If you take a look back at the last 15 years, the advances in technology have been extreme, with technology practically doubling every few years.    I think as we grow, adapt, and get more used to how things are now, we often forget to look back where we came from and how we got to where we are today.  

I’m 29 years old, and I still remember finally getting a CD player and getting rid of all those tapes I had collected growing up.   Not long after, I had visions of a limitless CD so I could keep all of my favorite Tupac songs in one spot without having to switch discs.  Now we have iPods for music, DVD players for movies, Tivo, digital cameras, and computers that are twice as powerful as the year before for the same price.   Looking back at 20 years ago, it almost isn’t real.  How did we survive?

It looks like I’m not the only one that looks to take a stroll down memory lane, as Maximum PC compiled their list of what they feel are the Top 100 PC Tech Innovations of All Time.   Here is what they had to say about the list:

While myriad best-of lists have ranked the greatest gadgets, software products, and videogames ever made, here we turn our attention to advances that have impacted the development, enjoyment, and raw power of the personal computer. Our staff-generated list looks at not just critical machines to come down the pike (#55), but also essential CPUs (#51), operating systems (#15), components (#18), and peripherals (#94), as well as the occasional piece of software (#74) and videogame (#9) that pushed PCs into new territory.

The result is an exhaustive look at the PC from its birth (#7)—and even its conception (#73)—to today (#71), piece by piece. Naturally, the list is skewed toward performance and gaming-oriented technologies. We respect WordStar as much as any high-tech historian, but you try typing a corporate memo when you’ve got a freakin’ Shub-Niggurath (#6) bearing down on your ass.

I really enjoyed looking for the list, so I decided to share it with everyone.  Here are a few that either had a major impact on my life and/or brought back fond memories for me:

  • 97. Control-Alt-Delete (1981)
  • 86. America Online (1985)
  • 55. Apple Macintosh (1984)
  • 45. 3.5-inch Floppy (1983)
  • 9. Doom (1993)
  • 6. Quake (1996)

Click over to check out the rest of the list and see what was #1!