History of the Development of Computers

History of the Development of Computers.

Analytical Engine “The first Computer”

This analytical engine, the first fully-automatic calculating machine, was constructed by British computing pioneer Charles Babbage (1791-1871), he is the one who has first conceived the idea of an advanced calculating machine to calculate and print mathematical tables in1812.This Analytical Engine incorporated an arithmetic logic unit, control flow in the form of conditionalbranching and loops, and integrated memory.

Five Generations of Computers.

First Generation of Computers (1942-1955)

The beginning of commercial computer age is from UNIVAC (Universal Automatic Computer).

The first-generation computers were used during 1942-1955. They were based on Vacuum Tubes.

Examples of first generation computers are ENIVAC and UNIVAC-1.

Second Generation Computers (1955-1964)

The second generation computers used Transistors.

The size of the computers was decreased by replacing vacuum tubes with transistors. The examples of second generation computers are IBM 7094 series, IBM 1400 series and CDC 164 etc.

Third Generation Computers (1964-1975) 

The Third generation computers used the Integrated Circuits (IC).

The Third generation computers used the integrated circuits (IC). The first IC was invented and used in 1961.The size of an IC is about ¼ square inch. A single IC chip may contain thousands of transistors. The computer became smaller in size, faster, more reliable and less expensive.The examples of third generation computers are IBM 370, IBM System/360, UNIVAC 1108 and UNIVAC AC 9000 etc.

Fourth Generation Computers (1975-Present)

The fourth generation computers started with the invention of Microprocessor.

 The fourth generation computers started with the invention of Microprocessor. The Microprocessor contains thousands of ICs. The LSI (Large Scale Integration) circuit and VLSI (Very Large Scale Integration) circuit was designed.It greatly reduced the size of computer. The size of modern Microprocessors is usually one square inch. It can contain millions of electronic circuits. The examples of fourth generation computers are Apple Macintosh & IBM PC.

Fifth Generation Computers (Present & Beyond).

Scientists are working hard on the 5th generation computers with quite a few breakthroughs. It is based on the technique of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Computers can understand spoken words & imitate human reasoning.