Brief History of the Notebook
Computer
The Whole Thing Started With Babbage!
Brief History of the Notebook Computer
Computers are everywhere today. They play a major part
in almost all facets of our lives. It's hard to imagine
living without them.
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However, computers are relatively new. The personal computer
with video made it's first appearance in the early 1970's.
It wasn't until the 80's and 90's that they became commonplace
in our lives.
Charles Babbage's Difference Engine
Charles Babbage is considered by most to be the father
of the computer. He invented a device called the Difference
Engine in 1822. Babbage, who was an eccentric British
mathematician used this device to perform computations
or calculations -- and the modern day computer was given
it's start!
Long trek of time passed ...
....we jump to the early 1950's in the United States. Here's some more
interesting facts you might want to know about computers and
notebooks:
Simon Electromechanical Personal Computer
One of the first simple computers - the Electromechanical machine which
could perform digital computations. It was invented by Edmund Berkeley
in 1950.
First Fully Electronic Computer
IBM a company that was incorporated in June 15, 1911 - produced the
first fully electronic computer in 1952. It was called the IBM 701.
This computer could read and write magnetic tape; only nineteen 701's
were ever installed.
RCA Bizmac Computer
Little known fact about RCA - it was once in the data processing field -
competing with IBM. It produced a computer using 25,000 vacuum tubes in
1956. RCA withdrew from manufacturing computers in 1971.
IBM Introduces the Business Computer
In 1964 IBM starts producing it's family of
Business Mainframe Computers and starts to
dominate this market.
The First Mouse
The first computer mouse is introduced in 1968
by Douglas Engelbart at the Fall Joint
Computer Expo in San Francisco.
The First PC - Is Released To The Public
In 1975 - IBM released it's IBM 5100 which was the first PC. Six years later,
it's distance cousin - Model 5150 is often referred to as the first PC. The
IBM 5100 contained a tape drive for program storage and had only 16K to
64K of memory.
The First Successful Portable Computer
One of the first portable computers was developed not by any of the
major computer companies we know today but by Adam Osborne. Osborne
was a publisher of technical books when he introduced the Osborne
Portable Computer in 1981.
This computer had a small 5-inch CRT which displayed 52 characters
of text. Physically, it bares little resemblance to the notebook or
laptop computer of today but Osborne's heart was in the right
direction -- Osborne wanted a computer that would fit under an
airplane seat!
The Osborne sold for $1795 and did good business selling 10,000
units a month. However, other larger companies jumped on the bandwagon
- Most notably Compaq - and the Osborne computer company went
bankrupt in 1983.
Compaq Portable
The computer company Compaq, which gets it name from the word 'compact'
introduced the first IBM Compatible computer in 1982.
You only have to look at the Stats of the Compaq Portable to see how far
notebook computers have advanced. Try getting your daily computer tasks
done on 4.77 MHz with 128k of RAM and a 320k floppy disk --- viewed on
a 9-inch monochrome screen. This Compaq Portable tipped the scales at 28 lbs!
We have come a long way!
In comparison - the latest HP Pavilion zd8000 comes with a 3.6 GHz
Intel Pentium 4, 1 GB RAM, 80 GB Hard Drive, 17 inch monitor -- all
weighting in at 12.1 lbs. It's a TV set, PVR, DVD player, stereo, and
last but not least a computer!
The First Notebook Sized Computer
The first notebook to hit the market is generally believed to have been
the Epson's HX-20. This was the world's first hand held computer
and it was introduced in JULY 1982. It had only 16KB of RAM and
weighted only 1.6 kg or roughly 3 and half pounds.
It proved to be very popular - not only for personal use but also
in factories where it could be used on the production line.
Today, the notebook or laptop computer is very popular. Some of
the major companies or brand names are: Dell, IBM, Compaq, Toshiba,
Sony, Apple, Averatec and Panasonic. Some of the most highly rated
notebooks and laptops being: HP Pavilion zd8000, Gateway M520X,
Dell Inspiron 9200, Toshiba Satellite A65, IBM ThinkPad Series,
Panasonic ToughBook and the Averatec 6200.
Here's other Facts about Computers You may or May
not want to know:
1983 Tandy, Epson and NEC all enter the notebook market with
the Tandy's model 100 becoming the most popular. Priced at $499.
1984 Dell Computer is founded May 3, 1984 in Austin Texas.
1985 Gateway 2000 is founded in Sioux City, Iowa.
1993 Intel releases the Pentium Processor.
1993 The Internet starts experiencing massive growth. With or
without Al Gore's Help!!
1994 Microsoft releases Windows 95, beta code name Chicago.
1997 Bill Gates becomes the world's richest businessman.
And on it goes....
........
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