[jcarle]

As a nod to my 1024th post, I thought I'd write a bit about binary and vaguely about the origins of computing at a processor level.

Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz was the first person to formally introduce the binary system in writing in 1679 when he wrote "Despite its length, the binary system, in other words counting with 0 and 1, is scientifically the most fundamental system, and leads to new discoveries. When numbers are reduced to 0 and 1, a beautiful order prevails everywhere.".

Then in 1854, George Boole published "The Mathematical Analysis of Logic" which explained how to do calculations using the Binary system, what is known today as Boolean algebra.

In 1937, George Stibitz built the first binary calculator while working at Bell Telephone Laboratories.

Binac (Binary Automatic Computer) was the first computer to operate in real time. It took 3 years to build from 1946 to 1949 at the hands of Eckert and Mauchly.

1946 was also the year where the term bit for a binary digit was coined by John Tukey.

All kinds of experimental computers were built by a large number of companies, though mostly IBM until 1971 when the first microprocessor was released by Intel, the Intel 4004. Not long after, Intel released the Intel 8008 in 1972, then the 8080 in 1974 and finally the 8086 in 1976.

When the 8088 was released in 1979 and adopted as the processor for the IBM PC, things really started to take off. Ever since the 4004, computing has followed Moore's Law with amazing accuracy.

Binary and computing has become such a way of life, that people are now learning to count binary on their fingers.

Hats off to binary and computing, it's been a hell of ride.

1024th Post.

[Lost Soul]

very imformative m8 congrats on the high post

[IcemanND]

jcarle=computing geek