Computer monitors are a crucial component of the modern world. For many people, a solid computermonitor is their connection to much of their work and social life. But what a lot of people never stop toconsider is that the computer monitor is an invention that has evolved considerably since its inception.
Monitors have come a long way from their earliest incarnations. This has contributed to a much lowerrequired level of user sophistication versus the early days.
The Earliest Monitors and Interfaces
Early in the development of computers, a display consisted of nothing more than flashing lightsthat indicated different functions. For people who thoroughly understand computer systems, thiscan be crucial information about what part of the computer’s memory the user is accessing or whatfunctions the computer is performing. Unfortunately, for most people such a display is simply a row ofsmall light bulbs that appear to flash at random.
Whether this type of display fits the modern definition of what a monitor is could be debated. However,if monitors are defined as the dynamic indicators of a
computer’s status, such interfaces do qualify. Monitors have come a long way in complexity since theearly days, but they are still essentially a series of lights.
Paper Monitors?
Monitors have never been constructed out of paper, but early printouts that approximate the functionsof the modern-day monitor used the material. During the earliest days of office computer usage, punchcards and paper tape were the standard issue for reading and writing information. At that point, thesereadouts were the only methods for one computer to transfer data to another computer.
Punch cards were simply a stack of index cards that a punch card writer put small holes into. From there,a punch card reader would interpret information presented based on the location of these holes. Bycontrast, a paper tape writer and reader used a long roll of paper that could be perforated in a similarfashion and read the same way, rather like a simplified version of the magnetic tape in a cassette.
Once the information was interpreted, the computer would print out letters and numbers based on theinformation. While this was not a monitor in the modern sense, it was the precursor to the monitorspeople use today.
Monitors That Show Characters
The CRT or cathode ray tube monitors that made television a reality also made the earliestmodern style computer monitors possible. Generally, these monitors made use of vector graphics whichplotted points on the screen. The military put this to work in radar and sonar applications, and scientistsused these early monitors in oscilloscopes. At this point, monitors could have been used to display text
or other characters, but this was a rare occurrence. Color was not an option at this stage.
Teletype
People have been texting one another since 1902, if one considers the teletype. However, the teletypewas originally used to communicate over wires or through radio signals. This interface, which resemblesa typewriter, was connected directly to computers in the 1950s. The teletype remained the most costeffective way of interfacing with a computer until the 1970s.
In the early 1960s, engineers realized they could attach a CRT monitor to a teletype machine andproduce a more efficient means of communication. While initially called “glass teletypes,” this was thefirst incarnation of what most people would consider the modern monitor. During the 1970s, the glassteletype exploded in its popularity for office use.
A curious fact about these monitors is that they were only able to display characters. At that point, therewas no ability to display graphics.
Plasma: Older Than Most People Think
Plasma monitors were also developed in the 1960s. Using a gas trapped between two sheets of glass,such a monitor could apply a charge to the gas and create an image. This is the same technology used intoday’s plasma TV displays, but it was originally applied to a small number of computer monitors in the1970s and 80s.
LCD
Another display technology developed during the 1960s was the liquid crystal display or LCD. Thesedisplays were energy efficient, thin and inexpensive, but they were hard to read without either backlighting or direct illumination.
CCTV
In the early 1970s, computers were insanely expensive. However, some very bright individuals suchas Steve Wozniak and Lee Felsenstein determined that one could simply hook CCTV monitors toa computer and display almost anything. Composite monitors became the industry standard onthe personal computer market by the early 1980s, and many of these monitors were completelyinterchangeable with one another. The image quality afforded by these types of monitors was drasticallysuperior to that of earlier models.
Using an RF converter, some of the first home computers and video game consoles allowed users to access them on theirexisting TV screens. While there were resolution restraints, this allowed widespread color video outputinto the average home. Nowadays the gaming monitor is a much more high tech beast then ever, the demand is sky high too.
Increasingly Sharp Color Monitors
The 1980s saw IBM, Amiga and Commodore standing atop a large number of companies that developedcolor monitors for the home PC market. As time progressed, so did the number of colors and thesharpness of the displays. Until 1987, there were a variety of different monitor schemes, including CGA,EGA and VGA. In 1987, the VGA monitor scheme won out, and since then nearly every monitor has beenbuilt according to its standard.
Today’s Monitors
The monitors of today are primarily LCD based. In the 1990s, LCD screens became more easily colored,cheaper and faster to refresh. These features made LCDs a favorite in laptop computer displays, andeventually LCD made the leap to TV and desktop applications. Since 2007, LCD screens have outsold CRTdisplays, and the numbers have gone up dramatically every year since.
Current work on monitors involves 3D support. While 3D screens still require the use of specializedglasses, work is being done on stereoscopic and glasses-free alternatives. While the basic premise ofusing dots to convey information is still in effect, monitors have come an incredibly long way from theblinking lights of the earliest computers.
About Author: Emily Green is a very competent writer with more than 6 years professional experience in blogging, copywriting, content, SEO, dissertation, technical, and theses writing. She has written more than a thousand webpage content articles in past projects. When she’s not writing forCopy for Bylines, she likes to read, bike and take her dog to the park.