Keeping this in mind, it is easy to see that the true genealogical history of computing can be traced back to the formation of math as a tool in humankind's daily life. The first milestone of computing history might be regarded as the invention of the Abacus. Having emerged about 5,000 years ago in China, the abacus is still in use today.

Having a simple but reliable system of performing basic mathematical operations, this device was used for daily commerce by thousands of people throughout the Far East and, eventually, Asia Minor as well. Users were able to make computations utilizing a system of sliding beads arranged on a wooden rack, allowing early merchants to keep a track of trading transactions, in ways they had never been able to before. From those early roots, humankind was eventually able to manifest greater power in the computers of today.

This new age of computing began in the 1950s when John Backus and IBM developed the FORTRAN computer programming language. This first modern programming software provided mechanisms and tools to develop business applications. The next step came with the development of the ARPANET.

ARPANET, essentially an early and simpler version of the modern Internet, provided a mechanism for computers to communicate with each other through a set of interconnecting networks.