1971
Scientific American advertises the Kanbak-1, the first "personal" computer equipped with 256 bytes of memory, for $750.
IBM develops the first floppy disk for data transfer and storage.
23 Internet servers are in existence.
The Partridge Family makes its debut on ABC.
On a hilltop in Italy, young people from numerous countries gather to film a commercial and popularize the jingle I'd Like To Buy the World a Coke.
1972
The term "Silicon Valley" is coined.
The first e-mail system is designed at a university.
The Watergate scandal breaks loose.
Don MacLean serves up American Pie to the #1 spot on radio charts.
Hey Mikey tastes Life cereal and, surprise, he likes it in a popular 30-second commercial for Quaker Oats.
1975
Bill Gates and Paul Allen license BASIC and establish Microsoft.
The Tandem-16 computer is designed for the online banking industry.
Computer Mart opens in New York.
The Homebrew Computer Club meets for the very first time.
Popular Electronics publishes a feature story about the Altaire computer, named after a Star Trek episode.
AMC's new Pacer automobiles hit the roads.
Jaws bites its way into movie theaters.
Barry Manilow writes the songs the whole world sings and tops the charts with Mandy.
1976
Steve Jobs and Stephen Wozniak start a garage business called Apple Computer.
The Byte Shop orders 100 Apple I units and sells them all in less than 12 months.
Computer magazines such as BYTE, Computer Graphics & Art, and Dr. Dobb's Journal of Computer Calisthenics and Orthodontia, find their way to the newsstands.
The Gong Show strikes a hit with primetime television viewers.
Radio stations play Silly Love Songs by Paul McCartney & Wings.
1977
Internet servers number 100.
Commodore markets the first fully-assembled personal computer called PET.
The Apple II is developed and it produces beautiful color graphics when connected to a television set.
Radio Shack designs the Tandy RS-80 desktop computer and sells 10,000 units in the first month.
Tattoos aren't just for sailors anymore when The Love Boat begins its nine-year run on television.
The force is with the galactic adventure-movie, Star Wars.
1978
The first bulletin board service is organized.
Computer buffs are delighted when the 8086 processor is unveiled.
Epson designs the MX-80, a dot matrix printer.
Las Vegas hosts the first COMDEX computer show.
John Travolta, clad in a white-polyester suit, captivates audiences as a disco-strutting hunk in Saturday Night Fever. Movie soundtrack generates a banner recording year for the Bee Gees (all #1 hits): Night Fever, How Deep Is Your Love, Stayin' Alive.
1979
CompuServe is founded and customers can use their modems to transfer data at 300 bauds per second (bps).
WordStar becomes a popular word processing program.
An electronic spreadsheet program called VisiCalc is unveiled at the West Coast Computer Faire.
Nuclear power plant at Three Mile Island releases radioactivity.
How to Recover During the Upcoming Bad Years by Howard J. Ruff makes it to the Best Seller List.
Willie Mays is inducted into Baseball's Hall of Fame.
Disco diva, Donna Summer, dominates the music charts with Bad Girls, Hot Stuff, MacArthur Park, and Heaven Knows.