Students in HIST 399: “How the Computer Became Universal” are not just learning about the history of computing; they are experiencing it.
During a recent class session, students visited the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee’s Retrocomputing Lab, located in Holton Hall 402. The lab, created and maintained by technology historian and professor Thomas Haigh, offers a special hands-on opportunity to explore the machines, software and materials that shape the digital world.
The Retrocomputing Lab is one of only four of its kind in the United States, and the only one operated within a history department, making it a unique resource for both teaching and research. 
A Lab Built for Experience, Not Just Observation
Unlike a traditional museum, the Retrocomputing Lab is designed as a working collection of everyday machines. Students don’t just look at the past, they interact with it. The lab includes around 20 fully functional computer systems, along with printers, storage devices, manuals and software spanning from the late 1970s through the early 2000s. 
Much of the collection comes from Haigh’s personal archive, combined with donations, university surplus, and carefully selected additions. This approach reflects the lab’s central goal: not to collect rare or exotic artifacts, but to recreate what it actually felt like to use computers in different eras.
Why Hands-On History Matters
As highlighted in a recent feature by Fast Company, one of the biggest challenges in teaching the history of computing is that today’s students have no lived experience with older technologies.
For many undergraduates, devices like the Apple II, early IBM PCs, or even floppy disks were already obsolete before they were born. 
Haigh created the Retrocomputing Lab in part to bridge that gap. By giving students the chance to load programs from disks, navigate early operating systems, or play vintage games, the lab makes abstract history tangible.
As the article explains, this kind of experience cannot be fully replicated through emulators or modern devices. The physical interaction, the keyboards, the delays, and the trial-and-error process are essential to understanding how computing actually worked. 
Inside the Classroom: HIST 399
In HIST 399, students examine how computers evolved from niche tools into universal technologies. The Retrocomputing Lab plays a central role in that process.
During the recent class visit, students explored early personal computing systems such as the Altair 8800, TRS-80 Model I and Apple II, machines that introduced programming, gaming and personal productivity into everyday life.
They also examined a mechanical teletype terminal, which printed computer responses onto paper, offering insight into how people interacted with computers before modern screens and interfaces.
Through these experiences, students gain a clearer understanding of both the technical limitations and the cultural expectations surrounding early computing.
Looking Back to Understand the Future
The Retrocomputing Lab is not only about preserving the past, but also about helping students think critically about the future of technology.
As the Fast Company article notes, modern computing increasingly relies on cloud services, online infrastructure, and constantly updated software. This raises important questions about what aspects of today’s technology will be preserved, and what may be lost. 
By contrast, many of the systems in the Retrocomputing Lab are fully self-contained, allowing them to be restored, studied and experienced decades later.
The lab also reflects a growing interest among students in tangible, understandable, and not constantly connected technology, a contrast to today’s always-online digital environment. 
A Resource for the 51ÁÔĆć Community
The Retrocomputing Lab is open to members of the 51ÁÔĆć community by appointment or during scheduled open house sessions. Students interested in technology history, restoration work, or hands-on experimentation are encouraged to get involved.
As the lab continues to grow, it remains a unique space where past and present intersect, allowing students to understand not just how computers work but how they became essential to everyday life.