about invention

1966, 1967 - Floppy disk storage system built by IBMIn 1966,
the first disk storage system was built by IBM, the RAMAC 305.
It was then followed by the first floppy disk system,
which was built in 1967, a 8-inch floppy disk coated with Ion Oxide.
This could hold a large amount of data (compared to punch cards) made data sharing and storing of memory on computers much easier, trustable, and hassle-free.
1970 - Cray Research and Control Data Inc dominate field of supercomputersThe U.S. firms of Cray Research and Control Data Inc.
dominated the field of supercomputers, or the most powerful computer systems, through the 1970s and 1980s.
1971 - First microcomputer Invented - Discovery of the MicrochipWith the research done in the early 1970s, early devices known as microchips, which are smaller than a person's fingernail, yet have millions of transistors embedded in them were invented by a person called Jack St. Claire Kilby. (These devices are still used in computers today).
Using this computer chip (the microchip), Intel released the world's first microprocessor, the 108khz 4004 chip on November 15, 1971 - and a technology on which the fourth generation of computers are based (today's computers).
Intel also then invented RAM - Random Access Memory, which represented a computer's fast and short-termed memory.
These two components allowed the microcomputer to be created. The first such computer was the MITS Altair 8800, released at the end of 1974, but it was followed by computers such as the Apple I & II, Commodore PET and eventually the original IBM PC in 1981. It brought a high level of computing power to a "box" about the size of a portable television set. Microcomputers--soon known as personal computers or PC's----grew smaller and more powerful at an astonishing rate. Many companies such as Apple Computer and Radio Shack introduced very successful personal computers in the 1970s, spurred on in part by a fad in computer, or video, games. Several other input devices were also introduced not long after that, and it was then that the sudden explosion in the use of computers began.1972 - Vacuum Deposition Reduces Size of Chips
Vacuum deposition of transistors became common, and entire assemblies, such as adders, shifting registers, and counters, became available on tiny "chips."1973 - Ethernet System InventedBob Metcalfe invents the Ethernet connectivity system in 1973 which is still used for Internet and Local Network connections today.
1973 - Hard Disk Introduced
In 1973, IBM introduced its first Hard Disk, the Winchester.
This was one of the first devices, which could read and write and overwrite memory so "robustly".
1975 - Idea of the portable computerWith the invention of the microprocessor, "Project Mercury" was launched in 1975 by Intel, which created the first portable computer, the IBM 5100.
1980 - Very Large Scale Integration and Competition between CompaniesIn the 1980s very large-scale integration (VLSI) in which hundreds of thousands of transistors are placed on a single chip, is becoming increasingly common. Some attrition also occurred in the crowded personal computer field, with Apple and IBM remaining particularly strong. In semiconductor chip manufacture , the Intel Corporation and Motorola Corporation were very competitive into the 1980s, although Japanese firms were making strong economic inroads, especially in the area of memory chips. The Japanese government also announced a massive plan to design and build a new generation of supercomputers. This new generation - the so-called fifth generation - will employ new technologies in very large-scale integration, along with the programming language PROLOG, and will be capable of astounding feats in the area of artificial intelligence, such as voice recognition and parallel processing.
1985 to 1990 - Other computer-related appliances invented and More Efficient MicroprocessorsBy the late 1980s, some personal computers were run by microprocessors that, handling 32 bits of data at a time, could process about 4 million instructions per second. Microprocessors equipped with ROM, or Read-Only Memory (which stores constantly used, unchanging programs) , now perform an increasing number of process-control, testing, monitoring , and diagnosing functions, as in automobile ignition systems, automobile-engine diagnosis, and production line inspection tasks. Also, since the release of microcomputers, other computer-related appliances began to appear on shelves, such as digital input devices, scanners, digital microphones and more. These devices could plug into a computer and store or record information for it. The next invention that expanded the usefulness of computers was the modem, a device that connects a computer to other computers around the world through networking or telephone lines. More and more computers in businesses, institutions, and private homes are being linked in this way, forming a global network of interconnected computer networks called the Internet.
1990 - TodayBy the early 1990's, the power of a PC compared to that of mainframes from barely a generation before. Manufacturers were selling tens of millions of PC's worldwide. Networking and the Internet became widely used everywhere. Computers were introduced everywhere - in schools, manufacturing companies, offices, and many various places world-wide. It was also at this time that the new technology of CD-ROMs was invented. These round metal disks were capable of storing more Graphics, Sound and Software than ever before. They are still used