Preamble -- Numerical Calculations -- Calculations Using Symbols -- After 1890: In Thrall to Mechanical and Electromechanical Devices -- After 1935: Formal Languages and Algorithms, ‘Universal Machines’ and Electronic Solutions -- After 1960: Informatics Begins to Take Shape -- Conclusion: Informatics and Microelectronics Are Mutually Dependent.

The book examines how intellectual developments in logic and mathematics were gradually matched by technical solutions in first mechanics and then electronics, and how the resulting machines found application in engineering, science and business. The author was among the pioneers of computing science, and he offers a personal and distinctive view of the key developments and personalities in this engaging history. The book will be of interest to computer scientists and electronics engineers, and to readers who are fascinated by the history of technology.