Altair Exhibit
Sep 22, 2025
The Historic Computing Lab kicked off the school year with an exhibit and an event ...
The exhibit, "The Altair 8800: Fifty Years of Personal Computing" runs all September just inside the main entrance of Mearns/McPherson, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the world's first commercially successful personal computer, the Altair 8800.
It features:
- A fully restored Altair 8800 computer
- Historical documentation, including an original 1975 issue of "Computer Notes" newsletter containing a letter from Bill Gates decrying the hobbyist community's illicit copying of commercial software (specifically, Microsoft's first product, Altair BASIC)
- The January 1977 issue of BYTE magazine, with a cover illustration suiggesting that somehow the Altair will show us the way from our then-current dystopian hellscape to a pastoral utopian future
- ... and more!
And running in parallel to the Altair exhibit, this month the themed book display in the foyer features a selection of important works of computing history.
The Lab also participated in Thunderfest this year, giving attendees the chance to have fun on a few retro computers, including ...
- a Commodore 64 running "Omega Race"
- a Vic 20 running "Pinball"
- a NABU running "Galaxian"
- an AltairDuino running "Ladder"
A good time was had by all!
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