Plus ca change...but what changes and what stays the same

Since 1949 there have been some dramatic changes in the fabrication technology of computing devices but in the design of computing devices and in software technology the changes have been more limited. This short note examines these differences and attempts to see what the implications are for software development and the future of computing. The main conclusion is that, in relative terms, the changes in software technology have been insignificant and, currently, show no signs of major improvement .