Personal computing
The move from mainframe to personal computers democratised the use of computers, making their power available to individuals rather than being confined to governments, academia and big corporations.
Personal computers gave businesses new flexibility and toolsets. Spreadsheets, databases, word processing and computer-aided design increased productivity and replaced the typewriter, the calculator and the drawing board.
The desktop computer was a hobbyist’s pursuit in the 1970s, notably at the Homebrew Computer Club in Silicon Valley, where Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs showed off the Apple I and Apple II home computers.
IBM’s introduction of the Personal Computer in 1981, which cemented the term PC, was partly inspired by the ...
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