2. 2
HISTORY OF COMPUTERS
• The computer as we know it is a fairly recent
invention
• The history of computers is often referred to in
terms of generations
• Each new generation is characterized by a
major technological development
• Precomputers and early computers (before
1946)
– Abacus, slide rule, mechanical calculator
– Punch Card Tabulating Machine and Sorter
2
3. FIRST GENERATION,
1951 – 1958: The Vacuum Tube
• The first generation of computers, characterized
by vacuum tubes, started in 1951 with the
creation of -
UNIVAC (Universal Automatic Computer) – a
tabulating machine which won the contest for the
fastest machine which could count the US 1890
census.
VACUUM TUBES – electronic tubes about the size
of light bulbs.
4. FIRST GENERATION,
• Some of the computers of the Second
Generation were:
• ENIAC : It was named Electronic Numerical
Integrator And Calculator (ENIAC). Today your
favorite computer is many times as powerful as
ENIAC, still size is very small.
5. FIRST GENERATION
• In this generation mainly batch processing
operating system were used. In this generation
Punched cards, Paper, tape, Magnetic tape Input
& Output device were used.
• There were Machine code and electric wired
board languages used.
.
6. FIRST GENERATION: Features
• Unreliable
• Supported Machine language only
• Very costly
• Generate lot of heat
• Slow Input/Output device
• Huge size
• Need of A.C.
• Non portable
• Consumed lot of electricity
.
7. SECOND GENERATION,
1959 – 1964: The Transistor
The year 1959 marked the invention of transistors,
which characterized the second generation of
computers.
TRANSISTOR – was a three-legged component
which shrunk the size of the first generation
computers. Occupied only 1/100th of the space
occupied by a vacuum tube
More reliable, had greater computational speed,
required no warm-up time and consumed far less
electricity.
8. SECOND GENERATION
• Some of the computers of the Second
Generation were:
• IBM 1620: Its size was smaller as compared
to First Generation computers and mostly
used for scientific purpose.
• IBM 1401: Its size was small to medium and
used for business applications.
• CDC 3600: Its size was large and is used for
scientific purposes
9. SECOND GENERATION,
• In this generation assembly language and high
level programming language like FORTRAN,
COBOL were used.
• There were Batch processing and
Multiprogramming Operating system used.
10. SECOND GENERATION,
Features
• Use of transistors
• Reliable as compared to First generation
computers
• Smaller size as compared to First generation
computers
• Generate less heat as compared to First generation
computers
• Consumed less electricity as compared to First
generation computers
• Faster than first generation computers
• Still very costly
• A.C. needed
• Support machine and assmebly languages
11. THIRD GENERATION,
1965 – 1970: The Integrated Circuit
Third generation computers arose in 1965
with the invention of smaller electronic
circuits called integrated circuits (IC’S)
INTEGRATED CIRCUITS – are square
silicon chips containing circuitry that can
perform the functions of hundreds of
transistors.
12. THIRD GENERATION,
• Some of the computers of the Second
Generation were:
• IBM-360, ICL-1900, IBM-370, and VAX-
750.
13. THIRD GENERATION,
1965 – 1970: The Integrated Circuit
• In this generation Remote processing,
Time-sharing, Real-time, Multi-
programming Operating System were
used.
• High level language (FORTRAN-II TO IV,
COBOL, PASCAL PL/1, BASIC, ALGOL-
68 etc.) were used during this
generation.
14. THIRD GENERATION,
Features
• RELIABILITY – Unlike vacuum tubes,
silicon will not break down easily. It is very
seldom that you will have to replace it.
• LOW COST – Silicon chips are relatively
cheap because of their small size and
availability in the market. It also consumes
less electricity.
16. FOURTH GENERATION,
1971 – present: The Microprocessor
• Marked by the use of microprocessor
• These computers are called microcomputers.
• MICROPROCESSOR – is a silicon chip that
contains the CPU – part of the computer where all
processing takes place.
4004 chip – was the first microprocessor introduced
by Intel Corporation.
17. FOURTH GENERATION,
1971 – present: The Microprocessor
• In this generation Time sharing, Real time,
Networks, Distributed Operating System
were used.
• All the Higher level languages like C and
C++, DBASE etc. were used in this
generation.
• TODAY’S COMPUTER fourth generation
computers.
18. FOURTH GENERATION,
1971 – present: The Microprocessor
• In this generation Time sharing, Real time,
Networks, Distributed Operating System
were used.
• All the Higher level languages like C and
C++, DBASE etc. were used in this
generation.
19. FOURTH GENERATION,
Features
• Today’s computer is classified as fourth
generation computers.
• faster, more powerful, tremendous data
storage and processing capacity
• new brands and models would come out
the market almost every other month.
• many clones or imitations of the IBM
have become even more powerful and a
lot cheaper.
20. • computers became more affordable
• computers can now be found in homes,
schools, offices etc.
• there has been a tremendous improvement in
software technology
• different software applications to choose from:
word processing, spreadsheets, database
management, games and entertainment.
• computer subjects are now being offered not
just to college students but even to high school
and elementary.
• computers are now used as an aid in teaching
math, science etc.
21. • Very Large Scale Integrated (VLSI) circuits
technology used
• Very cheap
• Portable and reliable
• Use of PC's
• Very small size
• Pipeline processing
• No A.C. needed
• Concept of internet was introduced
• Great developments in the fields of networks
• Computers became easily available
22. Fifth Generation Computers
(present and beyond)
• Fifth generation computing devices, based
on artificial intelligence.
• Are still in development, though there are some
applications, such as voice recognition.
• The use of parallel processing and
superconductors is helping to make artificial
intelligence a reality.
• The goal of fifth-generation computing is to
develop devices that respond to natural
language input and are capable of learning and
self-organization.
22
23. The Fifth Generation
AI – Artificial Intelligence
• How computers can be used for tasks
that required human characteristics
• How to make computers do things that
people currently do better
24. The Fifth Generation
AI – How Computers Learn
• Improve performance based on past errors
• Knowledge base – set of facts and rules
• Inference engine – applies rules to the facts
to create new facts
• Example
Fact: Amy is Ken’s wife
Rule: If X is Y’s wife, then Y is X’s husband
Created Fact: Ken is Amy’s husband
25. The Fifth Generation
Data Mining
• Extracting previously unknown
information from existing data
– Relationships
– Trends
• Look for hidden information that cannot
be found because of the size of the
database
26. The Fifth Generation
Expert Systems
• Software used with an extensive set of
organized data that presents the computer as
an expert on a particular topic
• User
– Knowledge seeker
– Asks questions in English-like format
• Computer responds with an answer and
explanation
27. The Fifth Generation
Building an Expert System
Expert system shell
Software that contains the basic structure
used to find answers to questions
Build knowledge base
Knowledge engineer writes rules
28. The Fifth Generation
Robotics
• Computer-controlled device that can
physically manipulate its surroundings
• Primarily found in factories
• Field robots
– Dangerous work
– “Dirty” jobs
29. Generation of Computers
1A-29
Generation Dates Characteristic
1st 1944-59 Use Valves (Vacuum
tubes)
2nd 1959-64 Use transistors
3rd 1964-75 Large Scale Integrated
Circuits
4th 1975- Very Large Scale
Integrated Circuits
5th Under
development
“Artificial Intelligence”
based computers
Editor's Notes
ENIAC : It was named Electronic Numerical Integrator And Calculator (ENIAC). Today your favorite computer is many times as powerful as ENIAC, still size is very small.
ENIAC : It was named Electronic Numerical Integrator And Calculator (ENIAC). Today your favorite computer is many times as powerful as ENIAC, still size is very small.