The 8th IT STAR international conference on 19 September 2014 was held in the most appropriate venue, the Agora of Szeged that houses the large-scale Exhibition of Computer History created and maintained by the John von Neumann Computer Society (NJSZT). The event was opened by Albert Bíró, Chairman of the Advisory Board of the National Council for Telecommunication and Informatics (NHIT).

Blagovest Sendov, member of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, was the keynote speaker of the conference, who talked about cooperation in the field of computing in Eastern Europe in the 1960s and ’70s. He was followed by presenters who are prominent personalities in their profession and their geographical region. Contributions included IT history in the one-time Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia, which is truly captivating to hear about today. The impact of historical interconnections on IT history described in the presentations was also an interesting aspect. Ana Pont Sanju?n gave a fascinating presentation on the methods used in museum education. István Alföldi, NJSZT’s managing director, delivered a presentation about the initiation and establishment of the Exhibition of Computer History, which was viewed by the participants with the knowledgeable guidance of Dániel Muszka and Mihály Bohus. Bálint Dömölki, NJSZT’s honorary president, overviewed the milestones in Hungarian computing.

The conference was organised and hosted by the John von Neumann Computer Society in collaboration with the National Council for Telecommunication and Informatics as professional partner.

Programme of the conference (the presentations can be viewed by clicking on the name):

• Welcome on behalf of John v. Neumann Computer Society, István Alföldi, Managing Director
• Welcome on behalf of the National Council for Telecommunication and Informatics, Albert Bíró, Chairman of the Advisory Board
• Opening and Setting the Scene – Plamen Nedkov, Conference Moderator