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    First Generation Computers

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    Doriel Jake Rubio
    First, vacuum tube computers were huge, complex machines that took up large spaces and consumed significant power. The ENIAC was an early general purpose computer that was programmed using plugboards and switches. Second, the invention of the transistor allowed for smaller, more efficient computers to be built. The first transistor computer was created at the University of Manchester in 1953. Third, the integrated circuit paved the way for even smaller computers through the use of microchips, and the first microprocessor was the Intel 4004.

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    First Generation Computers

    Uploaded by

    Doriel Jake Rubio
    337 views4 pages
    First, vacuum tube computers were huge, complex machines that took up large spaces and consumed significant power. The ENIAC was an early general purpose computer that was programmed using plugboards and switches. Second, the invention of the transistor allowed for smaller, more efficient computers to be built. The first transistor computer was created at the University of Manchester in 1953. Third, the integrated circuit paved the way for even smaller computers through the use of microchips, and the first microprocessor was the Intel 4004.

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    All about first generation computers

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    First, vacuum tube computers were huge, complex machines that took up large spaces and consumed significant power. The ENIAC was an early general purpose computer that was programmed using plugboards and switches. Second, the invention of the transistor allowed for smaller, more efficient computers to be built. The first transistor computer was created at the University of Manchester in 1953. Third, the integrated circuit paved the way for even smaller computers through the use of microchips, and the first microprocessor was the Intel 4004.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    337 views4 pages

    First Generation Computers

    Uploaded by

    Doriel Jake Rubio
    First, vacuum tube computers were huge, complex machines that took up large spaces and consumed significant power. The ENIAC was an early general purpose computer that was programmed using plugboards and switches. Second, the invention of the transistor allowed for smaller, more efficient computers to be built. The first transistor computer was created at the University of Manchester in 1953. Third, the integrated circuit paved the way for even smaller computers through the use of microchips, and the first microprocessor was the Intel 4004.

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    First Generation Computers (1940s 1950s)

    First electronic computers used vacuum tubes, and they were huge and complex. The first general
    purpose electronic computer was the ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator And Computer). It was
    digital, although it didnt operate with binary code, and was reprogrammable to solve a complete
    range of computing problems. It was programmed using plugboards and switches, supporting input
    from an IBM card reader, and output to an IBM card punch. It took up 167 square meters, weighed 27
    tons, and consuming 150 kilowatts of power. It used thousands of vacuum tubes, crystal diodes,
    relays, resistors, and capacitors.
    The first non-general purpose computer was ABC (AtanasoffBerry Computer), and other similar
    computers of this era included german Z3, ten British Colossus computers, LEO, Harvard Mark I, and
    UNIVAC.

    Second Generation Computers (1955 1960)


    The second generation of computers came about thanks to the invention of the transistor, which then
    started replacing vacuum tubes in computer design. Transistor computers consumed far less power,
    produced far less heat, and were much smaller compared to the first generation, albeit still big by
    todays standards.
    The first transistor computer was created at the University of Manchester in 1953. The most popular of
    transistor computers was IBM 1401. IBM also created the first disk drive in 1956, the IBM 350 RAMAC.

    Third Generation Computers (1960s)


    The invention of the integrated circuits (ICs), also known as microchips, paved the way for computers
    as we know them today. Making circuits out of single pieces of silicon, which is a semiconductor,
    allowed them to be much smaller and more practical to produce. This also started the ongoing process
    of integrating an ever larger number of transistors onto a single microchip. During the sixties
    microchips started making their way into computers, but the process was gradual, and second
    generation of computers still held on.
    First appeared minicomputers, first of which were still based on non-microchip transistors, and later
    versions of which were hybrids, being based on both transistors and microchips, such as IBMs
    System/360. They were much smaller, and cheaper than first and second generation of computers,
    also known as mainframes. Minicomputers can be seen as a bridge between mainframes and
    microcomputers, which came later as the proliferation of microchips in computers grew.

    Fourth Generation Computers (1971 present)


    First microchips-based central processing units consisted of multiple microchips for different CPU
    components. The drive for ever greater integration and miniaturization led towards single-chip CPUs,
    where all of the necessary CPU components were put onto a single microchip, called a microprocessor.
    The first single-chip CPU, or a microprocessor, was Intel 4004.

    The advent of the microprocessor spawned the evolution of the microcomputers, the kind that would
    eventually become personal computers that we are familiar with today.

    First Generation of Microcomputers (1971 1976)


    First microcomputers were a weird bunch. They often came in kits, and many were essentially just
    boxes with lights and switches, usable only to engineers and hobbyists whom could understand binary
    code. Some, however, did come with a keyboard and/or a monitor, bearing somewhat more
    resemblance to modern computers.
    It is arguable which of the early microcomputers could be called a first. CTC Datapoint 2200 is one
    candidate, although it actually didnt contain a microprocessor (being based on a multi-chip CPU
    design instead), and wasnt meant to be a standalone computer, but merely a terminal for the
    mainframes. The reason some might consider it a first microcomputer is because it could be used as a
    de-facto standalone computer, it was small enough, and its multi-chip CPU architecture actually
    became a basis for the x86 architecture later used in IBM PC and its descendants. Plus, it even came
    with a keyboard and a monitor, an exception in those days.
    However, if we are looking for the first microcomputer that came with a proper microprocessor, was
    meant to be a standalone computer, and didnt come as a kit then it would be Micral N, which used
    Intel 8008 microprocessor.
    Popular early microcomputers which did come in kits include MOS Technology KIM-1, Altair 8800, and
    Apple I. Altair 8800 in particular spawned a large following among the hobbyists, and is considered the
    spark that started the microcomputer revolution, as these hobbyists went on to found companies
    centered around personal computing, such as Microsoft, and Apple.

    Second Generation Microcomputers (1977 present)


    As microcomputers continued to evolve they became easier to operate, making them accessible to a
    larger audience. They typically came with a keyboard and a monitor, or could be easily connected to a
    TV, and they supported visual representation of text and numbers on the screen.
    In other words, lights and switches were replaced by screens and keyboards, and the necessity to
    understand binary code was diminished as they increasingly came with programs that could be used
    by issuing more easily understandable commands. Famous early examples of such computers include
    Commodore PET, Apple II, and in the 80s the IBM PC.
    The nature of the underlying electronic components didnt change between these computers and
    modern computers we know of today, but what did change was the number of circuits that could be
    put onto a single microchip. Intels co-founder Gordon Moore predicted the doubling of the number of
    transistor on a single chip every two years, which became known as Moores Law, and this trend has
    roughly held for over 30 years thanks to advancing manufacturing processes and microprocessor
    designs.
    The consequence was a predictable exponential increase in processing power that could be put into a
    smaller package, which had a direct effect on the possible form factors as well as applications of

    modern computers, which is what most of the forthcoming paradigm shifting innovations in computing
    were about.

    Graphical User Interface (GUI)


    Possibly the most significant of those shifts was the invention of the graphical user interface, and the
    mouse as a way of controlling it. Doug Engelbart and his team at the Stanford Research Lab developed
    the first mouse, and a graphical user interface, demonstrated in 1968. They were just a few years
    short of the beginning of the personal computer revolution sparked by the Altair 8800 so their idea
    didnt take hold.
    Instead it was picked up and improved upon by researchers at the Xerox PARC research center, which
    in 1973 developed Xerox Alto, the first computer with a mouse-driven GUI. It never became a
    commercial product, however, as Xerox management wasnt ready to dive into the computer market
    and didnt see the potential of what they had early enough.
    It took Steve Jobs negotiating a stocks deal with Xerox in exchange for a tour of their research center
    to finally bring the user friendly graphical user interface, as well as the mouse, to the masses. Steve
    Jobs was shown what Xerox PARC team had developed, and directed Apple to improve upon it. In
    1984 Apple introduced the Macintosh, the first mass-market computer with a graphical user interface
    and a mouse.
    Microsoft later caught on and produced Windows, and the historic competition between the two
    companies started, resulting in improvements to the graphical user interface to this day.
    Meanwhile IBM was dominating the PC market with their IBM PC, and Microsoft was riding on their
    coat tails by being the one to produce and sell the operating system for the IBM PC known as DOS
    or Disk Operating System. Macintosh, with its graphical user interface, was meant to dislodge IBMs
    dominance, but Microsoft made this more difficult with their PC-compatible Windows operating system
    with its own GUI.

    Portable Computers
    As it turned out the idea of a laptop-like portable computer existed even before it was possible to
    create one, and it was developed at Xerox PARC by Alan Kay whom called it the Dynabook and
    intended it for children. The first portable computer that was created was the Xerox Notetaker, but
    only 10 were produced.
    The first laptop that was commercialized was Osborne 1 in 1981, with a small 5 CRT monitor and a
    keyboard that sits inside of the lid when closed. It ran CP/M (the OS that Microsoft bought and based
    DOS on). Later portable computers included Bondwell 2 released in 1985, also running CP/M, which
    was among the first with a hinge-mounted LCD display. Compaq Portable was the first IBM PC
    compatible computer, and it ran MS-DOS, but was less portable than Bondwell 2. Other examples of
    early portable computers included Epson HX-20, GRiD compass, Dulmont Magnum, Kyotronic 85,
    Commodore SX-64, IBM PC Convertible, Toshiba T1100, T1000, and T1200 etc.
    The first portable computers which resemble modern laptops in features were Apples Powerbooks,
    which first introduced a built-in trackball, and later a trackpad and optional color LCD screens. IBMs

    ThinkPad was largely inspired by Powerbooks design, and the evolution of the two led to laptops and
    notebook computers as we know them. Powerbooks were eventually replaced by modern MacBook
    Pros.
    Of course, much of the evolution of portable computers was enabled by the evolution of
    microprocessors, LCD displays, battery technology and so on. This evolution ultimately allowed
    computers even smaller and more portable than laptops, such as PDAs, tablets, and smartphones.

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