Introduction To Computer System

Contents

1.Introduction

2.Generation Of Computer

3.Conclusion

Introduction

The history of computer development is often in reference to the different generations of computing devices. Each of generations of computers is characterized by a major technological development that fundamentally changed the way computers operate. Most developments resulted in increasingly smaller, cheaper and more powerful and efficient computing devices . The computer was born not for entertainment or email but out of a need to solve a serious number-crunching crisis.

The original definition of Computer was any person who performed computations or was required to compute data as a regular part of their job function.  Throughout history several man-made devices, such as the Abacus and Slide Rule, have been built to aid people in calculating data.  This historical timeline covers the origins of the first mechanical and electronic computers to the beginnings of commercially available computers sold to the public.

Meaning Of Computer

A computer is a general-purpose electronic device that can be programmed to carry out a set of arithmetic or logical operations automatically. Since a sequence of operations can be readily changed, the computer can solve more than one kind of problem.

History Of Computer Was Divide into 2 Era

1. Mechanical

2. Electronic

Generation Of Computer

History Of Mechanical Computer

500 B.C. The abacus was first used by the Babylonians as an aid to simple arithmetic at sometime around this date. The abacus in the form we are most familiar with was first used in China in around 1300 A.D.

1623 Wilhelm Schickard (1592-1635), of Tuebingen, Wuerttemberg (now in Germany), made a "Calculating Clock". This mechanical machine was capable of adding and subtracting up to 6 digit numbers, and warned of an overflow by ringing a bell.

1625   William Oughtred (1575-1660) invented the slide rule.

1642   French mathematician, Blaise Pascal built a mechanical adding machine (the "Pascaline").

1671   German mathematician, Gottfried Leibniz designed a machine to carry out multiplication, the 'Stepped Reckoner'.

 

1801   Joseph-Maire Jacuard developed an automatic loom controlled by punched cards.

1820   Charles Xavier Thomas de Colmar (1785-1870), of France, makes his "Arithmometer", the first mass-produced calculator

1822   Charles Babbage (1792-1871) designed his first mechanical computer, the first prototype for the difference engine that is Analytical Engine .

1834   Babbage conceives, and begins to design, his "Analytical Engine". The program was stored on read-only memory, specifically in the form of punch cards .

1842   Babbage's difference engine project is officially cancelled. (The cost overruns have been considerable, and Babbage is spending too much time on redesigning the Analytical Engine.)

1858   The first Tabulating Machine is bought by the Dudley Observatory in Albany, New York, and the second one by the British government. The Albany machine is used to produce a set of astronomical tables .

1886   Dorr E. Felt (1862-1930), of Chicago, makes his "Comptometer". This is the first calculator where the operands are entered merely by pressing keys .

1906 Henry Babbage, Charles's son, with the help of the firm of R. W. Munro, completes the mill of his father's Analytical Engine, just to show that it would have worked. It does. The complete machine is never produced.

1938 Konrad Zuse (1910-1995) of Berlin, with some assistance from Helmut Schreyer, completes a prototype mechanical binary programmable calculator, the first binary calculator it is based on Boolean Algebra .

History Of Electronic Computer

First Generation (1940-1956) Vacuum Tubes

The first computers used vacuum tubes for circuitry and magnetic drums for memory, and were often enormous, taking up entire rooms. They were very expensive to operate and in addition to using a great deal of electricity, the first computers generated a lot of heat, which was often the cause of malfunctions.

First generation computers relied on machine language, the lowest-level programming language understood by computers, to perform operations, and they could only solve one problem at a time, and it could take days or weeks to set-up a new problem. Input was based on punched cards and paper tape, and output was displayed on printouts.

The UNIVAC (Universal Automatic Computer) and ENIAC computers are examples of first-generation computing devices. The UNIVAC was the first commercial computer delivered to a business client, the U.S. Census Bureau in 1951.

Second Generation (1956-1963) Transistors

Transistors replace vacuum tubes and ushered in the second generation of computers. The transistor was invented in 1947 but did not see widespread use in computers until the late 1950s. The transistor was far superior to the vacuum tube, allowing computers to become smaller, faster, cheaper, more energy-efficient and more reliable than their first-generation predecessors.

Third Generation (1964-1971) Integrated Circuits

The development of the integrated circuit was the hallmark of the third generation of computers. Transistors were miniaturized and placed on silicon chips, called semiconductors, which drastically increased the speed and efficiency of computers.

Instead of punched cards and printouts, users interacted with third generation computers through keyboards and monitors and interfaced with an operating system, which allowed the device to run many different applications at one time with a central program that monitored the memory. Computers for the first time became accessible to a mass audience because they were smaller and cheaper than their predecessors.

  

Fourth Generation (1971-Present) Microprocessors

The microprocessor brought the fourth generation of computers, as thousands of integrated circuits were built onto a single silicon chip. What in the first generation filled an entire room could now fit in the palm of the hand. The Intel 4004 chip, developed in 1971, located all the components of the computer—from the central processing unit and memory to input/output controls—on a single chip.

In 1981 IBM introduced its first computer for the home user, and in 1984 Apple introduced the Macintosh. Microprocessors also moved out of the realm of desktop computers and into many areas of life as more and more everyday products began to use microprocessors.

As these small computers became more powerful, they could be linked together to form networks, which eventually led to the development of the Internet. Fourth generation computers also saw the development of GUIs, the mouse and handheld devices.

Fifth Generation (Present and Beyond) Artificial Intelligence

Fifth generation computing devices, based on artificial intelligence, are still in development, though there are some applications, such as voice recognition, that are being used today. The use of parallel processing and superconductors is helping to make artificial intelligence a reality. Quantum computation and molecular and nanotechnology will radically change the face of computers in years to come. The goal of fifth-generation computing is to develop devices that respond to natural language input and are capable of learning and self-organization.

Conclusion

As a result of the various improvements to the development of the computer we have seen the computer being used in all areas of life . It is a very useful tool that will continue to experience new development as time passes .

Computers are used in various areas of our life . Education , entertainment , sports , advertising , medicine , science and engineering , goverment , office and home are some of the application areas of the computers .