The laptop celebrates its 40th anniversary
Written on November 4, 2008 – 4:57 pm
Ernst-Jan Pfauth, editor in chief
You might not realize it when you’re playing around with a fancy Macbook, but the laptop has been around for forty years now. It all started with the Dynabook, a conceptual system proposed by Xerox PARC in 1968. Credits for this innovation that inspired computer makers to work on laptops and tablet pc’s go to researcher Alan Kay.
Like every tech inventor, he isn’t satisfied with the recent developments. Kay doesn’t like the fact that small mobile devices are capable of the same things as laptops.
When Kay designed the prototypes of the Dynabook, he aimed for children. Of course, adults could have their way with the small computers, but the main focus was on developing educational applications for kids. So I guess it’s not a coincidence that Kay currently works for the One Laptop Per Child Project (OLPC).
To honor Kay’s achievements, Mountain View’s Computer History Museum on Wednesday will celebrate the 40th anniversary of the legendary Dynabook.
Here’s a video of Alan Kay’s recent Ted Talk.
[Hat tip: Bright]
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