How Would a 20-Year-Old Version of Me React to Today’s Computers?
From Punch Cards to Smartphones: A Journey Through Time
I've been working with computers since I was 18. Back then, we used a UNIVAC, writing code on punch cards and routines on batch processing. This was in the mid-1970s. At that time, I often used a slide rule for math due to the unaffordability of even a basic calculator.
By my grad school, we had access to a Cray computer, less than 10 years after we first used punch cards. We were already using DARPAnet, the precursor to today's internet, and the forerunner of Netscape was circulating. USA-CERL was focusing on emerging technologies like voice recognition, GPS, biometric remote sensing, and other impressive stuff. My wife was involved in these projects.
The computers we have today are a fulfillment of these early dreams. The only real issue was that the necessary infrastructure and interfaces, memory, and the other aspects we now take for granted, had to be developed first. Engineering capacity wasn't fully scaled up or geared towards fully exploiting the potential of the technologies we had access to.
Engineering capacity wasn't fully scaled up or geared towards fully exploiting the potential of the technologies we had access to. We envisioned this stuff and wanted it. Microsoft Windows was a nice improvement over DOS in the mid-1990s, but still slow and clunky. It took 30 years, but by 2005, with the introduction of the iPhone, we finally got the devices we initially dreamed of in 1975.
2023: An Astonished User of Today’s Technology
Looking at my iPhone X today, I can only say, “Meh, what took you so long?”
Today, I have a small and inexpensive device that replaces a television, a radio, a music collection, a VHS library, home encyclopedias, and local library genealogy research. It also handles mail order catalogs, college directories, maps, AAA travel books, pornography, cookbooks, IRS tax forms, most US mail, banking, and credit card statements. Additionally, it offers news and cultural magazines, as well as foreign language instruction and a vast multitude of professional groups, clubs, and special interest associations. Numerous shelves of my home that used to need dusting can now be vacated, as they are obsolete.
I would have been both very pleased and astounded if I were a 20-year-old me in 2023 witnessing the advancement of technology. The multifaceted features of today's smartphones would have been both mind-blowing and gratifying.
Engineering Capacity and Technological Growth
Back in the 1970s, the technologies we had were remarkable. However, scaling the engineering capacity to fully utilize these technologies took decades. From early attempts with punch cards and batch processing to the emergence of advanced computing systems like the Cray, and the development of the internet and mobile devices, significant progress has been made.
Engineering capacity wasn't fully scaled up or geared toward exploiting the potential of these technologies. It took 30 years to get from the early UNIVAC designs to the iPhone and other modern devices. The journey from batch processing to smartphones was a long and winding road filled with incremental improvements and technological breakthroughs.
By 2005, we finally had devices that fulfilled the early dreams of the 1970s. The iPhone and its successors are tangible embodiments of that vision, providing a glimpse into the future that we once only dreamed about.
Conclusion
Today's technology is the fulfillment of early visions, and it's both mind-blowing and gratifying to see how far we've come. As I look at my iPhone X, I can only think, “Meh, what took you so long?” But the reality is that it took decades of hard work, innovation, and incremental improvements to get us to where we are today.
As technology continues to advance, the possibilities for the next generation of computing devices are endless. The journey from punch cards to smartphones is a testament to the power of human imagination and engineering capability. We can only imagine what the future holds for personal computing and digital transformation.