Test your knowledge with these top questions!
Which operating system created at Bell Labs in 1969 became the foundation for modern Linux and macOS?
Ken Thompson and Dennis Ritchie developed Unix, introducing portable modular design principles that still power modern operating systems.
Which floppy disk format became the ubiquitous standard for 1980s and 1990s desktop PCs?
Sony created the rigid-shell 3.5-inch disk in 1981, which quickly replaced flexible 5.25-inch disks as the dominant portable storage media.
Which 1971 microprocessor was the first commercially available single-chip CPU?
Designed originally for a Japanese desktop calculator, the 4-bit Intel 4004 ignited the microcomputer revolution.
Which hardware controller did Douglas Engelbart debut in his legendary 1968 "Mother of All Demos"?
Engelbart's wooden mouse prototype introduced point-and-click interaction alongside hypertext, video conferencing, and windowed screens.
IBM PC microcomputers launched in 1981 with an operating system licensed from which company?
Microsoft licensed 86-DOS from Seattle Computer Products, adapted it into MS-DOS, and retained rights to sell it to other PC makers.
Apple II computer adoption surged in 1979 following the release of which spreadsheet program?
VisiCalc became the first "killer app" for personal computers, driving thousands of businesses to buy Apple II hardware.
Xerox Alto workstations introduced which personal computing innovation in 1973?
The Xerox Alto pioneered the graphical user interface, desktop metaphor, and mouse, heavily influencing Apple's Macintosh.
Altair 8800 microcomputer sales exploded in 1975 after appearing on the cover of which magazine?
Popular Electronics featured the Altair 8800 kit in January 1975, inspiring Bill Gates and Paul Allen to write Altair BASIC.