What you learned in school
Computer science and technology classes taught that computers required entire rooms to house the massive vacuum tubes, wiring, and cooling systems needed for operation. Students learned that computers were inherently large machines that only major institutions and corporations could afford or accommodate. Textbooks showed room-sized computers as the permanent reality of computing technology. The idea that computers could become smaller was not discussed, as the vacuum tube technology seemed to set physical limits on miniaturization.
What we know now
Computer science and technology classes taught that computers required entire rooms to house the massive vacuum tubes, wiring, and cooling systems. Students learned that computers were inherently large machines for institutions and corporations only. The development of transistors, integrated circuits, and microprocessors enabled dramatic miniaturization. Personal computers emerged in the 1970s, laptops in the 1980s, and now smartphones contain more computing power than room-sized computers of the 1950s. The prediction failed to anticipate revolutionary advances in semiconductor technology and component miniaturization.