Technology Rates of Change

I read a quote in an article recently: "Computers in the future may have only 1,000 vacuum tubes and perhaps only weigh 1 1/2 tons."
- Popular Mechanics, 1949

It shows how quickly technology progresses at a pace beyond which all but a few can envision. It got me wondering about other interesting technology quotes from the past that now raise a chuckle.

My Top 5 (in descending order) would have to be:  

#5

- Mitchell Kapor

#4 “I think there is a world market for maybe five computers.”
- IBM Chairman Thomas Watson, 1943

#3 “Everything that can be invented has been invented.”
- Charles H. Duell, Commissioner, U.S. Office of Patents, 1899  

#2 “There is no reason for any individual to have a computer in their home.”
- Ken Olson (President of Digital Equipment Corporation) at the Convention of the World Future Society in Boston in 1977

…and everyone’s all time classic:

#1 “640K ought to be enough for anybody.”
-Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates, 1981

Bill Gates was referring to 640K of memory and he disputes he ever said it but it will go down in history as a short-sighted blunder. Even if you look back 5-10 years ago, the thought of an individual owning a 1TB drive would have been far-fetched. The rapid increase of information and data, driven by the internet has led to a huge increase in capacity requirements from individuals and businesses. Teradata has always been at the forefront with the first Terabyte-sized and the first Petabyte-sized data warehouse. With the explosion of interest in ‘Big Data’ and the continued investment in this area, who knows what the technological landscape will look like 10 years from now.

For an insight into ‘Big Data’ from Teradata, why not attend the Teradata User Group event happening in Melbourne on Tuesday 4th April (see www.teradata.com.au for details). 

Steven Lawton