I want to know the answer to the following question:
When did surface-mount become a commonly used manufacturing process?
All the background I'm provided with is that "Surface mount components can be about one-quarter to one-tenth of the size and weight of through-hole components, and passive components much cheaper; prices of semiconductor surface mount devices (SMDs) are determined more by the chip itself than the package, with little price advantage over larger packages.". Is that enough to answer the question?
Answer: no