The personal computer has become so common place that people take it for granted, and assume that it has always been there. But who invented the personal computer? The fact is no single person invented it, but rather it came about due to the works of different people and organizations.
The 1960s and 1970s
The very first device that can be labeled as a desktop computer was the Programma 101 developed by Olivetti in 1964. Today however, it will be considered more as a calculator because it was designed to perform arithmetic functions (division, multiplication, addition and subtraction). From 1965 to 1968 the Soviets developed the MIR series of computers for use in scientific research and engineering.
Notable Developments
It is worth noting that IBM had developed the hard disk as far back as 1956, but they were not sold on personal computers until the 1990s. Also in 1971, Intel created the Intel 4004, the first microprocessor, and it 1973 IBM developed its SCAMP computer. However, these early computers cost nearly $20,000 and weighed over 50 pounds.
Other notable developments that influenced the development of personal computers were the Xerox Alto in 1973, created by Xerox?s Palo Alto Research Center (PARC). The Xerox Alto used a graphical user interface which would inspire the Apple Macintosh and Microsoft Windows.
Microcomputers and the Apple I
Microcomputers The earliest personal computers were known as microcomputers and available only in kit form. They were mot mass marketed and instead aimed at technicians and hobbyists. Micral N is the earliest microcomputer that used a microprocessor, the Intel 8008. These microcomputers came with keyboards and displays and some had disk drives too.
In 1976, Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak created the Apple I computer circuit board, but it was the Commodore PET that became the first personal computer to be successfully mss marketed.
The IBM PC and Windows
By the 1980s, home computers became more popular and had a limited color range and blocky graphics. The Commodore 64 would go on to sell 17 million copies, making it the best selling personal computer in history.
The early computers did not come with a hard disk but only with 5 1/4-inch floppy disks. The earliest IBM PCs had only 16 Kilobytes (K) of RAM. These computers used DOS or BASIC. But during the 1990s several technologies were developed such as CD ROMs and most importantly the IBM PC, which the company developed in response to the success of the Apple I and II. The success of the IBM PC and its clones spearheaded the PC revolution. Apple would counter this with the release of the Lisa, a computer with a GUI, mouse, icons and menus.
In 1992, Microsoft released Windows, a GUI interface/OS for IBM computers. It would become phenomenally successful and sell millions of copies. Windows 3.1 would build on the success of Windows 3.0, forever changing the landscape of personal computing. Around this time, other technological innovations like USB, DVD players, P2P file sharing, writable CDs and of course the Internet spurned its development even more.
As this guide shows, the answer to who invented the personal computer is that no single one did. It came about because of various technological advances that were made spanning decades. Today the development continues with laptops, tablets and other devices being developed left and right.
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Source: http://www.moderndignity.com/just-who-invented-personal-computers-anyway/
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