COMPUTER
The 4 Genrations of the
The 1st Generation of the Computer
The first generation of computer lead from 1940-1956. The first computers to be invented were using vacuum tubes for any circuitry, magnetic drums for memory, and they had produced a lot of heat and often took up the space of an entire room. They were enormous! They were also rather expensive and use a great amount of electricity, which caused many malfunctions. Computers at the time could on solve problems one at a time and input was based on punch cards and paper tape, while output was displayed on printouts. The UNIVAC and ENIAC are examples of some first generations computers. The UNIVAC was the first commercial computer delivered to a business client.
The 2nd Generation of the Computer
The second generation of computer ran from 1956-1963. Transistors were invented in 1947 and had replaced the vacuum tubes in the first generation. This generation of computers had allowed them to become smaller, faster, cheaper and more energy-efficient than the computers before. They were also more reliable. Even though they did create a big amount of heat, they were a vast improvement from the first generation but still relied on punch cards and print outs for anything to do with input and output.
The 3rd Generation of the Computer
The third generation of computers went from 1964-1971.The development of the integrated circuit was the hallmark of the third generation of computers. Transistors were miniaturized and placed on silicon chips, called semiconductors, which drastically increased the speed and efficiency of computers.Instead of punched cards and printouts, users interacted with third generation computers through keyboards and monitors and interfaced with an operating systems, which allowed the device to run many different applications at one time with a central program that monitored the memory. Computers for the first time became accessible to a mass audience because they were smaller and cheaper than their predecessors.
The 4 the Generation of the Computer
The forth generation of computers goes from 1971 to the present, this very day. The microprocessor brought the fourth generation of computers, as thousands of integrated circuits were built onto a single silicon chip. What in the first generation filled an entire room could now fit in the palm of the hand. The Intel 4004 chip, developed in 1971, located all the components of the computer—from the central processing unit and memory to input/output controls—on a single chip.In 1981 IBM introduced its first computer for the home user, and in 1984 Apple introduced the Macintosh. Microprocessors also moved out of the realm of desktop computers and into many areas of life as more and more everyday products began to use microprocessors. As these small computers became more powerful, they could be linked together to form networks, which eventually led to the development of the Internet. Fourth generation computers also saw the development of GUIs the mouse and handheld devices.