iron
= I =
iron box
Iron Age n.
In the history of computing, 1961-1971 -- the
formative era of commercial mainframe technology, when
ferrite-core dinosaurs ruled the earth. The Iron Age began,
ironically enough, with the delivery of the first minicomputer (the
PDP-1) and ended with the introduction of the first commercial
microprocessor (the Intel 4004) in 1971. See also Stone Age;
compare elder days.
--The Jargon File version 4.3.1, ed. ESR, autonoded by rescdsk.