Ljubljana, June 16th 2022, For immediate release

On Saturday June 18th Summer Museum Night, the Compueter History Museum in Ljubljana. At this occasion Arnes will hand over to the museum’s collection one of the most famous servers, Stenar. 

The Stenar computer was bought int he independance year 1991 for connecting Slovenia with the world and enabling a free flow of information.  At the Computer History Museum, Stenar will become part of the permanent collection on display for the public and any retrievable content will be made available for future researchers of the past.

“We are humbled to be entrusted with such an important piece of digital heritage,” the head of Computer History Museum Gaja Zornada, said, “Stenar is one of the most visible pieces of computer history in our collection, it will join other groundbreaking computers, which controlled our particle accelerator, measured the nuclear reactor core reactivity or were used to engineer the Karavanke tunnel between Slovenia and Austria.” 

The head of Arnes Marko Bonač stated: “We are extremely glad we found a new home for Stenar at the 30ieth anniversary of Arnes.  Our Stenar was a symbol of internet and information access during the fight for independence and in the 90s for practically each and every one of us. In this new home it will remind people of these pioneering times.  We believe the Computer History Museum will continue to inspire new generations just as those first, for computing and technology.”

The Computer History Museum has been working in Ljubljana for 18 years, this year however it is opening its doors at a new location in the cultural quarter Šiška. The official opening ceremony will take place on Saturday June 18th at 6pm at Celovška cesta 111. The event is open for the public and museum entrance will be free of charge all night as part of the Summer Museum Night 2022. 

The opening exhibition “What about the software?” holistically presents interesting aspects of software from technical to social impact.  It is conceptualized in a thematic and interactive way and will enable the public to try out many Slovene computer programs after a long time. the oldest exhibited interactive software piece dates back to na 1986. 

“Without software the computer is only a heap of iron and plastic. That’s why we at the museum collect not only hardware but also  software, source code and even websites of special relevance,” the head of museum collections and UNESCO Software Heritage Ambassador Boštjan Špetič said.

About the Computer History Museum

The Computer History Museum is an NGO in the public interest in the field of developing information society. Since 2004 it has been working uninterruptedly in Ljubljana, Slovenia. It is dedicated to enabling and understanding of the high informatization of  the society  we live in to the broader public though its collection, which today counts more than 6500 items of hardware, software, publications, periodicals and related items from the history of computing  in Slovenia and abroad, and through related programs.  At the same time it encourages individuals to become engaged active participants of this society. 

About Arnes

Arnes, Academic Research Network of Slovenia, is a public institution connecting knowledge for 30 years. It provides network services to 300.000 users in education, research and culture and manages national e-infrastructure, responsible for Slovenia’s internet.  Decades ago the fast penetration of internet connectivity in Slovenia was reliant on Stenar and the fast spread of ARNES network through universities, libraries, schools, among students, professors, teachers and researchers.