From the Editor's Desk

Before the end of its second volume, the Annals had published accounts of early work on computers at Bletchley (I.J. Good), Polish digital computers (R.W. Marczynski), the German computer Z4 (Konrad Zuse), the Czechoslovak automatic digital computer SAPO (N.M. Blachman), the development of the Research Institute of Mathematical Machines in Prague (J.G. Oblonsky), and a survey of important Japanese-designed computers (H. Takahasi and R.I. Tanaka). It had also published influential scholarly analyses of programming the EDSAC (at Cambridge University) and the Mark I (at Manchester University) by historian Martin Campbell Kelly—his trilogy on the history of programming at British centers was rounded out in the third volume with an article on the Pilot ACE (National Physical Laboratory).

These international pieces, which complemented the numerous ones on developments in computing in the US in Annals' first volumes, were no accident. As founding editor in chief, Bernie Galler established not only openness to international content, but also a commitment to recruit international pieces and define the Annals as an international publication. Each of his successors followed and built upon this important tradition.

The vast majority of international articles in Annals to date have been pioneer accounts. In addition to these important pieces, there have been a modest number of scholarly analyses, such as those by historians Martin Campbell-Kelly (on computing in Great Britain) and Pierre Mournier-Kuhn (on computing in France).

In the past half decade, an increasing number of scholars have focused their research on the international history of computing. While many factors are likely at play in this phenomenon, including the role of computers in globalization and the growth of history of science and technology programs worldwide, clearly pioneer accounts published in Annals, and newly available archival materials, have helped make this possible. For this thematic issue, "A World of Computers," I took advantage of this opportunity and recruited five talented historians who I knew were engaged in cutting-edge research on topics in international computing. I was pleased that all five scholars signed on and submitted manuscripts for consideration. The revised versions of these articles are on the pages that follow.

The issue begins with a wide-ranging survey by James W. Cortada on how computers diffused throughout the world, followed by studies that examine developments in individual countries or the transfer of computing technology from one country to others. All five articles are major contributions not only to the international history of computing, but also to the business and industrial history of computing.

Cortada's ambitious and insightful article examines the relatively rapid diffusion of computing around the world (compared to other technologies) and the nature of national similarities and differences in these developments. He provides a compelling framework of eight fundamental models explaining how the diffusion of computing technology occurred. He argues the link between economic globalization and the diffusion of digital technologies and explores how this has facilitated an increasingly homogeneous global mode of deployment of computing technology. He stresses that the degree of success, and speed and effectiveness of diffusion, are critically tied to broader economic performance and do not merely rest with the merits of a particular technology.

Eden Medina offers a fascinating case study of the early history of IBM Chile. She analyzes how IBM's corporate strategy evolved and how the firm used its corporate culture to adapt to changing political and economic circumstances in this South American country. In doing so, she provides a rich model for future studies exploring how individuals, governments, and corporations acquired computers, and used computing technology within different contexts and cultures.

While much has been written about the early history of IBM and Remington Rand, few scholars have addressed the international strategies and operations of these firms. Corinna Schlombs skillfully navigates this terrain, examining how both companies encountered and responded to European markets. She details how IBM successfully set up European operations in ways that forged partnerships with host countries and employees, while Remington Rand misread European needs, underwent a lengthy learning process, and only belatedly adapted to the European Common Market. Her rich study is...