Computer Revolution Essay

private ComputersThe individual(prenominal) information processing system revolution was a phenomenon of immense importance in the mid-eighties. What the add up American commonly refers to as a PC, or ad hominem computing simple motorcar, did non sluice exist before the 1970s. Mainframe data processors had been the norm, and they were to begin with relegated to business and scientific use. With the dawn of the individual(prenominal)ised electronic computer each Americans were allowed potential advance to computers. As competition and modernization increased, issues of address became less and less of an inhibitor, and it appeared that a unfermented technological populism had developed. Companies such(prenominal) as apple Computer became household names, and words such as package program and downloading became commonplace. It was predicted that by 1990, 60 percent of all the jobs in the get together States would require familiarity with computers. Already by 1985, several(prenominal) 2 million Americans were using personal computers to perform mingled tasks in the office. The extend to of the personal computer to the average American has been enormousin addition to its advantage at the office, it has become a stem of entertainment, culture, and education. appleFounded in 1976 by Steven Jobs and Stephen Wozniak, orchard apple tree Computer was to be the spearhead of the personal computer revolution. apple had achieved moderate triumph in the late 1970s, still in the 1980s the comp whatsoever developed its progressive vision of how computers could relate to the average person. By 1982 apple became the commencement exercise personal computer smart set to own an annual sales total of $1 billion. In 1983 apple bringd the Lisa. Lisa was to be the successor of the apple II and was the set-back computer to widely introduce the concept of windows, menus, icons, and a mouse to the mainstream. The Lisa computer was phased out by 1985 and sur-passed by the mac in 1984. macintosh was faster, smaller, and less pricy than the Lisa it retailed for around $2,500 and was packaged as a user-friendly tool that was economical bounteous to be in every home. Although the machine possessed less processing expertness than IBM PCs, one did not need any programming qualification to run the machine effectively, and it became popular.Beyond SimplicityNot slaked to be simply the easy PC, Apple in 1986 introduced the Mac Plus, PageMaker, and the LaserWriter. The infusion of these three, especially PageMaker, an easy-to-use art page-layout program, helped give rise to a new medium known as desktop publishing. Creating this new niche do Macintosh the premier, efficient publishing computer. Apple expanded its hold on the prowess commercialize in 1987 with the introduction of the Mac II computer. Its pretension graphic cap might fostered the introduction of color printers capable of reproducing the color images on the c omputer screen. By 1988 Apple introduced Macs capable of reading DOS and OS/2 disks, thereby closing about of the separation between Macintosh and IBM PCs.IBMOn 12 August 1981 Inter estateal affair Machines (IBM) created its first personal computer. Simply called the IBM PC, it became the explanation for the personal computer. IBM was the largest of the three giant computer firms in the introduction, and the other two, Hewlett-Packard (HP) and Xerox, had previously try to make efforts into the new PC market only when failed. IBM initially was not positive(p) that the American public was pastimeed in computers, particularly for their own home usage, but after viewing the early successes of Apple they were determined to enter the race. In creating the packet product for the PC, IBM turned to a young company called Microsoft to formulate MS-DOS.Market SuccessIBM PCs were vastly powerful, fast machines, and their entrance into the market legitimized the personal computer and cr eated a new bungalow industry. In 1983 IBM introduced the PCjr, a less high-ticket(prenominal) version of the PC. Despite strong ad PCjr was not a success and greet IBM quite a bit in reputation and money. Undiscouraged by these results, IBM touch onward. By the mid 1980s, IBM PCs had inspired some(prenominal) clones that emulated IBMs functions at a dishonor cost to consumers. Constantly setting the standard, IBM in 1987 introduced the PS/2 and the OS/2, the first IBM 386 models. IBM in any case established agreements with packet companies such as Lotus to develop sophisticate programming for their company. Attempts were also do by the company to launch a place of portable computers over the go. The success of these various portable models was somewhat limited, due to coat and cost, as well as outlaw(a) promotion. Even with several marketing setbacks throughout the decade, however, IBM remained the largest computer firm in the world. By 1989 IBM was producing persona l computers that dwarfed earlier models in speed, capability, and engineering. computer software packageAs the personal computer burst continued to grow, it spawned more than and more cottage industries. One of the largest new markets to develop was that of the software industry, and one of the largest companies in that industry was Microsoft, founded in 1975 by William Gates and Paul Allen in Redmond, Washington. In 1981 Microsoft created MS-DOS, short for Microsoft Disk in operation(p) System. Although it was initially licensed only to the IBM Corporation, by the end of the decade it became the industry-standard operating software for all PCs. The ability to corner this lavish, fast-development(prenominal) market grumose Microsofts software leadership position in the 1980s. Microsoft also began work late in the decade on Windows and OS/2 software programs for PCs and introduced programs for Apple Computer. Another growing software company was Lotus Development Corporation, w ho created its forward-looking 12-3 spreadsheet programs. Desktop publishing software was advanced greatly thanks to the ontogenesis of Apple Computers graphics capabilities. Countless other software programs, from impish (video games) to statistical (accounting programs), began to saturate the market, attempting to feed the growing desires of the American public.Information SocietyComputers stir touched most aspects of how Americans function. Through their ability to link groups across great distances, they have made the world, at least theoretically, a smaller place. The computer was not the first technological advancement to impact the nation so greatly, but the speed in which it swept across the country and the stride in which change within the champaign continues to occur have been remarkable. As technology advanced, the cost of computers also significantly declined. Schools on all levels began to integrate computer literacy into their pedantic programs as it was seen th at this knowledge would be as essential as reading in the next century. Sales for computer companies sky-rocketed as they rushed to meet de humannessd. Computer magazines, such as Byte, PC World, and PC powder magazine were either born in the 1980s or grew substantially as interest around the issue grew. Backlash regarding the emersion of computers and their infiltration into conjunction also occurred. terror of an unfeeling technical society where military man contact has been replaced by machines has been voiced by some extreme critics. On the more moderate side are criticisms that computer technology will only ameliorate the lives of those who could afford the high costs of a PC. Thus, the computer, instead of unifying, could potentially increase the hoo-ha between the rich and the poor.Machine of the courseIn 1983 metre magazine solidified the personal computers reaching into mainstream society when it named the PC its 1982 Machine of the Year. periods Man of the Year exhibit was given to a prestigious man or woman that had made a significant mark on the world in the preceding year by adapting the honor for a machine, Time hold the immense contribution this technology had made upon society. Computers, once available only to accomplished programmers, now became increasingly commonplace in homes across the country. They changed the way the average American received and processed information at work and at home. Some critics scoffed at the fact that the magazine had bestowed a machine with such an important title, but Time defended the decision, stating, There are some occasions, though, when the most significant force in a years news is not a single individual but a process, and a widespread recognition by a whole society that this process is changing the course of all other processes. That is why, after weighting the abate and flow of events around the world, Time has obdurate that 1982 is the year of the computer.