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Personal computer
In 1975, a small circuit board called the Altair 8800 sat in a garage in Albuquerque, New Mexico, waiting for someone to solder wires into its empty slots. It was not a finished product but a kit for hobbyists, yet its arrival marked the beginning of a global transformation that would eventually place a computer in nearly every home on Earth. Before this moment, computers were massive, room-sized machines that required armies of technicians to operate, and the idea of an individual owning one was considered science fiction. The Altair 8800, built around the Intel 8080 microprocessor, was the spark that ignited the microcomputer revolution, proving that computing power could be small enough to fit on a desk and accessible enough for a single person to control. This shift from institutional ownership to personal possession changed the trajectory of human history, moving the locus of computing power from the boardroom to the bedroom.
The Silicon Foundation
The physical possibility of the personal computer rested on a series of breakthroughs in semiconductor technology that occurred in the late 1950s and early 1960s. In 1959, Robert Noyce at Fairchild Semiconductor developed the silicon integrated circuit, followed shortly by the metal-oxide-semiconductor transistor created by Mohamed Atalla and Dawon Kahng at Bell Labs. These innovations allowed for the miniaturization of electronic components, making it feasible to pack complex logic onto a single chip. By 1971, Federico Faggin at Fairchild used silicon-gate MOS technology to create the Intel 4004, the first single-chip microprocessor. This tiny chip, no larger than a fingernail, contained the brain of a computer and paved the way for the widespread commercial availability of microprocessors from the mid-1970s onwards. Without these specific advances in silicon gate technology, the cost of computers would have remained prohibitive, keeping them locked away in laboratories and government facilities rather than entering the hands of the general public.
The Mother of All Demos
While hardware was being miniaturized, the software and interface concepts that define modern computing were being forged in a demonstration that would later be called the Mother of All Demos. In 1968, SRI researcher Douglas Engelbart presented a vision of the future that included email, hypertext, word processing, video conferencing, and the mouse. Although the demonstration required technical support staff and a mainframe time-sharing computer that were far too costly for individual business use at the time, the concepts Engelbart introduced became staples of personal computers. The mouse, which Engelbart called a 'X-Y Position Indicator for a Display System,' was a revolutionary input device that allowed users to interact with graphical interfaces rather than typing complex commands. This conceptual leap from command-line text to graphical user interfaces set the stage for the user-friendly systems that would follow, transforming the computer from a tool for engineers into a device for everyone.
When was the Altair 8800 released and where was it located?
The Altair 8800 was released in 1975 and sat in a garage in Albuquerque, New Mexico. This small circuit board built around the Intel 8080 microprocessor marked the beginning of the global transformation toward personal computing.
Who invented the silicon integrated circuit and when did it happen?
Robert Noyce developed the silicon integrated circuit in 1959 while working at Fairchild Semiconductor. This breakthrough followed shortly by the metal-oxide-semiconductor transistor created by Mohamed Atalla and Dawon Kahng at Bell Labs in the early 1960s.
What were the three computers in the 1977 trinity and when did they arrive?
The 1977 trinity consisted of the Commodore PET, the Apple II, and the TRS-80 from Tandy Corporation. The Commodore PET was announced in 1977 and available by mid-October 1977, the Apple II was announced in April 1977 with first units shipping on the 10th of June 1977, and the TRS-80 followed in August 1977.
When did IBM enter the personal computer market and what was the price of the IBM 5150?
IBM entered the personal computer market on the 12th of August 1981 with the IBM 5150. This machine was priced at US$1,565 and operated with the Intel 8088 chip using an operating system provided by Microsoft known as MS-DOS.
When was the World Wide Web made available for public use?
The World Wide Web was made available for public use in 1991. This event allowed users to access information from anywhere in the world and transformed the personal computer into a gateway to the global information network.
When did worldwide PC sales begin to fall and what trend replaced them?
Worldwide sales of PCs began to fall as of 2013 following a trend that started in 2012 when smartphones and tablet computers surpassed PC sales. The decline of Q2 2013 PC shipments marked the fifth straight quarter of falling sales as consumers moved to mobile computing devices.
The year 1977 saw the arrival of three machines that would define the early personal computer market, collectively known as the 1977 trinity. The Commodore PET was the first successfully mass-marketed personal computer to be announced, though it was back-ordered and not available until mid-October 1977. Three months later, in April, the Apple II was announced, with the first units shipping on the 10th of June 1977. The TRS-80 from Tandy Corporation followed in August 1977, selling over 100,000 units during its lifetime. These three machines were different from the kit-style hobby computers of the era because they were fully assembled and ready to use out of the box. The Apple II, in particular, differed from other kits because Paul Terrell, owner of the Byte Shop, insisted that the computers be assembled and tested before sale, rejecting the idea of selling them as untested circuit boards. This shift to mass-market, ready-assembled computers allowed a wider range of people to use computers, focusing more on software applications and less on the development of processor hardware.
The Battle for the Desktop
In 1981, IBM entered the personal computer market with the IBM 5150, a machine that would set a mass market standard for PC design. Introduced on the 12th of August 1981, the IBM 5150 operated with the Intel 8088 chip and used an operating system provided by Microsoft, later known as MS-DOS. Priced at US$1,565, it came with two programs, a spreadsheet client called VisiCalc and a word processor named EasyWriter. The IBM 5150's open architecture encouraged companies to develop software and peripherals for the computer, creating an ecosystem that competitors could not easily replicate. This move by IBM legitimized the personal computer for business use, but it also sparked a fierce rivalry with Apple. In 1984, Apple launched the Macintosh, the first successful mass-market mouse-driven computer with a graphical user interface. The Macintosh included many of the Lisa's features at a price of US$2,495, and its introduction with 128 KB of RAM marked a new era of user-friendly computing. The entire Macintosh line of computers became IBM's major competition up until the early 1990s, establishing a dual-platform market that would dominate the industry for decades.
The Rise of the Mobile Machine
As the personal computer market matured, the focus shifted from stationary desktops to portable devices that could be carried anywhere. The potential utility of portable computers was apparent early on, with Alan Kay describing the Dynabook in 1972, though no hardware was developed at the time. The first portable computers, such as the IBM 5100 from 1975, were heavy luggables that weighed about 50 pounds and required AC power. By the 1980s, machines like the Osborne 1 and Kaypro offered suitcase-style portability, but they still had high power demands and could not be used in flight. The development of thin plasma display and LCD screens permitted a somewhat smaller form factor, called the lunchbox computer, which included a detachable keyboard and one or two half-height floppy disk drives. The true revolution came with the laptop, designed for portability via its clamshell design, where the keyboard and computer components were on one panel, with a hinged second panel containing a flat display screen. Laptops generally have a rechargeable battery, enhancing their portability, and by the 1990s, they had become a standard tool for business and personal use.
The Digital Divide and the Web
The combination of powerful personal computers with high-resolution graphics and sound, along with the infrastructure provided by the Internet, established the foundation for a significant fraction of modern life. In 1991, the World Wide Web was made available for public use, allowing users to access information from anywhere in the world. The standardization of access methods of the Web browsers created a new era of connectivity, from bus time tables through unlimited distribution of free videos through to online user-edited encyclopedias. This connectivity transformed the personal computer from a standalone device into a gateway to the global information network. The rise of the Web also led to the development of new software applications, including email, online shopping, and social media, which became integral to daily life. The personal computer became the central hub of the digital revolution, connecting people, businesses, and governments in ways that were previously unimaginable.
The Shift to Mobile
By the early 21st century, the personal computer market faced a new challenge as smartphones and tablet computers began to surpass PC sales. In 2011, Deloitte consulting firm predicted that smartphones and tablet computers as computing devices would surpass the PCs sales, a trend that began to materialize in 2012. As of 2013, worldwide sales of PCs had begun to fall as many consumers moved to tablets and smartphones. The decline of Q2 2013 PC shipments marked the fifth straight quarter of falling sales, with IDC Vice President Bob O'Donnell remarking that it was all about mobile computing now. The market saw increased demand not only from consumers and students but also from businesses investing in hybrid work infrastructure. However, by late 2022, the market began to stabilize as demand cooled down and supply chain challenges, including chip shortages, began to ease. The integration of artificial intelligence capabilities into PCs emerged as a significant trend during this period, suggesting a new chapter in the evolution of personal computing.
Personal computer: the story on HearLore | HearLore