Computer Chronicles (1984)

Name: Computer Chronicles
Rating: 7.7

Rating: 7.7

Synopsis

The Computer Chronicles was an American television series, broadcast during 1981-2002 on Public Broadcasting Service public television, which documented the rise of the personal computer from its infancy to the immense market at the turn of the 21st century. The series was created in the Fall of 1981, by Stewart Cheifet, then the station manager of the College of San Mateo's KCSM-TV, initially broadcast as a local weekly series. Jim Warren was its founding host for its 1981-1982 season. It aired continuously from 1981 to 2002 with Cheifet co-hosting most of its later seasons. Gary Kildall served as co-host for six years providing insights and commentary on products as well as discussions on the future of the ever-expanding personal computer sphere.

First Air Date: 1984-02-05

Last Air Date: 2002-07-16

Number of Seasons: 19

Number of Episodes: 491

Created By: Stewart Cheifet

Networks: PBS

View Technical Specifications on IMDb

Top Cast

Stewart Cheifet as Self - Host
Gary Kildall as Self - Host
Tim Bajarin as Self
Dan Farber as Self
Lee Reiswig as Self
Steve Domenik as Self
Thomas Trinneer as Self
Pierluigi Zappacosta as Self

Seasons

Season 1 (1984)

Season 2 (1985)

Season 3 (1985)

Season 4 (1986)

Season 5 (1987)

Season 6 (1988)

Season 7 (1989)

Season 8 (1990)

Season 9 (1991)

Season 10 (1992)

Season 11 (1993)

Season 12 (1994)

Season 13 (1995)

Season 14 (1996)

Season 15 (1997)

Season 16 (1998)

Season 17 (1999)

Season 18 (2000)

Season 19 (2001)

Season 1 (1984)

No overview available for this season.

Episodes:

Ep. 1: Mainframes to Minis to Micros (1984-02-05)

Covers the history and ancestry of today's (1984) PC. Demos: HP 150 PC, Computer Museum, TX-1 Computer http://archive.org/details/MainFram1984
Ep. 2: Integrated Software (1984-02-12)

The new breed of integrated software suites and the visual interface. Demos: Apple LisaVisiOn, DESQ http://archive.org/details/Integrat1984
Ep. 3: Computer Music (1984-02-19)

The computer as a creative tool used to make, display and store music. Guests: John Chowning, Stanford; Will Harvey, Electronic Arts; Ellen Lapham, Syntauri; Gary Kildall, DRI Products/Demos: Music Construction Set, Alpha Syntauri Keyboard, Casiotone, Vocal Synthesizer, MIT Experimental Music Studio, Stanford Center for Computer Music. Originally broadcast in 1984. Copyright 1984 Stewart Cheifet Productions. https://archive.org/details/Computer1984
Ep. 4: Computer Simulations (1984-02-26)

The use of computers to simulate various real-world environments for military, entertainment and architectural applications. Guests: Gary Kildall, Digital Research; Frank Lewandowski, Singer-Link; Steve Harrison, Skidmore Owings; Bruce Artwick, IBM Products/Demos: Flight Simulator, Military Flight Simulator, DRAFT Architecture Simulator http://archive.org/details/Simulati1984
Ep. 5: Operating Systems (1984-03-04)

A review of competing operating systems and their affect on software development. Guests: Gary Kildall, SRI; Tony Fanning, Hewlett Packard; Jean Yates, Yates Ventures; Bruce Tognizinni, Apple; Herb Lechner, SRI Products/Demos: CP/MUNIXXenix, MS/DOS, Apple IIe & AppleTalk. Originally broadcast in March 1984. Copyright 1984 Stewart Cheifet Productions. http://www.archive.org/details/Operatin1984
Ep. 6: Word Processing (1984-03-05)

A review of the new generation of word processors. Demos: Word, Vision, Writer's Work Bench Text Editor, Word Plus, Punctuation & StyleWordStar http://archive.org/details/WordProc1984
Ep. 7: Computer Security (1984-03-12)

Security issues related to the world's increasing dependence on information in computer networks. Demos: Digi-Link, Add & Answer Verification http://archive.org/details/Computer1984_2
Ep. 8: Robotics (1984-03-19)

Robotic hardware and software and robotics based applications. Demos: Hero I Robot, Teach Mover Robot http://archive.org/details/Robotics1984
Ep. 9: Speech Synthesis (1984-03-26)

A look at speech synthesis and speech recognition technologies. Demos: Minolta Talking Camera, Texas Instruments Speak & Spell, Epsom Speech Plus Computer, IBM Votan V-5000 http://archive.org/details/SpeechSy1984
Ep. 10: Local Area Networks (1984-04-02)

Connecting computers, peripherals, broadband and baseband. Demos: Centralized Intelligence, Distributed Intelligence, Local Area Network http://archive.org/details/Networki1984
Ep. 11: Microchip Technology (1984-04-05)

History and development of the microprocessor. Demos: AMD 2901 (4 bit), AMD 29116 (16 bit) http://archive.org/details/Microchi1984
Ep. 12: Business Applications (1984-04-09)

A look at the popular new software programs for business. Demos: Lotus 123, SuperCalc 3PC Talk, CrossTalk, IBM Professional Office System http://archive.org/details/Business1984
Ep. 13: Storage Devices (1984-04-16)

Floppy drives, hard drives, and bubble memory. Demos: 5 ¼ inch floppy drive, 3 ½ inch floppy drive, RCA CED videodisk, 3680 1.2 GB spindle disk http://archive.org/details/StorageD1984
Ep. 14: Printers (1984-04-23)

Printer technology from daisy wheel to dot matrix to laser. Demos: Diablo Daisy Wheel Printer, Diablo Thermal Printer, Diablo Series C Ink Jet Printer, Xerox Color Laser Printer http://archive.org/details/Printers1984
Ep. 15: Database Software (1984-04-30)

Mainframe and network databases for computer users. Demos: The Source, CompuServe, Dialog Information Services http://archive.org/details/Database1984
Ep. 16: Computer Graphics (1984-05-07)

A review of computer art, graphics capabilities of computers and professional computer graphics systems. Guests: Herb Lechner, SRI International; Don McKinney, Silicon Graphics; Michael Arent, Freelance Artist; Kevin Prince, MCI/Quantel; Ann Chase, Freelance Artist Products/Demos: MCI Quantel PaintBox, Silicon Graphics 3D Animation, Apple IIe. Originally broadcast in 1984. Copyright 1984 Stewart Cheifet Productions. https://archive.org/download/Computer1984_6
Ep. 17: Decision Support Systems (1984-05-14)

Expert systems software and artificial intelligence applications. Guests: Gary Kildall, DRI; Mike Thoma, Mgmt Decisn Sys; Steve Weyl, Syntelligence; Jim Chapman, Human Edge SW Products/Demos: Strategic Simulations Epidemic, Prospector, CompuStat, Easy Scan, Sales Edge. Copyright 1984 Stewart Cheifet Productions https://archive.org/details/Decision1984
Ep. 18: Computer Ergonomics (1984-05-21)

A look at health problems related to computer use such as video display radiation and repetitive stress injuries. Guests: Herb Lechner, SRI International; Wanda Smith, Hewlett Packard; Karen Kessel, Koffler Group; Susan Kare, Apple; Jerry Manock, Apple. Products/Demos: Apple Macintosh, HP Orion Computer. https://archive.org/details/Computer1984_3
Ep. 19: Programming Languages (1984-06-25)

A review of current popular programming languages. Guests: Gary Kildall, DRI; Paul Grady, Microfocus; Dave Eisenberg, Apple; Elizabeth Rather, Forth Products/Demos: COBOLFORTHFORTH Graphics, PASCAL, Apple's Personal COBOL. http://archive.org/details/Programm1984
Ep. 20: Software Utilities (1984-07-02)

No overview for this episode.
Ep. 21: Computer Games (1984-09-28)

Computers are creating an entirely new platform for playing games, between humans or between humans and computers. Guests: Trip Hawkins, Electronic Arts; Bill Budge, Game Designer; Chris Crawford, Atari; Steve Kitchen, Activision Products/Demos: Pinball Construction Set, One on One, Space Shuttle, Excaliber, Larry Bird Basketball. Originally broadcast in September 1984. Copyright 1984 Stewart Cheifet Productions. https://archive.org/details/Computer1984_4
Ep. 22: Computer Entrepreneurs (1984-10-05)

A look at the people who are driving the personal computer industry. Guests: Gary Kildall, Digital Research; Steve Wozniak, Apple; Adam Osborne, Osborne Computer; Lore Harp, Vector Graphic; Gene Amdahl, Trilogy Systems. http://archive.org/details/Computer1984_5
Ep. 23: Fifth Generation Computers (1984-10-12)

Japan's fifth generation computer project and a look at the next phase of PC platforms. Shot in Japan. Guests: Gary Kildall, Digital Research; Admiral Bobby Ray Inman, MCC; Ed Feigenbaum, Author; Dr. Hideo Aiso, Keio University; Dr. Yukio Mizuno, NEC; Dr. Hiroshi Kashiwagi, NSP; Dr. Kuzuhiro Fuchi, ICOT; Dr. Tohru Moto-Aka, Univ Tokyo Products/Demos: KIP System, Pattern Matching, Inference Machine, Prologue http://archive.org/details/FifthGen1984
Ep. 24: Super Computers (1984-10-19)

An early look at supercomputers in the United States and Japan. Featured guests include George Michael, head of computer research of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, John Repp of Control Data Corporation, Dr. Hideo Aiso, Professor at Keio University in Japan, Dr. Hiroshi Kashiwagi, Chairman of Japan's National Supercomputer Project, and Dr. Yukio Mizuno, Senior Vice President of NEC. The program also features on location coverage in Japan of the country's supercomputer projects including the Hitachi S810-20 at the University of Tokyo and the Electro Technical Laboratory in Tsukuba, Japan. http://archive.org/details/CC126_supercomputers
Ep. 25: Artificial Intelligence (1984-10-26)

An early look at artificial Intelligence. Guests includes Edward Feigenbaum of Stanford University, Nils Nilsson of the AI Center at SRI International, Tom Kehler of Intellegenetics, Herb Lechner of SRI, and John McCarthy of Stanford. Featured demonstrations include Inferential Knowledge Engineering and the programming language LISP. http://archive.org/details/CC1024_artificial_intelligence
Ep. 26: Computers in Education (1984-11-02)

An early look at how computers are being used in formal education. Guests include Professor Patrick Suppes of Stanford University and Glenn Kleiman, author of "Brave New Schools". Includes demonstrations of the LOGO and BASIC languages. Guest host is Herb Lechner of SRI International. http://archive.org/details/education_2