A Slice of History: BYTE Magazine, the Small Systems Journal, Turns 50

This month marks the 50th anniversary of one of the giants of the technology magazine world: BYTE, The Small Systems Journal, which hit shelves in September 1975 promising a look at “computers — the world’s greatest toy.”

BYTE’s origins can be traced to Wayne Green’s 73 Magazine, a publication he launched in October 1960 for the amateur radio community. Warm reader reception to articles about the nascent field of personal computing in 1974 and 1975 had Green thinking about a magazine dedicated to microcomputing, and a deal with Carl Helmers — author of a series of articles detailing an Intel 8008-based homebrew computer called the Experimenter’s Computer System — would give birth to BYTE.

“This is the first issue of a new publication — BYTE,” Helmers wrote in the launch issue. “A monthly compendium of information for the owners and users of the new microcomputer systems becoming widely available at moderate cost. BYTE is your unit of information on the state of the art of small computer systems for individual persons, clubs and classroom groups. Each month you will find information ranging from computer club announcements to manufacturers’ advertisements, from technical details of hardware and software to humorous articles and editorial opinions.”

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