The 1990s was truly the electronic age. We would not have been able to publish this decades web site if it weren't for the Internet. The World Wide Web was born in 1992, changing the way we communicate (email), spend our money (online gambling, stores), and do business (e-commerce). In 1989, 15% of American households had a computer.
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ntel's 4004 IC chip, generally acknowledged as the world's first "microcomputer on a chip," was originally designed in 1969-70 for the Busicom (Japan) 141-PF desktop calculator. Competitor Texas Instruments had their own microprocessor (the TMS 1000) in 1971 but used it as their mainstay calculator IC, initially ignoring any use beyond the calculator.
Calculating tough sets of numbers was now easy and accurate. Trigonometric tables were unnecessary and quickly forgotten. The resolution of your answer was as fine as you wanted it to be. And best of all, your solution was quick -- what may have taken minutes (or hours if exceedingly complex) would only take seconds.
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The power of those first microprocessors was incredible. Twenty five years before this (in 1946) engineers and scientists developed the ENIAC computer -- a 3000-cubic foot mass of vacuum tubes and wires. In 1971 engineers placed the same amount of computing power on a piece of silicon no larger than 1/4" square. And they did so at a price that was now affordable.
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