This paper traces the major factors in the development of industrial computer control systems to the present time. It then extrapolates this history, as modified by current developments in related fields (particularly large scale integrated electronic circuits), to predict how this development will continue in the near future.The difficulties which developed in early systems due to inadequacies of computer equipment and computer programs combined with overselling by computer control proponents is discussed along with project cautions and operational changes needed to prevent such occurrences in the future.The present status of standardization efforts in both the hardware (computer and related equipment) and in software (computer programming) is outlined. Finally the requirements for the process to computer system, computer to computer, and man to computer interfaces needed to develop the foreseen hierarchical computer systems of the future are detailed for the reader.