BusinessWeek Logo
The Computer History Museum

Mark Richards

The Computer History Museum

By Aaron Ricadela

The Computer History Museum in Mountain View, Calif., has long been an engineering geek's wonderland, boasting a collection of machines that include the first Apple (AAPL) prototype (signed by Steve Wozniak), an original IBM (IBM) PC, and an early Google (GOOG) server.

The museum is undergoing a major refurbishment to broaden its appeal. The museum's newest exhibit, "The Silicon Engine," charts the history of computer chips and offers a preview of video and display techniques that curators will unveil on a larger scale when the museum revamps its main collection in October 2010. Here's a look at some of the artifacts on display in The Silicon Engine exhibit and a sampling of some famous computers housed in the museum's collection.