The year 1968 has been recognised, like 1917, as one of those particularly significant years; the events of which changed the way we live and think and work. 1968 witnessed the assassinations of Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy and changed a generation. It was the year Pierre Trudeau became prime minister and Richard Nixon became president. It was the year of student riots in Paris and anti-war riots at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Czech Spring arrived early in the year and was crushed by the Soviet invasion in August. Less importantly, it was the year I left the farm and commenced university in the big city.
Yesterday I learned it was also a significant year in technology. The computer mouse was unveiled, Dec 9, 1968. A crude wooden box with two wheels and a trailing wire changed the way humans interface with computers and was a critical step in the evolution of personal computing.
Happy birthday to the mouse.
