1930 to 1939: The Foundations of Digital Computing - The Technical and Social History of Software Engineering - page 40

Both Shannon and Shestakov recognized that symbolic logic, as put forth by
the mathematician George Boole in his 1854 topic, An Investigation on the Laws
of Thought , could be dealt with by relays and electronic circuits that could handle
logical decisions as well as carry out mathematical operations.
It is the combination of logical processing with mathematical processing that
gives modern computers (and software) their enormous breadth of problem-solv-
ing capabilities. Computers and software can not only provide rapid mathematical
calculations but also handle complex logical problems such as telephone routing.
In November 1937, a Bell Labs mathematician named George Stibitz, working
at home on a kitchen table, built a prototype device that used two telephone relays
and flashlight bulbs to represent the binary numbers 0 and 1. Stibitz also realized
that this experimental device could be extended to handle rapid calculations in-
volving both division and multiplication.
After some initial indifference, Bell executives decided to fund a larger work-
ing version of the prototype Stibitz relay machine. At a cost of about $20,000, this
eventually became a machine in 1938 called Model 1.
The Model 1 computing machine had about 450 relays that initially could
handle multiplication, division and, later, addition and subtraction. This machine
used binary numbers to represent decimal values, which of course later became the
main way that computers operate today. Stibitz would continue to make improve-
ments that will be discussed in the next chapter.
One interesting aspect of the Stibitz machine was the use of a teletype keyboard
for inputs and outputs. This meant that it was not necessary to have the computing
device adjacent to the input mechanism. Within a few years, in 1940, Stibitz
demonstrated remote input and output via telephone lines over a distance of more
than 20 miles. This early demonstration of remote computing would eventually
expand into the internet as we know it today.
In 1938, William Hewlett and David Packard founded the Hewlett-Packard
Company (widely known by the initials HP). This company started with a variety
of electronic equipment such as oscilloscopes and audio oscillators. In later years,
HP became a major vendor of notebook computers, printers, and custom software
applications.
In 1939, John Vincent Atanasoff and Clifford Berry developed a prototype
computer called ABC (named after the initials of the inventors). This machine is
often claimed to be the first digital computer in the world, although there are rival
claims and considerable debate and even litigation involving the origin of mod-