Generations of Computers

Generations of Computers

• First Generation: (1940s-1950s) relied on vacuum tubes for operation. Notable computers include ENIAC, UNIVAC, IBM 650, and IBM 701.
• Second Generation: (1950s-1960s) used transistors, which were smaller, faster, and more reliable than vacuum tubes. Key examples are IBM 1401, IBM 7090 and 7094, and UNIVAC 1107.
• Third Generation: (1960s-1970s) utilized integrated circuits (ICs) which contained many transistors on a single chip. Popular machines from this era include IBM 360, IBM 370, PDP-11, and UNIVAC 1108.
• Fourth Generation: (1970s-Present) saw the emergence of microprocessors, which integrated the entire CPU onto a single chip. This led to the creation of personal computers like the IBM PC, STAR 1000, APPLE II, and Apple Macintosh.
• Fifth Generation: (Present and Future) focuses on artificial intelligence (AI). Computers from this generation are used for various tasks including running desktops, laptops, tablets, and smartphones.

Key Computer Components and Technologies

• Vacuum Tube: An electronic device controlling electron flow in a vacuum.
• Transistor: An electronic component acting as an amplifier or a switch.
• Integrated Circuit (IC): A miniaturized electronic circuit printed on a chip, containing various elements like transistors, diodes, and resistors.
• Microprocessor: An electronic component that houses the CPU and other circuits on an integrated circuit.
• CPU (Central Processing Unit): The brain of a computer, where most processing and operations take place.
• Magnetic Drum: A cylinder coated with magnetic material, used to store data and programs.
• Magnetic Core: Uses arrays of small magnetized rings called cores to store information.
• Machine Language: A low-level language consisting of binary digits (ones and zeros) that can be understood by a computer.
• Memory: A device used to store data, information, and programs in a computer.
• Artificial Intelligence (AI): A field of computer science focusing on computer systems that can simulate and create intelligent behavior by thinking, learning, working, and reacting like humans.

Eras of Computer Development

• Premechanical Age: (3000 BC - 1450 AD)
• Mechanical Age: (1450 - 1840)
• Electromechanical Age: (1840 - 1940)
• Electronic Age: (1940 - Present)

Writing and Alphabets

• Petroglyphs: Signs or figures carved into rock.
• Ideographs: Symbols representing ideas and concepts.
• Cuneiform: The first true written language and information system.
• Sumerians: Utilized a stylus and wet clay for writing.
• Egyptians: Papyrus was used for writing (2600 BC).
• Chinese: Created paper from rags (100 AD).
• Books and Libraries:
  • Mesopotamia: Religious leaders housed the earliest books.
  • Egyptians: Kept scrolls.
  • Greeks (600 BC): Sheets of papyrus were folded and bound into volumes.

First Numbering System

• Egyptians: Used vertical lines (|) for numbers 1-9, U or O for 10, coiled rope for 100, and lotus blossom for 1000.
• Hindus (100-200 AD): Developed the 9-digit numbering system.
  • The concept of zero was introduced around 875 AD.
• Abacus: The first calculator invented in Babylonia and popularized in China.

Key Inventions and Pioneers

• Johann Gutenberg (1450): Invented the movable metal-type printing process.
• John Napier: Created logarithms (LOGS) simplifying multiplication and division.
• Arabian Lattice: Created a special multiplication chart on wooden rods.
• Wilhelm Schickard: Built the first mechanical calculator capable of six-digit calculations.
• William Oughtred: Developed the slide rule.
• Blaise Pascal: Invented the Pascaline, a mechanical calculator for addition and subtraction.
• Gottfried Leibniz: Developed the Stepped Reckoner, a mechanical calculator.
• Joseph-Marie Jacquard: Created the automatic loom controlled by punch cards.
• Charles Xavier Thomas de Colmar: Developed the Arithmometer, the first mass-produced calculator.
• Charles Babbage: The "Father of Modern Computer," who invented the Difference Engine and Analytical Engine.
• Lady Ada Augusta Lovelace Byron: The first computer programmer.
• Alessandro Volta: Invented the Voltaic Battery, the first electric battery.
• Samuel F.B. Morse: Developed the electromagnetic telegraph.
• Alexander Graham Bell: Invented the first working telephone.
• Guglielmo Marconi (Radio): Discovered that radio waves travel through space.
• George Boole: Created Boolean Algebra, a binary algebra.
• Pehr and Edward Scheutz: Completed the first printing difference engine.