today, we are blessed with computers of every shape and kind. Watches that can double as music players. Desktop PCs to help us type our documents and plan our schedules. Small and light mobile computers that let us work wherever and whevever. Even smart phones that pull doubt-duty as mini computers.

Hard as it is to believe, the digital computer only began to take shape in the 1940s, and the PCs which have become second nature to us today started their evolution only in the 1970s after the creation of the integrated circuit which was to herald the minitiarization of previously gigantic computers.

Before that computers were huge devices that spanned over 1.5 times the size of a regular HDB flat. It's hard to say if Man himself could have foreseen his own development in such a short span of over half a century. As late as 1977, Ken Olsen, founder of Digital Equipment Corp, said: "There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home. There is no reason for anyone to have a computer in their home." In the end, Man outdid himself.

This Digital Time Capsule takes us through the evolution of computing.

Pre-historic age for Man dates back to billions of years ago, but for computing with its quicksilver evolution, the 1950s and before were pretty much pre-historic.

1834-5

In the 1800s mechanical calculators are the inventions of the day. In the mid-1830s, inventor Charles Babbage conceives the idea of the Analytical Engine, the closest resemblance to the idea of a modern digital computer during his time. He attempts to build it but has to ditch it as a result of insufficient funds, probably because no one can appreciate what he's trying to do.

1868

The first QWERTY keyboard is designed by Charles Sholes, the inventor of the typewriter.

1883

Thomas Edison discovers that electricity can flow through a vacuum.

1889

Herman Hollerith constructs the first electromechanical adding and sorting machine which will be used in the US Census in 1890.

1895

Guglielmo Marconi transmits the radio signal with a transmitter he builds.

1897

Sir Joseph John Tompson discovers the electron.

1904

John Fleming patents the diode vacuum tube, the first such in the world.

1906

Lee de Forest adds a third electrode to control current flow to create the triode vacuum tube.

1919

W.H. Eccles and F.W. Jordan discover that two triode valves can be connected to form a circuit possessing two stable states, a construction capable of storing binary information.

1937

John V. Atanasoff designed the first digital electronic computer.

1939

The first vacuum tube computer is created by John V. Atanasoff and Clifford Berry. It is called the ABC or Atanasoff-Berry Computer.

1941

Konrad Zuse in Germany secretly completes the Z3, the first programmable electromechanical digital computer.

1944

IBM builds the Harvard Mark 1 Automatic Sequence Controlled Calculator, the first general purpose automatic digital computer

1946

The ENIAC, created to help the US Army calculate artillery firing tables, is set in operation at the University of Pennsylvania. It contains 17,468 vacuum tubes, 5 million hand-soldered joints, occupies 1800sq ft of space and weighs 30 tons. It consumes 180kwh, the energy of a small village in an hour. Data is entered by punch cards. Programming for typical calculations can take from half an hour to a day. A human calculator would need 100 years to do what the ENIAC does in just 2 hours. It's a marvel in its own time.

1947

The transistor is discovered by William B. Shockley, John Bardeen and Walter Brattain. The transistor will eventually replace the vacuum tubes as the building blocks of electronic circuitry in computers.

1948

IBM launches the Selective Sequence Electronic Calculator (SSEC) as the first calculator to execute commands sequentially and able to change the program depending on the results it produces during its processing. The SSEC is 250 times faster then the MARK I, but the machine still contains 12.500 tubes and 21.400 relays and is 36m long, generating a lot of heat and noise.

1952

IBM announces its first fully electronic data-processing system, the IBM 701. The four years between the SSEC and the 701 produces great advances in information technology. The 701 is only one-quarter the size of the SSEC and 25 times faster.

1955

The end of the old era of vacumm tubes and electromechanical computers, and the start of the new world of transistors. IBM launches the IBM 702, the first commercial machines on transistors. In the same year, the ENIAC is finally retired, having done more arithmetic than the entire human race has done prior to its birth in 1945.

1956

The first operating system is created and installed in the IBM 704.

The dawn of the integrated circuit changed the world and the way we communicate, operate and function.

1958-9

Robert Noyce (Fairchild Semiconductor) and Jack Kilby (Texas Instruments) independently invent the integrated circuit at about the same time. This was a breakthrough because it allowed multiple transistors to be placed on a single fragment of silicon.

1960

Digital introduces its first “mini-computer”, the PDP-1, complete with monitor and keyboard input.

1961

The first commercial integrated circuit is made available by Fairchild Semiconductors.

1963

ASCII, American Standard Code for Information Interchange, is introduced. This code is developed by both the US Government and computer industry. ASCII was the standardization in computer codes that enabled computers to exchange their data.

1965

Gordon Moore predicts that the number of transistors placeable on a computer chip will double every year. This statement becomes what is known as Moore’s Law. Doug Engelbart creates a prototype of the computer mouse.

1967

IBM builds the first (8-inch!) floppy disk. The handheld pocket calculator is invented by Jack Kilby and his team at Texas Instruments (TI).

1968

Robert Noyce and Gordon Moore leave Fairchild to set up Intel. The forefather of the Internet, the ARPANet, is set up.

Few developments have revolutionized the world as profoundly, or as rapidly, as the microprocessor. It is found everywhere, from phones to portable computers, from televisions to video players.

1970

The first RAM (Random Access Memory) chip is announced by Fairchild.

1971

Robert Noyce of Intel creates the microprocessor, an entire computer on a single chip. The floppy disk and microprocessor herald the possibility of personal computers. Ray Tomlinson sends the first network email message.

1972

Intel releases the 200kHz 8008, an 8-bit version of the 4004 created a year earlier. It contains 3,500 transistors and is the first processor able to recognize all characters of the alphabet and numbers. This processor becomes instantly popular with manufacturers of small computers. The first computer to use the Intel 8008 CPU is the MITS 816. It does not have a display or keyboard. HP releases the first scientific calculator, the HP-35.

1973

Xerox PARC develops an experimental PC called Alto which has a mouse and a graphical user interface. Sharp develops LCD technology for calculators.

1974

Intel releases the 2MHz 8080 chip, which is 10 times faster than the 8008. Motorola launches the 6800 processor.

1975

MITS unveils the Altair 8800, popularly seen as the world’s very first consumer personal computer. The Altair is build around the Intel 8080 chip and contains a memory of 256 bytes. It costs US$395, but up to US$2,000 worth of peripherals are needed to make it go. Microsoft is founded and its BASIC program goes into the 8800. IBM launches the 5100, the predecessor to the 5150 IBM PC. It costs between US$9,000 and US$20,000!

1976

Gary Kildall creates the CP/M operating system. Zilog, a company of ex-Intel employees, releases its Z-80 on the market. Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak found Apple Computer.

1977

The Apple II is released, establishing a new benchmark for PCs. It is the first PC that looks like an appliance instead of a piece of electronic equipment, complete with integrated keyboard, color graphics, sound, a plastic case and eight expansion slots. Dennis Hayes invents the PC modem.

1978

Daniel Bricklin and Bob Frankston develop the first commercial spreadsheet program VisiCalc that is an instant hit with Apple II fans. The Ethernet standard is released by Xerox, DEC and Intel.

The term PC was popularized by Apple Computer but it was, in fact, IBM that locked the initials PC into stone.

1980

Apple introduces the Apple III for US$3,500, but it is a disaster. Apple clones start to appear in the market. HP releases its first PC, the HP-85.

1981

The Osborne 1 "portable computer" starts the mobile computing rage. It weighs in at 24lbs and is the size of a small suitcase! IBM unleashes the IBM 5150 PC using Intel's 4.77MHz 8088 CPU and Microsoft's DOS. This is the first PC based on "off-the-shelf" parts or what is called open architecture. It is the forefather to the "Wintel" PC that we all use today. Sony creates the 3.5-inch diskette. The first portable computer is born, the Osborne. It has a tiny CRT screen, runs on CP/M and is the size of a sewing machine, but it's the first computer that can be lugged around. It has to be plugged into the mains.

1982

The word "cyberspace" is coined by sci-fi author William Gibson in his book Neuromancer.

1983

Compaq unveils its first "IBM-compatible" PC. IBM puts its IBM PC XT into the market. Apple releases the Lisa, the first PC with a graphical user interface, but it is too expensive for the mass market. The first portable computer to run on MS-DOS is launched. The Compaq Portable weighs 12.5 kg and is the first IBM-compatible clone in the world. It has a really tiny screen, smaller than today's standard mobile phones, and is only the size of an A4 page. The Epson HX-20 hits the market as probably the first laptop and PDA in the world and has rechargeable nickel cadmium batteries. Inspired by the HX-20, Kyocera debuts the Kyotronic 85, which is subsequently licensed to other companies like NEC, Olivetti and Tandy. Tandy sells it as the TRS-80 Model 100. The portability of Model 100 makes it attractive to journalists, who can type about 11 pages of text and then transmit it using the built-in modem. It's light at only 1.4 kg and runs on four AA batteries.

1984

Apple smashes into homes with the launch of the first affordable PC with a graphical user interface, the Macintosh. IBM unveils the IBM PC AT together with the launch of the Microsoft DOS 3.0. The Psion 1, seen as the first PDA, is launched as well as the Commodore SX-64, the first color portable computer with a 5-inch color TV built into the case.

1985

Microsoft unveils Excel, ironically for the Apple Macintosh. It also releases Windows 1.0 for DOS-compatible PCs. Aldus launches its desktop publishing software PageMaker for the Macintosh platform which helps drive sales of the platform. Intel announces the 32-bit 80386 processor.

1987

IBM introduces a new family of PCs called the PS/2 series, which runs on its own OS called OS/2. In the same year, Microsoft launches MS-DOS 3.3. The 1.44MB floppy disk is created.

1988

Steve Jobs' new company NeXT unveils the NeXT computer. The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority is established by the US Government. This group will manage the registration of domain names for the next decade. A malicious program called a worm affects some 6,000 computers, making this the first computer virus.

1989

Intel launches its 486 processors. Apple launches its first portable computer, the Macintosh Portable, which weighs over 7kg, and has an active-matrix black-&-white screen, lead-acid battery, travel keyboard and trackball.

Networked computers have changed the way people interact with each other, empowering anyone to navigate the world at the click of a mouse, and transforming our lives like never before.

1990

Tim Bernes Lee lays the foundation for the World Wide Web and heralds a whole new world in cyberpsace. Microsoft launches Windows 3.0, its first graphical user interface for MS-DOS users. Sony introduces the first writable CD.

1991

Linus Torvalds unveils the first official release of Linux. HP launches the world’s first palmtop computer with HP95LX. HP also debuts the world’s first network printer, the HP LaserJet IIISi. Apple launches its first three PowerBooks, the 100, 140 and 170. The PowerBook pioneers implementations that are now de facto standards on laptops, particularly the placement of the keyboard away from the user, leaving space for palm rest.

1992

Marc Andreessen develops Mosaic, the first graphical Web browser. Microsoft ships Windows 3.1 and soon after 3.11, which becomes the most popular version until the launch of Windows 95.

1993

Intel releases the Pentium microprocessor, its 5th-generation CPU, while Motorola and IBM unveil the PowerPC 601 processor. The White House goes online and President Clinton and Vice President Al Gore use email extensively in their 1992 presidential campaigns. Mosaic is released to the public. IBM launches PC-DOS, a clear breakaway from its old alliance with Microsoft. HP rolls out the HP Omnibook 300, one of the most advanced palmtop computers in its time. Apple introduces what is the world's first personal digital assistant in the Newton. It weighs 0.41 kg and has handwriting recognition capability.

1994

The Internet grows to 25 million users. The first 3D computer game Doom is launched. A multiplication flaw in the Pentium chip hits the news and almost brings Intel to its knees. Andreessen starts a new company called Netscape. Yahoo is launched. Iomega launches its ZIP drives and disks.

1995

Microsoft launches Windows 95. With the launch of Windows 95, the laptop market begins to proliferate. This is because of the power management features that are now built into the operating system, leading to standardization of certain aspects in laptop design. Toy Story becomes the first full-length animation to be created by computers, and the company behind the tech wizardry is Pixar.

1996

Microsoft unveils NT 4.0 as well as Windows CE for palmtop computers and consumer electronics devices. Pointcast rolls out the beta of its “push” software which is simply too far ahead at the time. Yahoo!, Lycos and Excite, all search engines, go public. eBay is founded. Microsoft unleashes its Internet Explorer browser to challenge Netscape. The PalmPilot is launched and goes on to be an extremely successful series because of its affordability.

1997

Bluetooth is invented. IBM releases the supercomputer Deep Blue, designed to be "smart enough" to defeat chess prodigy Gary Kasparov. Steve Jobs returns to Apple as interim CEO.

1998

Apple releases the first iMacs which become wildly popular. The US Government privatizes the registration of Internet domain names. AOL buys Netscape. Google is founded by Larry Page and Sergey Brin.

1999

The world is gripped with fear over the Millennium bug.

The arrival of the new information and communication technologies creates a brave new world that is at once interactive, increases our choices and promotes global conversations.

2000

The year opens with fears turning to relief as the Y2K bug turns out to be the most overhyped disaster that never took place. AMD beats long-time rival Intel in the speed game by launching the Athlon, the world's first 1GHz CPU. The world feels the heavy hand and far-reaching effects of computer viruses with the damaging "ILOVEYOU" virus. Massive denial of service attacks bring major Web sites to a standstill.

2001

Wikipedia is born. Almost half a billion people are now connected to the Internet. Apple unveils Mac OS X. Microsoft launches Windows XP.

2002

HP and Compaq merge.

2003

Microsoft launches Microsoft Office 2003 and Windows Server 2003. Intel debuts its mobile computing platform Centrino, which goes on to drive a new lifestyle of wireless LAN surfing at cafes and other outdoor hotspots.

2004

Google is now firmly established as the leading search engine provider with 3.3 billion Web pages. Spam becomes a real nuisance, taking up over a third of email traffic and growing. World of Warcraft is launched and brings massively multiplayer online gaming to the masses. A new browser Mozilla FireFox is unveiled.

2006

Intel launches its next microprocessor the Core Duo, the first to have two processor cores on one CPU instead of the usual one. Wikipedia exceeds 1 million articles. As of February 2007, Netcraft Web Server Survey finds 108,810,358 distinct Web sites. Mobile Internet becomes closer to the real thing with commercial launches of 3.5G HSDPA technology.

2007

Microsoft ships Windows Vista and Office 2007 to the masses.

We've peeked into the crystal ball, but we cannot be certain what the future of computing holds. One thing's for sure. The next phase will transform computing as we know it. And maybe, just maybe, it won't be too long before we lay our hands on those cool-looking tricorders seen in Gene Roddenberry's Star Trek.

Foldable screens

With OLED, displays in the future won't have to be straight anymore. They can be bent and folded and packed into a bag. For a glimpse of the future, you only have to look to Minority Report when a subway passenger scans an edition of USA Today that's a thin, foldable plastic video screen that's wireless with text constantly updated.

Quantum computers

With quantum computers, we will be able to continue increasing computing power exponentially.

Increasingly smaller form factors

Advances in technology will see computers getting tinier and even wearable. In fact, under your skin computer chips can now be embedded, which can be programmed for anything, from encoding healthcare information to location tracking.

iPhone-like devices

Apple's iPhone spawns phones that are at once easy to use and pushes the envelope in design and functionality.

Holographic gameplay

Star Trek fans would certainly know about the Holodeck, an interactive room where players can program and live out fantasy scenarios in a fluid game environment. Sort of like a Second Life meets Minority Report's 3D holographs meets the Wii controller. Once that happens, expect to see global communities formed not just around games but also around other similar interests.