Past Events

Timeline of Past Events

1. 2026
   1. Sep
      1. 
         World of Retro Computing 2026 Expo

         We were happy to announce a partnership with the World of Retro Computing for the World of Retro Computing 2026 Expo that took place on the weekend of Saturday, September 12th and Sunday, September 13th, 10:00AM–6:00PM at the IDEAs Clinic in the Pearl Sullivan Engineering Building (PSE; formerly known as Engineering 7).

         There were hands-on vintage computers, gaming displays, special guest speakers, vendors, workshops, repair stations, a LAN party area, challenges, and more! No matter your age, there was something for you to experience here, whether you grew up on these machines or you've never seen one in your life.

         Check out the page for photos from the event!

   2. Aug
      1. 
         Summer Partnership: Iron Willed at the City of Waterloo Museum

         ​On Tuesday, August 11th, 12:00PM–4:00PM, we were happy to collaborate with the City of Waterloo Museum at Conestoga Mall. Alongside their 2026 exhibit Iron Willed: Women in STEM, we set up artifact tables outdoors. We brought original typewriters, computers, and video games for visitors to try, alongside activity sheets and colouring pages for all ages! Our museum staff was delighted to chat with visitors about their first computers, their favourite retro video game, or anything hardware!

   3. Jul
      1. 
         Computer Museum Open House - July 28

         On Tuesday, July 28th, 11:00AM–4:00PM, we held our Spring 2026 Computer Museum Open House in the Davis Centre Fishbowl (DC1301). The theme was Re-Creations: Clones and Copies. From sequels to remakes, there's much to be had about adaptations. We had opportunities to play with retro computers, encounter interactive exhibits, and discover all sorts of artifacts.

   4. Mar
      1. 
         Open House - March 24 & 28, 2026

         On Tuesday, March 24th and Saturday, March 28th, we held our Computer Museum Open House. The event ran from 10:00am to 4:00pm in DC 1316, and it was a chance for visitors to explore the Computer Museum’s collection of artifacts and try out some vintage systems! It featured items "Made in Waterloo", "Curators Favourites", "Recent Acquisitions" and special tables with items from the Tom Conrad donation.

2. 2025
   1. Oct
      1. 
         Open House - October 25, 2025

         On Saturday, October 25, we held our termly Computer Museum Open House, themed around APL. The event ran from 11:00am to 4:00pm in DC 1301 (the "Fishbowl") and featured interactive exhibits, recent acquisitions and Steve McDowell as a guest speaker.

   2. Jun
      1. 
         Alumni Day 2025 pop-up exhibit

         The Faculty of Mathematics Alumni Reunion was held June 7, 2025. It celebrated the graduating classes of 1975 and 2000, for their 50th and 25th anniversaries. In honour of those years, we selected artifacts and software from those eras.

   3. Mar
      1. 
         Open House: Computers At The Movies - March 18, 2025

         On Tuesday, March 18, we held a "Computers At The Movies" themed open house! The event ran from 11:00am to 4:00pm in the DC Fishbowl and featured computers from movies and TV shows--some well-known and some fairly obscure. We also ran a few of our older computers to try, including a few video games inspired by movies or TV.

3. 2024
   1. Oct
      1. 
         Open House - October 26, 2024

         On Saturday, October 26, we held our termly Computer Museum Open House! The event ran from 10:00am to 4:00pm in DC 1301 and featured many of our interactive artifacts, recent acquisitions, and a couple guest displays.

   2. Sep
      1. 
         Artificial Intelligence Exhibit - September 28, 2024

         On September 28, 2024, the Computer Museum attended the AI Encounters: Past, Present, and Future event at the Ken Seiling Waterloo Region Museum. 

         Our display showcased examples of AI from the late 20th century, running on retro computers that visitors could interact with. This included an early chatbot, speech synthesizer, neural network, and chess AI.

   3. Jun
      1. 
         Hardware Day - June 18, 2024

         On Tuesday June 18, 2024, the Computer Museum hosted our 2nd Hardware Day of the year. The event ran from 10am to 4pm in the David Centre "Fishbowl" (DC 1301).

         For this term's Hardware Day, we chose to explore the themes of Digital Equipment Corporation's (DEC) PDPs as well as advancements and design changes in portable computing technology. Our featured artifacts included the DEC PDP-11/04, and the Waterloo Computer On Wheels (aka the "WatCOW").

      2. 
         2024 Alumni Reunion Event - June 1, 2024

         On June 1, 2024, the University of Waterloo celebrated its annual Alumni Reunion event. The Computer Museum welcomed visitors to DC 1316 on the morning of June 1^st and presented an exhibit of artifacts in the M3 atrium in the afternoon.

   4. Mar
      1. 
         Computer Museum Hardware Day March 5, 2024

         The Computer Museum hosted a hands-on event with a variety of old computers and artifacts. 

         We had guest speaker, Devon Merner, who gave a talk entitled "The PowerMac used to develop the Xbox 360" which covers the Xenon Alpha Development Kit, it's brief history and how the online community was able to recreate it.

4. 2023
   1. Oct
      1. 
         Hardware Day - October 28, 2023

         On Saturday, October 28 from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. in DC 2585, the Waterloo Computer Museum is hosting an open-house event to display computer hardware, with the goal of having a number of older machines up and running that attendees can see and try out for themselves.

         The event also features presentations by Cheriton School of Computer Science Professor Gregor Richards and Steven A. Garan, a Waterloo alumnus and the Director of Bioinformatics at the Centre for Research & Education on Aging.

         At 11:00 a.m., Gregor Richards will give a talk titled “Unearthed or Exhumed? Obscure Computing and Gaming Trash and/or Treasure.”

         At 2:00 p.m., Steven Garan will give a talk titled “How Silicon Valley became Silicon Valley.”

   2. Aug
      1. 
         Hardware Day, Thursday August 10, 2023

         On Thursday August 10th, the UW Computer Museum will be hosting a "Hardware Day" in which we will bring out a number of older computers and see which, if any, we can get running. 

         We will be working in DC1316 (the Computer Museum office) and DC2314 which we have booked for the day.  You are welcome to join us to help or just see what's going on! 

5. 2017
   1. Sep
      1. 
         Math 50th Reunion September 30, 2017

         The Faculty of Mathematicsheld a pancake breakfast in Mathematics 3 on September 30, 2017 to celebrate 50 years of Mathematics, and we set up some small tables with recent acquisitions and old favourites.

   2. Jul
      1. 
         Hardware Day (July 2017)

         In July 2017, we're putting some of our treasures on display as part of a celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the Faculty of Mathematics.

         On July 4, Eric Manning, Scott Campbell and Trevor Grove will be talking as part of Hardware Day (videos will be added here). Immediately after the talks, we'll open the exhibit in the Math and Computer building, room 3011.

6. 2015
   1. May
      1. 
         Reading Artifacts Workshop

         Free to all UW grad students. Learn to "read" objects from UWaterloo's rich computer history and help design an exhibit! Enjoy a free, delicious lunch catered by the Grad House. Spaces are limited, so reserve your spot today or ask any questions by contacting computer.museum@uwaterloo.ca before May 20.