Soc Sci 100| Living in the IT Era

HISTORY OF COMPUTER:
BASIC COMPUTING
PERIODS
Chloe P. Reotutar

Part Two
 KEYPOINTS:

1. Applications of ICT in our Daily Lives

2. What is a Computer?
3. Types of Computer
4. Characteristics of Computer
5. History of Computer
6. Computer Generations
Applications of ICT in our Daily Lives

Business Banking and Finance

Education Navigation
Healthcare Transport
Retail and Trade Working From Home
Government Military
Marketing Social and Romance
Science Booking Vacations
Publishing Security and Surveillance
Publishing Weather Forecasting
Communication Robotics
 WHAT IS A COMPUTER?

The term computer is derived from the word

compute which means to calculate. It is an
electronic machine that accepts data, processes
the data by performing calculations and
operations on it, and generates the desired
output results. It performs both simple and
complex operations with speed and accuracy.
 TYPES OF COMPUTER

ANALOG COMPUTER DIGITAL COMPUTER

The Analog computer is another

The computers that are commonly
kind ofcomputer that represents
used today are digital
data as variable across a
computers. They use distinct
continuous range of values. The
values to represent the data
earliest computers were analog
internally. All information are
computers that measure
represented using the digits O’s
parameters that vary
and 1’s.
continuously in real time, such
as temperature, pressure and
voltage. The slide rule is an
example of an analog computer.
 CHARACTERISTICS OF COMPUTER

1 Speed - The computer can process data at the rate of millions

of instructions per second. With it, calculations that would
have taken hours and days to complete can be completed in a few
seconds.

2 Accuracy – The computer provides a high degree of accuracy; for

example, the result of division of any two numbers up to 10
decimal places.

3 Diligence -The computer can perform long and complex

calculations with the same speed and accuracy from start to
finish.
 CHARACTERISTICS OF COMPUTER

4 Storage Capability - Large volumes of data and information

can be stored in and retrieved from the computer whenever
required. A limited amount of data can be stored,
temporarily, in the primary memory while larger amounts of
data can be stored permanently in secondary storage devices
like the USB and external devices and the Cloud.

2 Versatility- Computer is versatile and can perform

different types of tasks like preparing
and printing a document and playing music with the same
ease.
 HISTORY OF COMPUTER

2,400 B.C.
Calculating Machines - the first
mechanical calculating device, the
ABACUS, was used for counting
large numbers.

Napier’s Bones - a mechanical

device built for the purpose of
multiplication by the English
mathematician John Napier.

1617 A.D
 HISTORY OF COMPUTER

16th Century
Slide Rule - was developed by an
English mathematician Edmund
Gunter in the 16th Century

Pascal's Calculator - also known as

the arithmetic machine or Pascaline is
a mechanical calculator invented by
Blaise Pascal He designed the machine
to add and subtract two numbers
directly and to perform multiplication
and division through repeated addition
17th Century or subtraction.
 HISTORY OF COMPUTER
17th Century
Leibniz’s Multiplication and Dividing
Machine - a mechanical device built
by the German philosopher and
mathematician, Gottfried Leibniz,
around 1673.

Punch Card System – punched card reader

developed by Jacquard to control the
power loom in 1801. The O’s and 1’s are
the basis of the modern digital
computer.
19th Century
 HISTORY OF COMPUTER
1823
Babbage’s Analytical Engine- The machine called
a difference engine was built by an English
man, Charles Babbage, to do complex mathematical
calculations. Later, Babbage and Lady Ada
Lovelace developed a general-purpose calculating
machine, the analytical engine. Babbage is also
called the father of the computer.

Hollerith’s Punch Card Tabulating

Machine - invented by Herman Hollerith,
the machine could read the information
from a punch card and process it
electronically.
1890
 GENERATIONS OF COMPUTER

The computer has evolved from a large-sized simple

calculating machine to a smaller but much more powerful
machine. Its evolution to its current state is called
computer generation. Each generation of computer is designed
based on a new technological development, resulting in
better, cheaper and smaller computers that are more powerful,
faster and efficient. Currently, there are five generations
of computer which will be discussed in terms of:

the technology used (hardware and

software),
computing characteristics (speed, i.e.,
number of instructions executed per
second)
physical appearance, and;
their applications.
 FIRST GENERATION (1940 TO 1956):
USING VACUUM TUBES

1 Hardware Technology - The first generation of computers

used vacuum tubes for circuitry and magnetic drums for
memory. The input to the computer was through punched cards
and paper tapes and the output was displayed as printouts.

2 Software Technology - The instructions were written in

machine language. The first generation computers were
capable of solving only one problem at a time.
 FIRST GENERATION (1940 TO 1956):
USING VACUUM TUBES

3 Computing Characteristics - The computation time was in

milliseconds.

4 Physical Appearance -These computers were enormous in size

and required a large room for installation.

5 Application - They were used for scientific applications as

they were the fastest computing device of their time.

EXAMPLES:
Universal Automatic Computer (UNIVAC), Electronic Numerical
Integrator And Calculator (ENIAC), and Electronic Discrete
Variable Automatic Computer (EDVAC).
FIRST GENERATION (1940 TO 1956):
USING VACUUM TUBES

Vacuum Tubes

EDVAC

ENIAC

UNIVAC
 SECOND GENERATION (1956 TO 1963):
USING TRANSISTORS

1 Hardware Technology - Transistors replaced the vacuum

tubes of the first-generation of computers and allowed
computers to become smaller, faster, cheaper, energy
efficient, and reliable. The second generation computers
used magnetic core technology for primary memory and the
concept of a stored program, where instructions were stored
in the memory of computer.

2 Software Technology - The instructions were written using

the assembly language. High level programming languages,
such as early versions of COBOL and FORTRAN were also
developed during this period.
 SECOND GENERATION (1956 TO 1963):
USING TRANSISTORS

3 Computing Characteristics - The computation time was in

microseconds.

4 Physical Appearance - Transistors are smaller in size

compared to vacuum tubes; thus, the size of the computer was
also reduced.

5
Application - The transistors had to be assembled manually
thus, commercial production of these computers was very
costly, though less than the first generation computers.

EXAMPLES:
PDP-8, IBM 1401 and CDC 1604 generated a lot of heat but much
less than the first generation computers. They also required
less maintenance than the first generation computers.
SECOND GENERATION (1956 TO 1963):
USING TRANSISTORS

TRANSISTOR

IBM 1401

PDP-8

CDC 1604
 THIRD GENERATION (1964 TO 1971):
USING INTEGRATED CIRCUITS

1 Hardware Technology - The third generation computers used the

Integrated Circuit (IC) chips. In an IC chip, multiple
transistors are placed on a silicon chip.

2 Software Technology - The keyboard and the monitor were

interfaced through the operating system which allowed
different applications to run at the same time. High-level
languages were used extensively for programming in place of
machine and assembly language.
 THIRD GENERATION (1964 TO 1971):
USING INTEGRATED CIRCUITS

3 Computing Characteristics - The computation time was in

nanoseconds.

4 Physical Appearance - The size of these computers was quite

small compared to the second generation computers.

5 Application - Computers became accessible to mass audience,

were produced commercially, and were smaller and cheaper than
their predecessors.

EXAMPLES:
The third generation computers like IBM 370 & PDP 11 used less power and
generated less heat than the second generation computers. The cost of
the computer and its maintenance was reduced significantly, as
individual components were no longer required to be assembled manually.
THIRD GENERATION (1964 TO 1971):
USING INTEGRATED CIRCUITS

INTEGRATED CIRCUIT

IBM 370

PDP-11
 FOURTH GENERATION (1971 TO PRESENT):
USING MICROPROCESSORS

1 Hardware Technology - This era is marked by the development

of microprocessor. A chip containing millions of transistors
and components, and designed using LSI and VLSI technology.
This generation of computers gave rise to the Personal
Computer (PC).

2 Software Technology - This generation of computers supported

Graphical User Interface (GUI), a user-friendly interface
that allows user to interact with the computer via menus and
icons. High-level programming languages are used for the
writing of programs.
 FOURTH GENERATION (1971 TO PRESENT):
USING MICROPROCESSORS

Computing Characteristics - The computation time is in

3 picoseconds.

4 Physical Appearance - They are smaller than the computers of

the previous generation and can even fit into the palm of the
hand.

5 Application - Personal and commercial computers became

available.

EXAMPLES:
The Intel 4004 chip was the first microprocessor. The components of the
computer like Central Processing Unit (CPU) and memory were located on a
single chip. In 1981, IBM introduced the first computer for home use. In
1984, Apple introduced the Macintosh.
FOURTH GENERATION (1971 TO PRESENT):
USING MICROPROCESSORS

INTEL 4004

IBM COMPUTER

MACINTOSH
 FIFTH GENERATION (PRESENT AND NEXT):
USING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

1 Hardware Technology - VLSI technology became ULSI (Ultra Large

Scale Integration) technology, resulting in the production of
microprocessor chips having ten million electronic components.
The fifth generation computers use Super Large Scale
Integrated (SLSI) chips that are able to store millions of
components on a single chip.

2 Software Technology - This generation is based on parallel

processing hardware and AI (Artificial Intelligence) software.
AI is an emerging branch in computer science, which interprets
the means and method of making computers think like human
beings. All the high-level languages like C and C++, Java,
.Net etc., are used in this generation.
 FIFTH GENERATION (PRESENT AND NEXT):
USING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Computing Characteristics - The computation time is in

3 femtoseconds.

4 Physical Appearance - They are even smaller than the computers

of the previous generation and can even fit into the palm of
the hand.

5 Application - Personal and commercial computers became

available.

EXAMPLES:
IBM desktop PC, HP laptop, Acer notebook, Mac book, etc.
Great job, everyone!

END OF
PART TWO