2008 C O RE A Publication of Industry Tales: Fairchild at 50 the Computer Charles Babbage: Legacy and Legend + Photo Gallery History Museum Valley of Death: Excerpt of The Life and Times of Andy Grove COMPUTER HISTORY MUSEUM A DEPARTMENTS MUSEUM UPDATES EXPLORE THE COLLECTION 2 36 6 9 38 42 CHM Curators Remarkable People: Preserving Virtual Just a Click Away Moving In ASCI Red 3 Gene Amdahl Worlds 40 43 CHM’s YouTube Chairman’s Letter 46 7 The Amsler Preliminary Channel 4 Donor Appreciation The Silicon Engine Integrator Macintosh 10 Contributors 48 8 Business Plan Conversations: About Us Documenting 44 Volunteer Spotlight BACK a World-class Recent Artifact Mystery Item Collection Donations C O RE 2008 7 12 18 23 32 Industry Tales: Charles Babbage: Extraordinary Images: Excerpt: Valley of Death Cover: The Babbage Engine’s Fairchild at 50 Legacy and Legend The Babbage Engine This excerpt from Richard chapter wheel indicates progress They were there at the very A world expert on Charles A collection of stunning S. Tedlow’s biography of throughout the calculating cycle. beginning. Their legacy Babbage takes a look at images from CHM’s new Andy Grove demonstrates This page: Babbage Engine’s touches almost every aspect the recent controversy over Babbage Engine exhibit. how he used both leader- bevel gears transmit power from of the computer industry: his status as “Father of the ship and management to dig the crank to the camstack. The Fairchildren. The Modern Computer.” Intel out of debt and make original cast of Fairchild it a world leader. Opposite: The distinct Semiconductor gathered “teardrop” geometry of the fi rst planar transistor invented at CHM to celebrate and by Jean Hoerni of Fairchild. reminisce. B CORE 2008 COMPUTER HISTORY MUSEUM 1 CURATORS Editor-in-Chief Karae M. Lisle Executive Editor Fiona Tang CHAIRMAN’S LETTER CHM Technical Editor Curators’ favorite DAG AL Dag Spicer computer-related SPICER KOSSOW Editor-at-Large quotes Christina Tynan-Wood OUR NEW CEO SENIOR CURATOR SOFTWARE CURATOR Contributors Welcome to John Hollar, our new President and CEO: Paula Jabloner Most of you already know the wonderful news about our new President and ceo: after Karen Kroslowitz months of looking for a great person to lead our institution, we were able to convince David A. Laws John Hollar to take that role and help move chm to the next level in our growth. Jim McClure The diverse worldwide experience and business insights John brings from his major roles Tim Robinson “There’s an old story “If builders built Bob Sanguedolce at the fcc, at pbs, and at Pearson in London are extremely valuable to the Museum. He about the person houses the way Len Shustek combines enthusiasm for the evolution of technology with relevant experience in creating who wished his com- programmers built Dag Spicer and distributing media and web-based content. His professional leadership and fresh ap- Doron Swade proach have already injected a new palpable excitement. For more information about John puter were as easy to programs, the fi rst Fiona Tang Hollar’s background, see the press release at: computerhistory.org/press. use as his telephone. woodpecker to come Richard S. Tedlow John’s priority will be to continue our momentum toward becoming a full-time exhibit- That wish has come along would destroy Marc Weber ing institution and world-class destination. The next phase includes the development of a comprehensive plan for exhibits and programs, completing the $125 million fundraising true, since I no lon- civilization.” Photographer campaign, and adding education and research components to the Museum. One of John’s Marcin Wichary ger know how to use GERALD P. WEINBERG, top goals is to drive the launch of a major exhibit on computer history, tentatively called AUTHOR OF THE PSYCHOLOGY OF my telephone.” “Computer History: The First 2,000 Years,” which is scheduled to open both in the build- COMPUTER PROGRAMMING Design BJARNE STROUSTRUP Studio1500 ing and on the web in 2010. We are making great progress on developing this complex and comprehensive exhibit using a mix of staff curators, volunteers, and outside experts. Website Design Team I hope you enjoy the changes you see in this issue of Core. We try to make it an enter- ALEX CHRIS Dana Chrisler taining mix of computer history and information about the Museum. Our fi eld is a rich Ton Luong one, so read about colorful pioneering individuals like Charles Babbage, Andy Grove, and BOCHANNEK GARCIA Bob Sanguedolce Gene Amdahl, and the remarkable story of Fairchild’s role in developing the semiconductor CURATOR CURATOR industry. Learn how the chm collection, the largest collection of computing artifacts in the world, is managed and how it continues to expand. And as always, give us your feedback and stay involved. Regards, © 2008 Computer History “Man is still the “I do not fear Museum. All artwork is copy- most extraordinary computers. I fear the right of the Computer History Museum unless otherwise LEN SHUSTEK computer of all.” lack of them.” credited. For reprints and CHAIRMAN, BOARD OF TRUSTEES, COMPUTER HISTORY MUSEUM JOHN F. KENNEDY ISAAC ASIMOV permissions, contact [email protected]. Subscriptions are a member benefi t. Address changes and other written correspondence may be sent to: Computer History Museum, Core Editor, 1401 N. Shoreline Blvd, Mountain View, CA 94043-1311, USA. 2 CORE 2008 COMPUTER HISTORY MUSEUM 3 Core 2008 Contributors give us their take on CONTRIBUTORS computer history Why is CHM important? Why should we celebrate it? Vision David House outputs and informs acquisi- establish a leadership posi- chm gives us the oppor- We celebrate any event to To explore the computing Credence Systems tion of objects for their tion. That is why Compaq DAVID DORON revolution and its tunity to celebrate these refl ect upon the past and to Christine Hughes collections. purchased Intel’s 386 and worldwide impact on the Achievement Plus A. LAWS important milestones and look to the future. We cele- SWADE human experience Computer-related devices incorporated it into its own the stories of the people who brate to see how companies Peter Karpas are arguably the most suc- next-generation pc—the Mission Intuit, Inc. made them happen and to succeed or fail due to any To preserve and present cessful new technology of Compaq DeskPro 386. record them for posterity. one of dozens of complex, for posterity the artifacts David Martin the last half-century and the Together with the Chemical interlocking reasons and to and stories of the infor- 280 Capital Partners preservation of its history Why should we celebrate it? mation age Heritage Foundation and the learn what factors contrib- John Mashey is therefore pre-eminently This caused leadership in the Who has ‘made it’? ieee, chm will host events ute to success and which to Who has ‘made it’? President and CEO Consultant important. chm is the largest pc industry to migrate from John C. Hollar Fairchild Semiconductor in Spring 2009 to celebrate failure. Finally, we celebrate Tim Berners-Lee. By forego- Donald J. Massaro single institution with this the assemblers (such as ibm) the 50th anniversary of the for nostalgia—to satisfy the ing patents, royalties and Board of Trustees Sendmail, Inc. historic mission. It is impor- to the component suppliers Leonard Shustek What milestone events that led to the devel- perpetual longing for an other commercial benefi ts Isaac R. Nassi tant because the history of (Intel and Microsoft). This Chairman contributed the most? opment of the ic. imagined “simpler time.” SAP computing is important. was a change of historic from his work creating the VenCraft, LLC The conception and creation Web, he succeeded in realis- Suhas Patil importance. ibm, Intel, and David Anderson of the fi rst monolithic inte- Why is CHM important? ing a network with access Tufan, Inc. Microsoft are all still very Verari Systems, Inc. chm is home to the world’s much alive but ibm no long- grated circuits (ics). That for all. He transcended the Bernard L. Peuto DAG C. Gordon Bell RICHARD itself involved three distinct largest collection of com- supposed imperatives of Concord Consulting er manufactures pcs. puting artifacts, software, Microsoft Corporation There is often a battle in milestones. (1) Jean Hoerni’s SPICER fi nancial self-interest—a David Rossetti S. TEDLOW Grady Booch invention of the planar media, documents, and remarkable accomplishment Cisco Systems, Inc. the value chain of an indus- ephemera. Since it began IBM Thomas J. Watson try concerning leadership. In transistor manufacturing —and created something Research Center F. Grant Saviers process. (2) Bob Noyce’s collecting in the mid-1970s, bigger than a “commercially Adaptec, Inc. (retired) the automobile industry, the Peggy Burke insight that the oxide insula- it has acquired many of successful product.” Well, so assembler is the most impor- 1185 Design Lawrence Schoenberg tion layer feature of the the most important mach- far anyway. tant player. But sole sourcing process would enable the ines and technologies in Lori Kulvin Crawford John Shoch of the 386 made the suppli- Infi nity Capital LLC Alloy Ventures interconnection of multiple Who has ‘made it’? computing—works that are What milestone Who has ‘made it’? ers more important than the transistors on a chip. And Ibm masterpieces of the machine contributed the most? Andrea Cunningham Heidi Sinclair Intel assemblers in the computer age. chm is the Louvre of CXO Communication Bill & Melinda Gates industry. (3) Jay Last and his team’s The microprocessor. Foundation creative engineering efforts What milestone computing. Mark Dean What milestone IBM Research Stephen Smith that turned these concepts contributed the most? Why should we celebrate it? contributed the most? Why is CHM important? Arma Partners into the reality of the The ibm 7030 (“Stretch”) The cost-performance of Donna Dubinsky Intel’s decision to act as This industry, more than any modern integrated circuit.