Random Fun Facts about Computers

We’ve created this list of 101 random fun facts about computers for your enjoyment and for you to share with friends!

Table of Contents

• Random Fun Facts 1-25
• Random Fun Facts 25-50
• Random Run Facts 51-75
• Random Run Facts 76-101

Random Fun Facts 1-25

Here are 25 random fun facts about computers:

1. The first computer mouse was invented by Doug Engelbart in 1963.
2. The first computer virus was called “Creeper” and was created in 1971.
3. The world’s first website went live on August 6, 1991.
4. The first computer game, “Spacewar!,” was created in 1962.
5. The first hard disk drive was created by IBM in 1956 and stored only 5 MB of data.
6. The first computer programming language was Fortran, created in the 1950s.
7. The first computer with a graphical user interface (GUI) was the Xerox Alto in 1973.
8. The first Apple computer, the Apple I, was released in 1976.
9. The first IBM PC was released in 1981.
10. The first computer with a built-in CD-ROM drive was the Apple Macintosh in 1984.
11. The first computer with a built-in webcam was the IBM PC/AT in 1984.
12. The first computer with a built-in touchpad was the Apple PowerBook 500 in 1994.
13. The first computer with a built-in fingerprint reader was the Toshiba Satellite 5000 in 2002.
14. The first computer with a built-in GPS was the IBM PC110 in 1995.
15. The first computer with a built-in digital camera was the Apple QuickTake 100 in 1994.
16. The first computer with a built-in MP3 player was the Compaq iPAQ in 2000.
17. The first computer with a built-in Bluetooth was the IBM ThinkPad T30 in 2002.
18. The first computer with a built-in Wi-Fi was the Apple iBook in 1999.
19. The first computer with a built-in USB port was the Apple iMac in 1998.
20. The first computer with a built-in Ethernet port was the Xerox Alto in 1973.
21. The first computer with a built-in modem was the IBM 5100 in 1975.
22. The first computer with a built-in floppy disk drive was the Apple Macintosh in 1984.
23. The first computer with a built-in hard disk drive was the IBM 305 RAMAC in 1956.
24. The first laptop computer was the Osborne 1, released in 1981.
25. The first tablet computer was the GridPad, released in 1989.

Random Fun Facts 26-50

Here are another 25 random fun facts about computers:

26. The first smartphone was the IBM Simon, released in 1993.
27. The first digital camera was the Kodak DCS, released in 1991.
28. The first web browser, called WorldWideWeb, was created by Tim Berners-Lee in 1990.
29. The first search engine was Archie, created in 1990.
30. The first commercial email system was called MAILBOX, created in 1979.
31. The first emoticon, 🙂 (smiley face), was created by Scott Fahlman in 1982.
32. The first animated GIF was created by Steve Wilhite in 1987.
33. The first domain name ever registered was symbolics.com in 1985.
34. The first website to sell something online was Amazon.com in 1995.
35. The first website to stream video was the Victoria & Albert Museum in London in 1994.
36. The first website to host user-generated content was Geocities, created in 1994.
37. The first video uploaded to YouTube was “Me at the zoo” in 2005.
38. The first computer to beat a world champion in chess was Deep Blue, a computer created by IBM, in 1997.
39. The first computer to beat a world champion in the game of Go was AlphaGo, created by Google DeepMind, in 2016.
40. The first computer virus that caused significant damage was the Morris Worm, released in 1988.
41. The first webcam was used to monitor a coffee pot at Cambridge University in 1991.
42. The first computer animated feature film was Toy Story, released by Pixar in 1995.
43. The first computer generated music was created in 1957 by a computer called the IBM 704.
44. The first computer art was created in the 1950s by artists using computers at Bell Labs.
45. The first computer-based personal assistant was Microsoft’s Clippy, introduced in 1996.
46. The first computer-based voice assistant was Apple’s Siri, introduced in 2011.
47. The first computer to use a mouse with a graphical user interface was the Xerox Alto in 1973.
48. The first computer printer was invented by Charles Babbage in the 19th century.
49. The first computer keyboard was invented by Christopher Latham Sholes in 1874.
50. The first computer monitor was the IBM 2250, introduced in 1964.

Random Fun Facts 51-75

Here are another 25 random fun facts about computers:

51. The first computer to have a color display was the IBM 2250, introduced in 1964.
52. The first computer to have a touch screen was the HP-150, introduced in 1983.
53. The first computer to have a color printer was the IBM 407, introduced in 1954.
54. The first computer to have a built-in web browser was the NeXT Computer, introduced in 1989.
55. The first computer to have a built-in CD burner was the Apple Power Macintosh G3 in 1998.
56. The first computer to have a built-in DVD burner was the Apple Power Mac G4 in 2001.
57. The first computer to have a built-in Blu-ray disc drive was the Sony Vaio AR series in 2006.
58. The first computer to have a built-in 3D printer was the MakerBot Replicator in 2012.
59. The first computer to have a built-in virtual reality headset was the ASUS ROG G752VS in 2016.
60. The first computer to have a built-in holographic display was the Microsoft HoloLens in 2016.
61. The first computer to use magnetic core memory was the Whirlwind, created by MIT in 1949.
62. The first computer to use transistor-based memory was the IBM 7090, introduced in 1959.
63. The first computer to use integrated circuit-based memory was the IBM System/360, introduced in 1964.
64. The first computer to use flash memory was the Toshiba TOSBAC-3100 in 1987.
65. The first computer to use solid state drives (SSDs) instead of hard disk drives was the ASUS Eee PC S101 in 2008.
66. The first computer to use a quad-core processor was the Intel Core 2 Extreme QX6700, introduced in 2006.
67. The first computer to use a hexa-core processor was the Intel Core i7-980X, introduced in 2010.
68. The first computer to use an octa-core processor was the Intel Xeon E5-2600, introduced in 2012.
69. The first computer to use a 64-bit processor was the DEC Alpha 21064 in 1992.
70. The first computer to use a dual-core processor was the Sun Microsystems UltraSPARC IIi in 1997.
71. The first computer to use a quad-core graphics processing unit (GPU) was the AMD Radeon HD 5970 in 2009.
72. The first computer to use liquid cooling for its processor was the Cray-2 supercomputer, introduced in 1985.
73. The first computer to use a multi-touch screen was the iPhone, introduced by Apple in 2007.
74. The first computer to have a built-in Wi-Fi adapter was the iBook G3, introduced by Apple in 1999.
75. The first computer to use the USB interface was the iMac G3, introduced by Apple in 1998.

Random Fun Facts 76-101

Here are another 26 random fun facts about computers:

76. The first computer to use the Thunderbolt interface was the MacBook Pro, introduced by Apple in 2011.
77. The first computer to use a dedicated graphics processing unit (GPU) was the IBM 1620, introduced in 1959.
78. The first computer to use an optical mouse was the Xerox Star, introduced in 1981.
79. The first computer to use a laser printer was the Xerox 9700, introduced in 1977.
80. The first computer to use a digital camera was the Apple QuickTake 100, introduced in 1994.
81. The first computer to use a touchpad was the StarLite, introduced by Cirque Corporation in 1992.
82. The first computer to use a thumb drive (USB flash drive) was the Trek 2000, introduced in 2000.
83. The first computer to use a hard disk drive was the IBM 305 RAMAC, introduced in 1956.
84. The first computer to use a light pen was the Lincoln TX-2, introduced in 1957.
85. The first computer to use a stylus for input was the PLATO IV, introduced in 1972.
86. The first computer to use a speech recognition system was the IBM Shoebox, introduced in 1962.
87. The first computer to use a trackball was the DATAR, invented by Canadian engineers in 1952.
88. The first computer to use a scrolling mouse wheel was the Microsoft IntelliMouse, introduced in 1996.
89. The first computer to use a graphics tablet was the RAND Tablet, introduced in 1964.
90. The first computer to use a handheld scanner was the Telautograph, introduced in 1888.
91. The first computer to use a digital audio player was the MPMan F10, introduced in 1998.
92. The first computer to use a digital video recorder (DVR) was the TiVo, introduced in 1999.
93. The first computer to use a solid-state audio recorder was the H2 Handy Recorder, introduced by Zoom in 2007.
94. The first computer to use a solid-state video recorder was the Atomos Ninja, introduced in 2010.
95. The first computer to use a trackpad for input was the PowerBook 500, introduced by Apple in 1994.
96. The first computer to use a built-in fingerprint scanner was the Toshiba Portege 3500, introduced in 2002.
97. The first computer to use a built-in facial recognition system was the ASUS VivoBook S15, introduced in 2018.
98. The first computer to use a built-in heart rate monitor was the ASUS VivoWatch, introduced in 2015.
99. The first computer to use a built-in breathalyzer was the LG V30, introduced in 2017.
100. The first computer to use a built-in blood glucose monitor was the Samsung Galaxy Watch.
101. The first computer to use a virtual assistant was IBM’s Shoebox in 1962, which could recognize 16 spoken words and perform mathematical functions.

We hope you enjoyed these 101 random fun facts about computers!

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