From Mainframes to Smartphones
Synopsis
This compact history traces the computer industry from its origins in 1950s mainframes, through the establishment of standards beginning in 1965 and the introduction of personal computing in the 1980s. It concludes with the Internet’s explosive growth since 1995. Across these four periods, Martin Campbell-Kelly and Daniel Garcia-Swartz describe the steady trend toward miniaturization and explain its consequences for the bundles of interacting components that make up a computer system. With miniaturization, the price of computation fell and entry into the industry became less costly. Companies supplying different components learned to cooperate even as they competed with other businesses for market share. Simultaneously with miniaturization―and equally consequential―the core of the computer industry shifted from hardware to software and services. Companies that failed to adapt to this trend were left behind.
- Copyright:
- 2015 President and Fellows of Harvard College
Book Details
- Book Quality:
- ISBN-13:
- 9780674286559
- Publisher:
- Harvard University Press
- Date of Addition:
- 2015-12-02T00:00:43Z
- Language:
- English
- Categories:
- Usage Restrictions:
- This is a copyrighted book.