Computers & Business Machines - Overview
Imagine the loss, 100 years from now, if museums hadn't begun preserving the artifacts of the computer age. The last few decades offer proof positive of why museums must collect continuously—to document technological and social transformations already underway.
The Museum's collections contain mainframes, minicomputers, microcomputers, and handheld devices. A Cray2 supercomputer is part of the collections, along with one of the towers of IBM's Deep Blue, the computer that defeated reigning champion Garry Kasparov in a chess match in 1997. Other artifacts range from personal computers to ENIAC, the Altair, and the Osborne 1. Computer components and peripherals, games, software, manuals, and other documents are part of the collections. Some of the instruments of business include adding machines, calculators, typewriters, dictating machines, fax machines, cash registers, and photocopiers
"Computers & Business Machines - Overview" showing 1 items.
The Milometer slide rule computer
- Description (Brief)
- A WWI machine gun fire control computer, labelled the Milometer. This slide rule-like computer was used by forward observers to pinpoint the indirect fire of machine guns and small arms. Copyrighted by G. P. Wilhelm in 1917, it was manufactured and distributed by Edward C. McKay of Cleveland, Ohio. The sliding part and the top are cream celluloid; the bottom is clear yellow celluloid.
- Directions for the slide rule's use can be found in the book Machine Gun Fire Control by Captain Glenn P. Wilhelm, published in 1917 by Edward C. McKay.
- date made
- 1917
- ID Number
- 2006.0098.1569
- catalog number
- 2006.0098.1569
- accession number
- 2006.0098
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center