Chronology of Events
in the
History of Microcomputers

This list is a collection of product announcements and delivery dates from various sources, mainly computer magazines and newspapers. Feel free to send me comments and suggestions, preferably with references.

References are indicated in [brackets], which are listed at the end of this document. A [number.number] format gives the page within that reference.

This document mentions company and product names which are protected by trademark laws.

Last updated: 1998 October 23.

1947

December

• Three scientists at Bell Telephone Laboratories, William Shockley, Walter Brattain, and John Bardeen demonstrate their new invention of the point-contact transistor amplifier. [185.84] [202.131] [266.9]

1948

(month unknown)

• John Bardeen, Walter Brattain, and William Schockley of Bell Labs file for a patent on the first transistor. [9]

1952

January

• A complaint is filed against IBM, alleging monopolistic practices in its computer business, in violation of the Sherman Act. [569.138]

(month unknown)

• G. W. Dummer, a radar expert from Britain's Royal Radar Establishment presents a paper proposing that a solid block of materials be used to connect electronic components, with no connecting wires. [185.86]

1954

May

• Texas Instruments announces the start of commercial production on silicon transistors. [110]

1955

(month unknown)

• William Shockley founds Shockley Semiconductor in Palo Alto, California. [266.xiv] [346.58]

1956

January

• A U.S. District Court makes a final judgement on the complaint against IBM filed in January 1952 regarding monopolistic practices. A "consent decree" is signed by IBM, placing limitations on how IBM conducts business with respect to "electronic data processing machines". [569.138]

(month unknown)

• The first transistorized computer is completed, the TX-O (Transistorized Experimental computer), at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. [624]

(month unknown)

• The Nobel Prize in physics is awarded to John Bardeen, Walter Brattain, and William Shockley for their work on the transistor. [266.xiv]

1957

(month unknown)

• A group of eight engineers leave Shockley Semiconductor to form Fairchild Semiconductors. [202.160] [266.xiv] (1958 [185.88])

(month unknown)

• Kenneth Olsen founds Digital Equipment Corporation. [606.102]

1958

July

• At Texas Instruments, Jack St. Clair Kilby comes up with the idea of creating a monolithic device (integrated circuit) on a single piece of silicon. [732.22]

September

• At Texas Instruments, Jack Kilby completes building the first integrated circuit, containing five components on a piece of germanium half an inch long and thinner than a toothpick. [110] [556.9] [732.23] [766.151] (1959 [9])

1959

July

• Fairchild Semiconductor files a patent application for the planar process for manufacturing transistors. The process makes commercial production of transistors possible and leads to Fairchild's introduction, in two years, of the first integrated circuit.

January

• Texas Instruments announces the discovery of the integrated circuit. [185.91] [732.23]

(month unknown)

• (early) At Fairchild Semiconductor, Robert Noyce constructs an integrated circuit with components connected by aluminum lines on a silicon-oxide surface layer on a plane of silicon. [732.25] [766.151]

(month unknown)

• Fairchild Semiconductor announces their independent discovery of the integrated circuit. [185.91]

1960

(month unknown)

• IBM develops the first automatic mass-production facility for transistors, in New York. [202.136]

1961

(month unknown)

• Fairchild Semiconductor releases the first commercial integrated circuit. [556.9]

1962

June

• Teletype ships its Model 33 keyboard and punched-tape terminal, used for input and output on many early microcomputers.

(month unknown)

• Ivan Sutherland creates a graphics system called Sketchpad. [30]

1963

(month unknown)

• Douglas Engelbart receives a patent on the mouse pointing device for computers. [651.79]

(month unknown)

• Digital Equipment sells its first minicomputer, to Atomic Energy of Canada. [615.69]

1964

December

• Ian Sharp and others found I.P. Sharp Associates, in Canada. [615.110]

(month unknown)

• Gordon Moore suggests that integrated circuits would double in complexity every year. This later becomes known as Moore's Law. [732.18]

(month unknown)

• John Kemeny and Thomas Kurtz develop the BASIC programming language at Dartmouth College. [9] [132] [266.140]

(month unknown)

• Texas Instruments receives a patent on the integrated circuit. [110]

1966

May

• Steven Gray founds the Amateur Computer Society, and begins publishing the ACS Newsletter. Some consider this to be the birthdate of personal computing. [208.64]

September

• IBM introduces the first disk storage system, the IBM RAMAC 305. It holds 5 MB of data on 50 2-foot wide platters. [609.89]

(month unknown)

• International Research Corp. Incorporated by Wayne Pickette as a one man, California corporation. Purpose, to research educational resources and technological improvements for education. [773]

1967

June

• The first Consumer Electronics Show is held in New York City.
• International Research, applies for a Patent for a method of constructing Double Sided Magnetic Tape utilizing a MU-Metal Foil Inter layer. Legal problems with a Professor at the University of North Carolina, caused Wayne Pickette to drop the quest for that Patent. Wayne Pickette makes aqaintence with the famous entrepreneur Aurthur Rock of San Francisco. [773]

(month unknown)

• IBM builds the first floppy disk. [444.80]

1968

February

• International Research Corp., in San Martin, California, develops the architecture for a computer-on-a-chip modeled on an enhanced PDP-8/S concept. [773]

May

• Wayne Pickette proposes to Fairchild Semiconductor that they develop his design for a computer-on-a-chip. Fairchild turns down his offer. [773]

June

• Wayne Pickette works for IBM during the Summer as a Logic Designer on Project Winchester, the enclosed flying-head disk drive. Wayne Pickette subsequently declines the IBM offer to finance his education. [773]

(month unknown)

• (fall) Douglas C. Engelbart, of the Stanford Research Institute, demonstrates his system of keyboard, keypad, mouse, and windows at the Joint Computer Conference in San Francisco's Civic Center. He demonstrates use of a word processor, a hypertext system, and remote collaborative work with colleagues. [180.42] [185.98] [716.88] [753]

(month unknown)

• Robert Noyce and Gordon Moore leave Fairchild Semiconductors. [202.160] [266.xiv] [346.58] [556.9]

(month unknown)

• Robert Noyce and Gordon Moore found Intel Corporation. [346.58]

(month unknown)

• Ed Roberts and Forest Mims found Micro Instrumentation Telemetry Systems (MITS). [266.28] [346.19]

(month unknown)

• IBM scientist John Cocke and others complete a prototype scientific computer called the ACS. It incorporates some RISC concepts, but the project is later canceled due to the instruction set not being compatible with that of IBM's System/360 computers. [606.40]

1969

May

• Advanced Micro Devices Incorporated is founded. [141]

October

• Engineers from Japan's ETI company meet with Intel to inspect work on their calculator IC project. They accept the Intel design for a chip set, and sign an exclusive contract for the chips. [266.13] (Busicom company [208.67] [556.9] [606.17])

(month unknown)

• (early) Intel receives a request from Japan's ETI company to develop integrated circuits for a line of calculators. [266.11] (Busicom company [106.103])

(month unknown)

• Intel's Marcian (Ted) Hoff designs an integrated circuit chip that could receive instructions, and perform simple functions on data. The design becomes the 4004 microprocessor. [266.12] [556.9]

(month unknown)

• Intel announces a 1 KB RAM chip, which has a significantly larger capacity than any previously produced memory chip. [9]

(month unknown)

• Bill Gates and Paul Allen, calling themselves the "Lakeside Programming Group" sign an agreement with Computer Center Corporation to report bugs in PDP-10 software, in exchange for computer time. [346.7]

(month unknown)

• Unix is developed at AT&T's Bell Laboratories. [734.148]

(month unknown)

• Microsystems International is incorporated to manufacture microchips. The company was formerly the Advanced Devices Centre of Northern Electric and Manufacturing Company (Canada). [615.26]

(month unknown)

• Jerry Sanders and seven others leave Fairchild Semiconductor to form Advanced Micro Devices. [732.54]

(month unknown)

• Gary Starkweather, at Xerox's research facility in Webster, New York, demonstrates using a laser beam with the xerography process to create a laser printer. [714.98]

(month unknown)

• Digital Equipment hires David Ahl as a marketing consultant. [266.18]

1970

March

• Xerox announces that it will create a computer laboratory to research digital technology. [716.49]

April

• Wayne Pickette takes his computer-on-a-chip design to Intel, and is hired, began working for Dr. Ted Hoff. [778]

June

• Xerox opens the Palo Alto Research Center (PARC). [266.267] [716.56] (1969 [203.59]) (founded by Kay Power in 1972 [343.41])

October

• At Intel, Wayne Pickette proposes to Ted Hoff the idea of building a computer-on-a-chip for the Busicom project. [778]

December

• Gilbert Hyatt files a patent application entitled "Single Chip Integrated Circuit Computer Architecture", the first basic patent on the microprocessor. [162] [185.193] [590.5]
• Information Sciences contacts Bill Gates and Paul Allen, offering them PDP-10 computer time in exchange for their programming expertise. [346.9]

(month unknown)

• (spring) Work begins at Intel on the layout of the circuit for what would be the 4004 microprocessor. Federico Faggin directs the work. [266.13]

(month unknown)

• Intel creates the first 4004 microprocessor. [106.104]

(month unknown)

• Intel creates the 1103 chip, the first generally available DRAM memory chip. [176.74] [202.163]

End of 1947-1970 - The Early Years