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On This Day - 14th February

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1946

ENIAC is unveiled

The Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer (ENIAC) is unveiled to the public at the University of Pennsylvania.

Designed by John Mauchly and J. Presper Eckert at the University’s Moore School of Electrical Engineering, ENIAC was one of the first large-scale electronic, programmable, general-purpose computers. Built for the US Army to calculate artillery firing tables, it used around 18,000 vacuum tubes and could perform thousands of calculations per second — vastly faster than the electromechanical machines that preceded it.

ENIAC occupied more than 1,000 square feet and weighed around 30 tons. Its public unveiling helped mark the beginning of the post-war era of electronic computing.
Source: Computer History Museum; University of Pennsylvania.
14 February 1946 is the date of ENIAC's public unveiling. Its formal dedication ceremony followed on 16 February 1946.
ENIAC Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer John Mauchly J. Presper Eckert University of Pennsylvania Moore School Vacuum Tubes Early Computers Electronic Computers Computer History Computer Pioneers
1983

Durell Software begins

Durell Software began life in Taunton in February 1983 when Robert White started developing home computer software. A later account of the company gives the precise date as 14 February 1983, with White initially working alone with a 48K Oric computer and an Epson printer.

Durell went on to become one of Britain's best-known home computer software houses, producing a number of successful games for the ZX Spectrum, including Harrier Attack, Scuba Dive, Combat Lynx, Critical Mass, Saboteur, Thanatos and Turbo Esprit.

The company has an unusual place in British computing history because Durell Software still exists today. The present Durell Software Limited is the same Companies House company, number 01771383, incorporated on 21 November 1983. It has since evolved into a specialist provider of insurance software, with more than 40 years of history.
Source: CRASH magazine, Issue 25, Durell Software feature; Companies House, Durell Software Limited, company no. 01771383.
The 14 February date comes from the later history of the company; contemporary evidence confirms that Durell began in February 1983, while the legal company was incorporated on 21 November 1983.
Durell Software Robert White ZX Spectrum ZX81 Oric Harrier Attack Scuba Dive Combat Lynx Critical Mass Saboteur Thanatos Turbo Esprit Spectrum software British software houses British computing computer games home computers Taunton Somerset

Also in this month

Other historical information recorded for February.

Sinclair Research computer division moves to Willis Road
1983

Sinclair Research computer division moves to Willis Road

Sinclair Research's computer division moved into newly refurbished premises at 25 Willis Road, Cambridge. The former factory had been bought by Sinclair in the autumn of 1981 and had been undergoing improvement work since then. The move brought the division's research and development and marketing sections together on the same site for the first time.
Source: Sinclair User, February 1983
Sinclair User, February 1983, reported that Sinclair Research's computer division had moved into newly refurbished premises at Willis Road, Cambridge. The site had been bought in the autumn of 1981, with improvement work continuing before the move. The article notes that research and development and marketing were now together on one site.
Sinclair Research ZX Spectrum Sinclair Computer Division Willis Road Cambridge Sinclair Hardware UK Home Computers
Sinclair User Issue 11
Page Revised: 07/09/2026

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