Wow, I've jumped up to 1976 followers. So between 1971 and 1976, the following happened according to the Computer History Museum timeline.
https://www.computerhistory.org/timeline/1972/ 
1972: The C programming language was developed by Dennis Ritchie at Bell Labs.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C_(programming_language)
1973: ARPA funds a radio research van that played a unique role in the very first demonstration of the Internet. Mobile Internet - it'll never catch on.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Packet_Radio_Van
1973: The Xerox PARC Alto introduced, with a graphical user interface and mouse. This computer was the inspiration for the Apple Lis and Mac, and established a standard that still stands today.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xerox_Alto 
1974: The Mark-8 appears in the pages of Radio Electronics, a home-build computer based around the 8008, six months before the Altair 8800 appeared in the rival magazine Popular Electronics.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark-8 
1975: And the aforementioned Altair 8800 kit makes an appearance.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Altair_8800
1976: Lots of things happened here, but for me the most important event was the launch of the Zilog Z80 in March of this year. This processor is still being produced in the same 40-pin DIP package today.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zilog_Z80 
1977: Started getting a bit busy around now. The Apple II, the TRS-80, Commodore Pet and Atari VCS were all launched. Oh, and some film called 'Star Wars' stormed the cinemas.
1977: Started getting a bit busy around now. The Apple II, the TRS-80, Commodore Pet and Atari VCS were all launched. Oh, and some film called 'Star Wars' stormed the cinemas.
1977: Started getting a bit busy around now. The Apple II, the TRS-80, Commodore Pet and Atari VCS were all launched. Oh, and some film called 'Star Wars' stormed the cinemas.
1977: Started getting a bit busy around now. The Apple II, the TRS-80, Commodore Pet and Atari VCS were all launched. Oh, and some film called 'Star Wars' stormed the cinemas.
1977: Started getting a bit busy around now. The Apple II, the TRS-80, Commodore Pet and Atari VCS were all launched. Oh, and some film called 'Star Wars' stormed the cinemas.
1978: The first computer was installed in The Whitehouse; an HP3000 with terminals for staffers. How times have changed #covfefe https://www.whitehousehistory.org/computers-at-the-white-house
Computers at the White House

The Carter administration began the task of automating the White House with computers. Initial uses included assembling...

https://www.whitehousehistory.org/computers-at-the-white-house
1979: The Atari 400 and 800 were released. These computers contained a state of the art video processor chip, ANTIC, that was not to be bettered for some years.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atari_8-bit_family
1979: The Atari 400 and 800 were released. These computers contained a state of the art video processor chip, ANTIC, that was not to be bettered for some years. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atari_8-bit_family
1979: The Atari 400 and 800 were released. These computers contained a state of the art video processor chip, ANTIC, that was not to be bettered for some years. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atari_8-bit_family
1980: How can we not start the 80s without a mention of Clive Sinclair? The ZX80 was launched this year - it arguably kick-started the home computer revolution in the UK. On the other side of the pond, the VIC20 was launched. Was this the start of the famous playground wars?
1980: How can we not start the 80s without a mention of Clive Sinclair? The ZX80 was launched this year - it arguably kick-started the home computer revolution in the UK. On the other side of the pond, the VIC20 was launched. Was this the start of the famous playground wars?
1980: How can we not start the 80s without a mention of Clive Sinclair? The ZX80 was launched this year - it arguably kick-started the home computer revolution in the UK. On the other side of the pond, the VIC20 was launched. Was this the start of the famous playground wars?
1981: Clive Sinclair was on a bit of a roll; the ZX81 was essentially a minor upgrade to the ZX80; SLOW mode (is that considered an upgrade), and a ULA to reduce the chip count. Despite the internals, this is a Rick Dickinson classic design.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ZX81 
1982: I could wax lyrical about the Spectrum or C64 at this point, both launched this year. However, for me, the highlight of 1982 was Tron. Although there were surprisingly few scenes rendered by computer (15-20 minutes), it set the scene for Pixar et al.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tron 
1983: The GNU Project was started this year by Richard Stallman; the aftershocks of this are way too numerous to mention, but you can thank your Linux and software freedoms to this. On the home front, the Acorn Electron was launched.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_Project
1984: This
This advert for Apple was directed by Ridley Scott for Super Bowl XVIII. Lampooned by Futurama, it's actually quite good IMHO. Meanwhile in the UK we were rocking Amstrads.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1984_(advertisement)
1985: The NES was launched in North America. It'd been available in Japan for a couple of years previous as the Famicom. And Atari and Commodore launched two very different computers, with the legendary Jay Miner (of Atari 400/800 fame) designing the chipsets for the Amiga.
1985: The NES was launched in North America. It'd been available in Japan for a couple of years previous as the Famicom. And Atari and Commodore launched two very different computers, with the legendary Jay Miner (of Atari 400/800 fame) designing the chipsets for the Amiga.
1985: The NES was launched in North America. It'd been available in Japan for a couple of years previous as the Famicom. And Atari and Commodore launched two very different computers, with the legendary Jay Miner (of Atari 400/800 fame) designing the chipsets for the Amiga.
1985: The NES was launched in North America. It'd been available in Japan for a couple of years previous as the Famicom. And Atari and Commodore launched two very different computers, with the legendary Jay Miner (of Atari 400/800 fame) designing the chipsets for the Amiga.
1985: The NES was launched in North America. It'd been available in Japan for a couple of years previous as the Famicom. And Atari and Commodore launched two very different computers, with the legendary Jay Miner (of Atari 400/800 fame) designing the chipsets for the Amiga.
1986: Pixar is founded and over the next decade establish themselves as a major computer animation studio, bettered only by their ability to weave a great story. The micro computer revolution in the UK started getting a bit stale, with the dominance of beige boxes on the horizon.
1987: The Acorn Archimedes is launched containing the chip that is the great-grandaddy of the now ubiquitous ARM core. There is a great anecdote about how they accidentally discovered its low-power feature in the linked article.
https://www.theregister.com/Print/2012/05/03/unsung_heroes_of_tech_arm_creators_sophie_wilson_and_steve_furber/
1988: A personal high for myself. I leave college and start my first job in the UK computer games industry for a company in Manchester called Software Creations, ran by Richard Kay and Mike Webb. Made a load of great friends, many of whom I'm still in touch with.
1989: Nintendo launch the Gameboy. This green-screened wonder ticked all the boxes despite its limitations, helped by battery life & Mario. With slight design nod in the direction of the Game and Watch series it paved the way for future Nintendo handhelds.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_Boy 
1990: Wow, the decades are flying by now! At the beginning of this decade the WorldWideWeb is born. It'll never catch on.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Wide_Web
1991: Linus Torvalds releases the Linux Kernel. The Super Nintendo System is released in North America. I much prefer the Famicom again. And one of my favourite games of all time, Lemmings, was released onto an unsuspecting public.
1991: Linus Torvalds releases the Linux Kernel. The Super Nintendo System is released in North America. I much prefer the Famicom again. And one of my favourite games of all time, Lemmings, was released onto an unsuspecting public.
1991: Linus Torvalds releases the Linux Kernel. The Super Nintendo System is released in North America. I much prefer the Famicom again. And one of my favourite games of all time, Lemmings, was released onto an unsuspecting public.
1991: Linus Torvalds releases the Linux Kernel. The Super Nintendo System is released in North America. I much prefer the Famicom again. And one of my favourite games of all time, Lemmings, was released onto an unsuspecting public.
1992: The first ever text message was sent by Neil Papworth, and in response, Skynet sent Arnie back to kick some ass.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SMS 
1993: Doom was released. This was very much the spiritual successor to Wolfenstein 3D. Both by ID, both look similar in appearance. The earlier game used raycasting to achieve fast 3D on very slow machines, Doom used a more sophisticated engine that led to more complex levels.
1994: The Sony Playstation was released in Japan. With beige boxes dominating the desktop, it was now up to consoles to drive innovation on the gaming front. With an optical drive and a capable GPU, it laid the foundations for future consoles.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PlayStation
1994: The Sony Playstation was released in Japan. With beige boxes dominating the desktop, it was now up to consoles to drive innovation on the gaming front. With an optical drive and a capable GPU, it laid the foundations for future consoles. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PlayStation
1994: The Sony Playstation was released in Japan. With beige boxes dominating the desktop, it was now up to consoles to drive innovation on the gaming front. With an optical drive and a capable GPU, it laid the foundations for future consoles. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PlayStation
1994: The Sony Playstation was released in Japan. With beige boxes dominating the desktop, it was now up to consoles to drive innovation on the gaming front. With an optical drive and a capable GPU, it laid the foundations for future consoles. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PlayStation
1994: The Sony Playstation was released in Japan. With beige boxes dominating the desktop, it was now up to consoles to drive innovation on the gaming front. With an optical drive and a capable GPU, it laid the foundations for future consoles. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PlayStation
1995: JavaScript made an appearance. For better or worse, this loosely typed language has gone from creating rollover button effects to driving web applications like Twitter, Google Docs and Office Online, partly helped by the later introduction of AJAX.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JavaScript 
1996: The 3DFX Voodoo Graphics Chip was launched, and arguably started the era of GPUs in PCs. The graphics were basic by today's standards but pretty jaw dropping back in the day. It needed a seperate video card for 2D operations. I had one of these. It was awesome.
1997: The PS2 is still a way off in the noughties, but the Nintendo 64 has hit Europe. Still shunning the optical drives favoured by Sony, favouring cartridges, it lacked the FMV of the Playstation. And Mario 64 proved you can do 3D platformers well.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nintendo_64
1997: The PS2 is still a way off in the noughties, but the Nintendo 64 has hit Europe. Still shunning the optical drives favoured by Sony, favouring cartridges, it lacked the FMV of the Playstation. And Mario 64 proved you can do 3D platformers well. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nintendo_64
1997: The PS2 is still a way off in the noughties, but the Nintendo 64 has hit Europe. Still shunning the optical drives favoured by Sony, favouring cartridges, it lacked the FMV of the Playstation. And Mario 64 proved you can do 3D platformers well. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nintendo_64
1997: The PS2 is still a way off in the noughties, but the Nintendo 64 has hit Europe. Still shunning the optical drives favoured by Sony, favouring cartridges, it lacked the FMV of the Playstation. And Mario 64 proved you can do 3D platformers well. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nintendo_64
1997: The PS2 is still a way off in the noughties, but the Nintendo 64 has hit Europe. Still shunning the optical drives favoured by Sony, favouring cartridges, it lacked the FMV of the Playstation. And Mario 64 proved you can do 3D platformers well. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nintendo_64
The lack of full motion video (FMV) was not necessarily a bad thing; a lot of companies were putting poor quality videos in just because they could.
1998: This year witnessed the launch of Sega's last foray in the hardware market, also the first of the 6th generation of consoles. The Sega Dreamcast.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dreamcast 
1999: This happened.
2000: As the new millenium was rung in, IT teams were on standby. After months of press speculations, the Y2K bug proved to be a bit of a non-event to the casual observer. This was probably more down to the dilliegence of IT teams over the previous years.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Year_2000_problem
2000: As the new millenium was rung in, IT teams were on standby. After months of press speculations, the Y2K bug proved to be a bit of a non-event to the casual observer. This was probably more down to the dilliegence of IT teams over the previous years. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Year_2000_problem
2000: As the new millenium was rung in, IT teams were on standby. After months of press speculations, the Y2K bug proved to be a bit of a non-event to the casual observer. This was probably more down to the dilliegence of IT teams over the previous years. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Year_2000_problem
2000: As the new millenium was rung in, IT teams were on standby. After months of press speculations, the Y2K bug proved to be a bit of a non-event to the casual observer. This was probably more down to the dilliegence of IT teams over the previous years. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Year_2000_problem
I've got one computer that is not Y2K compliant; my BBC Master. I've set mine to be 28 years in the past (as the calendar repeats every 28 years). Kind of appropriate really! http://www.breakintoprogram.co.uk/hardware/bbc-master-128-restoration
BBC Master 128 Restoration - L Break Into Program

I’ve been donated a couple of BBC Micros from a friend who is in the process of clearing out his late uncle’s house. The first, a BBC Model B, is in need of significant repair – I tested it after...

http://www.breakintoprogram.co.uk/hardware/bbc-master-128-restoration
2001: This was the year that OSX and Windows XP were launched. People used to get really excited about this kind of thing. There was a launch party with Sting, Madonna, and a much younger and less 'patriotic' Rudy Giuliani at 0:37.
OSX (now MacOS) originated from NextSTEP, the OS on the NeXT, the company where Steve Jobs worked between him leaving and rejoining Apple. It's a Unix-like OS, and was not available for Classic Macs running on 68000 CPU architecture.
And XP was also an innovation for Microsoft; this was a true 32-bit OS, and more consumer orientated than Windows 2000, with a user interface that looked more shiny than the drab grey Windows 95/NT interface that it replaced.
2002: Companies have been trying get working robots in houses since the term was coined. And in 2002, Roomba launched a robot vacuum cleaner. I'm not quite sure how effective they are, but for your pleasure, here's my favourite video of a Roomba in action.
2003: MySpace was founded. Initially written in 10 days using ColdFusion, it was one of the major players in social media, eventually losing out to Facebook's dominance. However, even in 2019, it boasted 7.55m montly visits.
https://myspace.com/ 
2003: MySpace was founded. Initially written in 10 days using ColdFusion, it was one of the major players in social media, eventually losing out to Facebook's dominance. However, even in 2019, it boasted 7.55m montly visits. https://myspace.com/ 
2003: MySpace was founded. Initially written in 10 days using ColdFusion, it was one of the major players in social media, eventually losing out to Facebook's dominance. However, even in 2019, it boasted 7.55m montly visits. https://myspace.com/ 
2004: Google launch Gmail on 1st April of this year. Many believe it to be a prank. In other news, Facebook is launched. Originally devised to judge the looks of people (Facemash), it is now the social network, though with that comes concerns about their use of user data.
2004: Google launch Gmail on 1st April of this year. Many believe it to be a prank. In other news, Facebook is launched. Originally devised to judge the looks of people (Facemash), it is now the social network, though with that comes concerns about their use of user data.
2004: Google launch Gmail on 1st April of this year. Many believe it to be a prank. In other news, Facebook is launched. Originally devised to judge the looks of people (Facemash), it is now the social network, though with that comes concerns about their use of user data.
2005: The 7th generation of consoles began this year with the launch of the XBox 360. Its peers include the Playstation 3 and the Nintendo Wii, though the latter did not really compete in terms of processing power.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xbox_360 
2006: Quite a big year in consoles. Nintendo release the Wii, not the best hardware specs on paper but tremendous fun to play, esp. for non-gamers. They also release the DS Lite, my favourite version of their handheld. And Sony release the PS3....
2006: Quite a big year in consoles. Nintendo release the Wii, not the best hardware specs on paper but tremendous fun to play, esp. for non-gamers. They also release the DS Lite, my favourite version of their handheld. And Sony release the PS3....
2006: Quite a big year in consoles. Nintendo release the Wii, not the best hardware specs on paper but tremendous fun to play, esp. for non-gamers. They also release the DS Lite, my favourite version of their handheld. And Sony release the PS3....
2006: Quite a big year in consoles. Nintendo release the Wii, not the best hardware specs on paper but tremendous fun to play, esp. for non-gamers. They also release the DS Lite, my favourite version of their handheld. And Sony release the PS3....
...and in March of this year, a bookstore opened up their server room to the general public.
2007: The iPhone was launched. Initially launched with just EDGE/GPRS connectivity, it set the pattern for subsequent phones released by Apple and the many imitators that followed...
...and in other news, the block-based programming language Scratch was released. Initially running online using Adobe Flash, it is now HTML5. I use this tool a lot to teach primary school kids how to program at our local CoderDojo... https://scratch.mit.edu/ 
Scratch - Imagine, Program, Share

Scratch is a free programming language and online community where you can create your own interactive stories, games, and animations.

https://scratch.mit.edu/
...Despite its limitations, you can make Scratch jump through hoops if you try hard enough. Here's a 3D filled cube demo I wrote a while back. There are plenty of stunning examples of folk pushing Scratch on the website.
https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/317710652/
2008: The Computer History Museum has two events for this year that seem ironically related. The Pixar film WALL.E was released, along with the Macbook Air. One is a film about consumerism wrecking the planet, the other is a consumer device that is difficult to repair or upgrade.
2008: The Computer History Museum has two events for this year that seem ironically related. The Pixar film WALL.E was released, along with the Macbook Air. One is a film about consumerism wrecking the planet, the other is a consumer device that is difficult to repair or upgrade.
2008: The Computer History Museum has two events for this year that seem ironically related. The Pixar film WALL.E was released, along with the Macbook Air. One is a film about consumerism wrecking the planet, the other is a consumer device that is difficult to repair or upgrade.
2009: The public alpha of Minecraft is released. The open-ended gameplay captured the imagination of my kids, and it has spawned many interesting projects including implementations of CPU, recreations of landmarks and geographically accurate countries.
https://www.minecraft.net/en-us/ 
2009: The public alpha of Minecraft is released. The open-ended gameplay captured the imagination of my kids, and it has spawned many interesting projects including implementations of CPU, recreations of landmarks and geographically accurate countries. https://www.minecraft.net/en-us/ 
2009: The public alpha of Minecraft is released. The open-ended gameplay captured the imagination of my kids, and it has spawned many interesting projects including implementations of CPU, recreations of landmarks and geographically accurate countries. https://www.minecraft.net/en-us/ 
2009: The public alpha of Minecraft is released. The open-ended gameplay captured the imagination of my kids, and it has spawned many interesting projects including implementations of CPU, recreations of landmarks and geographically accurate countries. https://www.minecraft.net/en-us/ 
2009: The public alpha of Minecraft is released. The open-ended gameplay captured the imagination of my kids, and it has spawned many interesting projects including implementations of CPU, recreations of landmarks and geographically accurate countries. https://www.minecraft.net/en-us/ 
2010: Apple launch the iPad, a large-print version of the iPhone. Available with or without 3G, and running iOS, it didn't really offer much more in terms of functionality initially, though did evolve into something that could be used as a laptop replacement, at a price.
2011: Steve Jobs passed away this year. In addition to co-founding Apple with Steve Wozniak, he founded NeXT, and after rejoining the company, was in part responsible for reviving the Apple brand in the late 90s.
2012: The Raspberry Pi was launched. Developed by the Raspberry Pi foundation in association with Broadcomm, the intention was to designing a cheap & accessible board for promoting computer science. It has proved popular with companies and hobbyists alike.
https://www.raspberrypi.org/ 
2013: Sony and Microsoft launch their 8th generation of consoles with the PS4 and XBox One.
2013: Sony and Microsoft launch their 8th generation of consoles with the PS4 and XBox One.
2013: Sony and Microsoft launch their 8th generation of consoles with the PS4 and XBox One.
2014: The RC2014 homebrew computer project was born. One of a handful of 8-bit computers available today, this project, along with @6502nerd's BreadBoard Computer, inspired me to start my own Z80-based homebrew computer, the BSX.
https://rc2014.co.uk/ 
This project, along with many others, is very much in the spirit of computers built in computer clubs in the 70s and 80s, where folk would build or customise them as a hobby. I particularly like @6502nerd's Twitter bio - 'Be a little Woz!'.
Other examples of homebrew computers include the sterling work by @tynemouthsw recreating the ZX80, 81, Jupiter Ace and Commodore PET computers, and the Harlequin ZX Spectrum board, all available as kits.
Plus the many peripherals that are available for retro computers, most of them designed by homebrew hobbyists.
2015: Windows 10 was launched. It addressed many of the shortcomings of Windows 8, namely performance and the tiles interface; by gearing it for touchscreens, they made it unusable for mouse. Back came a flawed, but familiar Start menu...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_10 
...it was also the start of Microsoft selling products as a service; you could upgrade from earlier versions of Windows for free, and it would be continuously updated. Even today it is possible to install and use it, albeit with minor restrictions, without a license key.
You can follow @BreakIntoProg.
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