n the history of computing, early experimental machines could be operated by a single attendant.

For
example, ENIAC which became operational in 1946 could be run by a single, albeit highly trained, person.
[10]
 This mode pre-dated the batch programming, or time-sharing modes with multiple users connected
through terminals to mainframe computers. Computers intended for laboratory, instrumentation, or engineering
purposes were built, and could be operated by one person in an interactive fashion. Examples include such
systems as the Bendix G15 and LGP-30of 1956, and the Soviet MIR series of computers developed from 1965
to 1969.[citation needed] By the early 1970s, people in academic or research institutions had the opportunity for single-
person use of a computer system in interactive mode for extended durations, although these systems would
still have been too expensive to be owned by a single person.
The personal computer was made possible by major advances in semiconductor technology. In 1959,
the silicon integrated circuit (IC) chip was developed by Robert Noyce at Fairchild Semiconductor,[11] and
the metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) transistor was developed by Mohamed Atalla and Dawon Kahng at Bell
Labs.[12] The MOS integrated circuit was commercialized by RCA in 1964,[13] and then the silicon-gate MOS
integrated circuit was developed by Federico Faggin at Fairchild in 1968.[14] Faggin later used silicon-gate MOS
technology to develop the first single-chip microprocessor, the Intel 4004, in 1971.[15] The first microcomputers,
based on microprocessors, were developed during the early 1970s. Widespread commercial availability of
microprocessors, from the mid-1970s onwards, made computers cheap enough for small businesses and
individuals to own.
In what was later to be called the Mother of All Demos, SRI researcher Douglas Engelbart in 1968 gave a
preview of features that would later become staples of personal computers: e-mail, hypertext, word
processing, video conferencing, and the mouse. The demonstration required technical support staff and a
mainframe time-sharing computer that were far too costly for individual business use at the time.
Early personal computers‍—g ‌ enerally called microcomputers‍—w
‌ ere often sold in a kit form and in limited
volumes, and were of interest mostly to hobbyists and technicians. Minimal programming was done with toggle
switches to enter instructions, and output was provided by front panel lamps. Practical use required adding
peripherals such as keyboards, computer displays, disk drives, and printers.
Micral N was the earliest commercial, non-kit microcomputer based on a microprocessor, the Intel 8008. It was
built starting in 1972, and a few hundred units were sold. This had been preceded by the Datapoint 2200 in
1970, for which the Intel 8008 had been commissioned, though not accepted for use. The CPU design
implemented in the Datapoint 2200 became the basis for x86 architecture[16] used in the original IBM PC and its
descendants.[17]
In 1973, the IBM Los Gatos Scientific Center developed a portable computer prototype called SCAMP (Special
Computer APL Machine Portable) based on the IBM PALM processor with a Philips compact cassette drive,
small CRT, and full function keyboard. SCAMP emulated an IBM 1130 minicomputer in order to run APL/1130.
[18]
 In 1973, APL was generally available only on mainframe computers, and most desktop sized
microcomputers such as the Wang 2200 or HP 9800 offered only BASIC. Because SCAMP was the first to
emulate APL/1130 performance on a portable, single user computer, PC Magazine in 1983 designated SCAMP
a "revolutionary concept" and "the world's first personal computer". [18][19] This seminal, single user portable
computer now resides in the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.. Successful demonstrations of the 1973
SCAMP prototype led to the IBM 5100 portable microcomputer launched in 1975 with the ability to be
programmed in both APL and BASIC for engineers, analysts, statisticians, and other business problem-solvers.
In the late 1960s such a machine would have been nearly as large as two desks and would have weighed
about half a ton.[18]
Another desktop portable APL machine, the MCM/70, was demonstrated in 1973 and shipped in 1974. It used
the Intel 8008 processor.
A seminal step in personal computing was the 1973 Xerox Alto, developed at Xerox's Palo Alto Research
Center (PARC). It had a graphical user interface (GUI) which later served as inspiration for Apple's Macintosh,
and Microsoft's Windows operating system. The Alto was a demonstration project, not commercialized, as the
parts were too expensive to be affordable. [20]
Also in 1973 Hewlett Packard introduced fully BASIC programmable microcomputers that fit entirely on top of a
desk, including a keyboard, a small one-line display, and printer. The Wang 2200 microcomputer of 1973 had a
full-size cathode ray tube (CRT) and cassette tape storage.[21] These were generally expensive specialized
computers sold for business or scientific uses.