The first steps of the "Computers" supplement: A look at the computer community in Peru (1980-1990)

Abstract

Developments in computing have produced profound global changes in the second half of twentieth century. Advances in computing, digitization, the appearance of personal computers or the growth of the internet are already considered objects of historical-social inquiry (Bianculli and Vercelli: 2023). Under this premise, the magazine “Computadoras” (supplement to Caretas magazine) transfers to the Peruvian users a circulation of knowledge from this technological exchange. In this paper, an exploratory analysis is made of this computer science magazine that provides little in depth knowledge of Peruvian historiography. This is Computadoras, a magazine about the development of computing in Peru, the computerization of the country’s strategic sectors and the expansion of microcomputers in the Peruvian market. Its publication began in the 1980s and continued until the 1990s. Its importance lies in the discussions of one of the first computer communities in the country. During the second government of the architect Fernando Belaunde Terry (1980- 1985) and the democratic return, it meant the reestablishment of the economic order and the strengthening of private sector, through credits and the promotion invest (Contreras and Cueto: 2013). In this way, the entry of technology companies was opened in Peruvian territory. For this research, three thematic discussions of the magazine will be taken into consideration: (a) the development of the Peruvian computing community, (b) institutional computerization, and (c) the design f a technological policy. In this presentation, we will deepen the first two aspects in the context of democratic transition in the second Belaundism.