Calculating Machines and Computers

The invention of the computer was one of the great intellectual achievements of the twentieth century, yet its origins lie far back in antiquity. With reference to surviving artefacts, this book explores the historical development of computing, from the earliest times to the invention of the modern digital electronic computer after the Second World War. It describes man's earliest attempts to devise calculating machinery, such as the abacus; discusses the work and machines of the great pioneers, such as Charles Babbage; shows how calculating machines evolved for office and scientific use in the early twentieth century; and explores the origins of the revolution in computing in the modern era. The many illustrations, which depict the full range of computing machines from hand calculators, through punched-card office machinery, to the 'supercomputer', show the extraordinary inventiveness of people in building machinery that counts.Tweendale, Geoffrey is the author of 'Calculating Machines and Computers', published 1997 under ISBN 9780747800804 and ISBN 0747800804.