Triumph of the Nerds Part I

Impressing their Friends

The documentary produced by US public television tells the story of the beginning of personal computers in the early 1970s with the Altair 8800 and Apple II. The video includes a series of interviews with important figures which are related to such technological advances such as Bill Gates, Paul Allen, Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, Ed Roberts, among others.

Despite being described as nerds, all of them had very clear objectives of what they wanted to do in life. They were innovators, passionate about technology and highly intelligent, thus, they were able to revolutionize the software industry and hardware between years 1970 and 1980.

The documentary was very interesting because it shows the thinking of these "giants of technology" and the way in which emerged many of the ideas developed in his time. Nowadays, the companies that they founded forty years ago do not look like what we know now. The reason of this evolution is due to the strong growth and global recognition that they were obtained along the years.

However, it is possible to emphasize that from the beginning Microsoft and Apple had great success because although his inventions were rudimentary, they were revolutionary in their field. The trend in that year was the personal computer because it changed the way in which people interacted with the technology.

In that time, an important feature that defined them and they had in common was the teamwork with which they developed their ideas. For instance, Wozniak reduced the number of chips required for a computer and Steve Jobs had the vision of selling 1,000 units in only one month. Microsoft and Apple not only became big businesses, they opened the door of a large market that we know in the heart of Silicon Valley, where all companies are struggling to make a mark in this technological era and innovation.

Big ideas can begin with the wish to impress our friends. Nobody knows the impact that it may have on the world.