The last hundred years or so have seen major inventions that have triggered paradigm shifts. Konrad Zuse (1910–1995) is said to have invented the first programmable computer, and Tim Berners-Lee (1955–) earned highest accolades for his invention of the World Wide Web, the HTML markup language, the URL system, and HTTP in 1989. Technology has the power, indeed, to transform the entire world. But before all this, for centuries the major communication invention had remained the printing press, developed and manufactured around 1450 by the Mainz printer Johannes Gutenberg. As is commonly the case, it took several decades for the printing press to mature enough to make this technology truly profitable, but in the long run it transformed the entire book market in the western world, and then…

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Citation: Classen, Albrecht. "Johannes Gutenberg". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 28 May 2024 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=1920, accessed 12 October 2024.]

1920 Johannes Gutenberg 1 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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