Generations of Computers BCA– I st Fundamentals of Computers.
Generations of Computers. Generations A generation refers to the state of improvement in the...
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Transcript of Generations of Computers. Generations A generation refers to the state of improvement in the...
Generations of Computers
GenerationsA generation refers to the state of
improvement in the development of a product. This term is also used in the different advancements of computer technology. With each new generation, the circuitry has gotten smaller and more advanced than the previous generation before it.
GenerationsAs a result of the miniaturization, speed,
power, and memory of computers has proportionally increased. New discoveries are constantly being developed that affect the way we live, work and play
First Generation1945-1956 - The Vacuum Tube YearsThe first generation computers were huge,
slow, expensive, and often undependableIn 1946 Americans, Presper Eckert, and John
Mauchly built the ENIAC electronic computer which used vacuum tubes instead of the mechanical switches of the Mark I.
First GenerationThe vacuum tube was an extremely important
step in the advancement of computers. It's purpose was to act like an amplifier and a switch.
Without any moving parts, vacuum tubes could take very weak signals and make the signal stronger (amplify it). Vacuum tubes could also stop and start the flow of electricity instantly (switch).
Vacuum Tube
Second Generation1956-1963 The Era of the TransistorIn 1947 three scientists, John Bardeen,
William Shockley, and Walter Brattain working at AT&T's Bell Labs invented what would replace the vacuum tube forever.
This invention was the transistor which functions like a vacuum tube in that it can be used to relay and switch electronic signals.
Second GenerationThe transistor was faster, more reliable,
smaller, and much cheaper to build than a vacuum tube.
One transistor replaced the equivalent of 40 vacuum tubes.
They were very cheap to produce
Second GenerationTransistors were found to conduct
electricity faster and better than vacuum tubes.
They were also much smaller and gave off virtually no heat compared to vacuum tubes.
Their use marked a new beginning for the computer.
Transistors
Third Generation1964 -1970 Integrated Circuits -
Miniaturizing the ComputerThe integrated circuit, or as it is
sometimes referred to as semiconductor chip, packs a huge number of transistors onto a single wafer of silicon. Placing such large numbers of transistors on a single chip vastly increased the power of a single computer and lowered its cost considerably
Third GenerationRobert Noyce of Fairchild Corporation
and Jack Kilby of Texas Instruments independently discovered the amazing attributes of integrated circuits
Another 3rd Generation development was the use of ‘high level’ language
This comprised of English words and base 10 number system. E.g. 101, 1110
Integrated Circuit (IC)
Fourth Generation1971-Today - The MicroprocessorThe microprocessor is described as a single
chip that could do all the processing of a full-scale computer
Initially there was the LSI – large-scale integration, where hundreds of components were placed on the chip
Fourth GenerationIn the 1980s there was the (Ultra Large Scale
Integration)ULSI – where thousands then millions of components were placed on the chip
This led to the invention of personal computers, or microcomputers.
Computers were now smaller, cheaper and much faster and reliable
The Microprocessor
Fifth GenerationFifth generations computers are only in the
minds of advance research scientists and being tested out in the laboratories
Fifth GenerationThese describe computers of the present time
and those still to comeComputers would be able to mimic human
behaviourThey will contain ‘artificial intelligence’They will be able to accept spoken
instructions
Fifth GenerationParallel processing will be introduced – they
would be capable of performing multiple, simultaneous operations
They will contain multiple processorsThey will be very powerful and reliableThey will be capable of ‘learning’
Home AssignmentIdentify the main components of the FIVE
generations of computers and show how these components have affected the following:
Speed Size Reliability Cost