HP, Hewlett-Packard, Palo Alto, CA was founded by Stanford University classmates Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard. HP's first product, was the 200A audio oscillator. One of HP's first customers was Walt Disney Studios, which purchased eight oscillators to develop and test an innovative sound system for the movie Fantasia.

Hp serial numbers (pre. mergewith Compaq) were like this; digits 1 and 2 the year starting with 1960, so in the case of 2936J03986 you add 29 to 1960 to make it 1989, digits 3 and 4 is the week, digit 5 is the country (few examples here) A is USA, G Germany, F France, J Japan, the remaining digits are the actual number manufactured, so the example above is unit 3986.
This is believed valid for all product groups, computers, instruments, medical, analytical and so on. 

In 1959 the company establishes a European marketing organization in Geneva, Switzerland, and a manufacturing plant in Böblingen, Germany. From this base, HP steadily expands its European operations. 1960 HP establishes its first U.S. manufacturing plant outside of Palo Alto in Loveland, Colorado. Now HP is one of the "global players" in measurement equipment. For more details see hp.com/hpinfo/abouthp/histnfacts/index.html. See also this catalog No. 18A with its links.

HP's board of directors announces its decision to spin off a new company from the existing HP organization. Agilent Technologies consists of HP's former measurement, components, chemical analysis and medical businesses. HP retains its computing, printing and imaging businesses. Agilent has its initial public offering of common stock on November 18, 1999. HP retains 84.1 percent of common stock. It is Silicon Valley's largest-ever IPO. For more details see here: http://www.agilent.com/about/newsroom/facts/history.html?cmpid=4491

HP-Museum in Australia