Computer History

The Analytical and Difference Engines (1835-1869): The English mathematician Charles Babbage (1792-1871) never got to build his invention, but his design had an uncanny resemblance to the modern computer. Ada Lovelace, Lord Byron's daughter, wrote eloquently about the device and was history's first programmer. The ABC (Atanasoff Berry Computer) (1938): John Atanasoff and Clifford Berry designed the first electronic digital computer at Iowa State, and urged the university to patent their design. Nothing was ever done …

…business people, just as Apple had put the computer in the home. By 1985 IBM had manufactured its three millionth PC, and had spawned an entire industry in the process. Apple Macintosh (1984): The Macintosh was far from an instant success, but once Apple got the bugs out and added an internal hard disk, laser printer, and expanded memory, the machine took off. Its ease of use and graphical interface offered an entirely different perspective on computing.