Information Technology History Exhibition

The operation of the Informatics History Exhibition (ITK) founded by the John Neumann Computer Science Society (NJSZT) in the Albert Agora of Szent-Györgyi in connection with the following NJSZT motto:

"Preserve the values of the past, adapt to the present, influence the future."

No other museum has anything like the world-class collection on display, including the "relics" of the heroic age of computers.

In 1992, the Informatics History Museum Foundation (see Informatics History Museum Foundation website) was established, which provided an institutional framework for the collection of contemporary computing equipment. The founders were the National Technical Museum, the John von Neumann Computer Science Society and the State Computer Service, institutions that had previously supported the work of the collectors.

The exhibition will feature instruments from the Foundation's collection.

In the mid-1970s, Győző Kovács, the newly elected Secretary General of the John Neumann Computer Science Society, had the idea to continuously collect and store the tangible relics of Hungarian applications of computer technology, domestic developments, and production.

Part of the Collection's material was first publicly presented in Nyíregyháza in 1989, under the title "30 years of the Hungarian computer". In 1990, the exhibited material moved to Budapest – in the form of a permanent exhibition – to the corridors of the ÁSZSZ headquarters; then in 1997 it was moved to Szeged, where it was exhibited as part of the Szeged International Fair.

In 2006 – in addition to the decisive role of the National Institute of Social Sciences – the University of Szeged and the Municipality of the City of Szeged with County Rights also joined the foundation.

Finally, the interactive computer history exhibition was realized in the four-story, 6,700 square meter building of the Szent-Györgyi Albert Agora in Szeged, built with a contribution of 1.7 billion HUF from the European Union. The John von Neumann Computer Science Society not only provided outstanding financial and intellectual support for the creation of the exhibition, but also took on the lion's share of its operation.

Beyond the pace of technical development of the heroic age, which featured more than 20 countries, the different standards of Eastern and Western technical solutions, the huge differences in weight, operating energy requirements, or the complexity of programming and handling are clearly noticeable.

In addition to the demonstration of functional devices, the most modern interactive visual elements and exhibition content make viewing the Exhibition an unforgettable experience.

The exhibition material is described in detail in the book titled Géza Álló – Gábor Képes: The Past of the Future ( NJSZT edition, 2013.)