1 Computers: From novelty to commonplace
[Timings. This is the first section of this unit. It should take you around one hour to complete.] The theme of this section is the development of digital technologies, from the physically large and highly expensive equipment of the 1950s to the omnipresent networks and computer-based devices upon which our digital lives are founded today. In this section I will:
- compare the development of the computer to the development of the telephone
- describe some of the digital technologies that form an integral part of many of our lives
- introduce the term information society.