Things to Do at Computer History Museum

The Computer History Museum occupies a 120,000-square-foot space in Mountain View, transformed from a former Silicon Graphics building to house the world largest collection of computing artifacts since opening in 2002. General admission costs $19.50 (USD $19.50) for adults, with free parking available but consider visiting on weekday mornings when school groups have not yet filled the galleries. The museum centerpiece is the restored IBM 1401 mainframe from 1959, still operational and demonstrated daily at 2 PM. Air conditioning hums constantly to protect temperature-sensitive vintage equipment, while the lighting creates dramatic shadows around towering mainframes that once required entire rooms. You can hear the mechanical clicking and whirring of working historical computers, punctuated by the electronic beeps of interactive displays. The Revolution exhibit traces computing from the abacus to smartphones, with hands-on stations where the old-fashioned mechanical sounds of punch card machines contrast sharply with the silent touch screens around them.

The museum sits in Mountain View, 10 minutes south of Palo Alto. Free parking on site. That's rare around here. Take US-101 to the Shoreline Boulevard exit if you're driving-most visitors do. VTA Light Rail stops at Middlefield station. You'll walk 15 minutes from there. From San Francisco, take Caltrain to Mountain View station, then grab a ride-share or bus to finish the trip. Don't expect walkable charm. The area is typical Silicon Valley office park territory-bland but functional.