Article: Floppy disk timeline.

1971 _ IBM develops the first floppy disk, code-named `the Minnow," at its Cottle Road facilities in San Jose, Calif. The disk held 0.08 megabytes of information and was used to store start-up instructions for computer mainframes.

1976 _ Shugart Associates introduces the first 5.25-inch floppy disk. The smaller size was deemed a better fit for home-made hobbyist machines that were the ancestors of what we now call "personal computers." Each disk held 0.2 megabytes of information.

1981 _ Sony introduces the 3.5-inch floppy disk that was smaller than the industry standard, but held twice the data: 0.437 megabytes on a single disk. A standards war ensues ...

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