We all know that Bill Gates created the personal computer, but I do not believe that he created the actual computer, which was huge and used in large factories. Who created the first computer and how did he/she get the idea?

Bill Gates

I think that everybody should be made to be aware that I did not create the personal computer. It was John V Blackenbaker of Los Angeles and was offered at {$750} in Scientific American in September 1971 as the Kenbak-1. It had 256 bytes of memory and an eight bit processor built up from standard medium scale and small scale integrated circuits. The Kenbak Corporation closed down in 1973 after selling 40 of these pioneer PCs. The first PC based on a microprossor was the Mical, designed by Francois Gernelle and Ben Chetrite of the R2E electronic company in Paris. The term Personal Computer was originally coined by Ed Roberts of Albuquerque, New Mexico who created the MITS Altair 8800, the first microcomputer for home use. Apr 16 03, 7:34 AM

Gnomon

It depends very much on what you mean by computer. Charles Babbage invented a mechanical programmable computer, but it was never built. He did manage to build a few mechanical calculators, but they were not programmable, so they did not count as computers. IBM built an electro-mechanical computer called the Mark I. I believe the first electronic computer was the Colossus, built by the English to crack codes during the Second World War. I hope these help you in your research. Apr 16 03, 8:21 AM

Lothruin

While Bill Gates certainly had a hand in the creation of the personal computer as a viable machine, and an even bigger one in its introduction into the 'common' household, it can hardly be said that he created it, or that 'we all know' that he did. And the answer to this question is, as has been said before, largely dependant on what you consider a computer. Technically speaking, an abacus or sliderule could be considered a computer. However, the binary monsters used in the early 1950's by the American Department of Defense might be said to have been Grace Hopper's idea. She is credited with the binary system of numbers, without which, the computer as we know it would not exist. The first computer to utilize this system was actually built by three gentlemen from the University of Pennsylvania, in 1950, and was called EDVAC. Apr 17 03, 12:21 AM