"Why Computers Are Computers" describes in everyday language what makes a computer a computer. The mystery behind the keyboards and video screen of your PC is revealed for all to understand and appreciate. Strange as it may seem, your PC uses the same principle, the Stored Program Concept, that was invented 50 years ago. This principle is simply explained by telling, for the first time, the story of the first computer built in the western U.S., the SWAC. Built at UCLA by the National Bureau of Standards, it was finished in ...
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"Why Computers Are Computers" describes in everyday language what makes a computer a computer. The mystery behind the keyboards and video screen of your PC is revealed for all to understand and appreciate. Strange as it may seem, your PC uses the same principle, the Stored Program Concept, that was invented 50 years ago. This principle is simply explained by telling, for the first time, the story of the first computer built in the western U.S., the SWAC. Built at UCLA by the National Bureau of Standards, it was finished in 1950 and was then the fastest computer in the world. The author, an engineer on the SWAC project, relates the history first hand and tells of how and why it was built and of the man responsible for its design and construction, Harry D. Huskey. As the SWAC story unfolds, the similarity between the new and the old, the PC and the SWAC, becomes apparent. Without technical jargon, "Why Computers Are Computers" will give everyone a new appreciation for their PC. It makes an important contribution to the history of computers and why and how they were invented.
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