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There was no first computer. The further you go back the less it becomes a computer, the further you go forward the less it becomes a first. I can really recom
by aap_ 6y ago
There was no first computer. The further you go back the less it becomes a computer, the further you go forward the less it becomes a first.
I can really recommend the book "ENIAC in Action" on this matter and of course on the ENIAC generally.
- DonHopkins 6y agoBut what was the zeroth computer?
- Koshkin 6y agoInterestingly, “computer” was the term applied to office workers whose responsibility was doing calculations. Which is why the first machines were called “automatic computers”. (Fast forward to today, “computing” is perceived now mostly as “using a computer”, such as web browsing or reading email.)
- jonstewart 6y agoIt’s rather like the development of the automobile. The first computers—EDVAC, ENIAC, Z3, ABC—all had idiosyncrasies that reflect on them being transitional technologies.