Words at Play : 10 Words That Are Older Than You Might Think
Earliest Known Usage:
1950
Example:
"The question of whether on-line or off-line operation is more suitable can be determined only by applying the speed requirements to those physical components which are available." – W. W. Stifler, Jr. (ed.), High-Speed Computing Devices, 1950
About the Word:
Many of us assume that the state of information technology in the early 1950s was essentially nonexistent. But the seeds of the modern Internet Age were already sown, as evidenced by the fact that the first recorded use of the word online ("connected to, served by, or available through a system and especially a computer or telecommunications system") dates to 1950.
More Words at Play
