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This paper discusses both the history and future of programming languages (= higher level languages). Some of the difficulties in writing such a history are indicated. A key part of the paper is a tree showing the chronological development of languages and their interrelationships, Reasons for the proliferation of languages are given. The major languages are listed with the reasons for their importance. A section on chronology indicates the happenings of the significant previous time periods and the major topics of 1972. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many U.S. histories of the digital computer field have tended to be impersonal, with heavy emphasis on eastern universities and commercial developments. This article records the events of the early years in a personal sway. The people, organizations, technologies, and computers of the 1945-55 period in the western part of the United States are described as they happened. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In spite of impressive gains by PL/I, Fortran and Cobol remain the languages in which most of the world's production programs are written and will remain so into the foreseeable future. There is a great deal of theoretical interest in Algol 68 and in extensible languages, but so far at least they have had little practical impact. Problem-oriented languages may very well become the most important language development area in the next five to ten years. En the operating system area all major computer manufacturers set out to produce very ambitious multiprogramming systems, and they all ran into similar problems. A number of university projects, though not directly comparable to those of the manufacturers, have contributed greatly to a better understanding of operating system principles. Important trends include the increased interest in the development of system measurement and evaluation techniques, and increased use of microprogramming for some programming system functions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discusses the computer history project at the Smithsonian Museum of History and Technology in Washington D.C. which is designed to collect, house and publish comprehensive source material surrounding the birth and development of computer technology. Emergence of analog and digital electronic computers in 1930 to 1950; Collection of bibliographic materials in various forms during the early years of the project in 1967.