History of computers
People wanted to facilitate their work with help of various devices. Thus they invented devices for counting.
Stones
It began by creating counters, which used stones to count.
Abakus
Later, the counting table ''abacus'' was created, in which the
number of stones on one side represented a number. In some countries, such as
Russia and China, it is still used today.
Logarithmic tables and
slide rule
In the 17th century England created a logarithmic table and
later a slide rule.
Mechanical calculating
machine
The first mechanical calculating machine was constructed by
Wilhelm Schickard. This machine used gear wheels as in a clock, therefore it
was named the calculating clock. The machine knew how to add and subtract 6
digit numbers.In the same year, French mathematician, physicist and engineer Blaise Pascal created the first mechanical calculating machine. This machine knew how to add and subtract 6 digit numbers. German philosopher and mathematician G. W. Leibniz improved the mechanical machine so that it could not only add and subtract but also multiply and divide.
Programming machines
French inventor Joseph Marie Jacquard constructed a weaving
machine. Woven pattern was created by the punched cards. These punched cards were used to program
computers.English mathematician Charles Babbage constructed the first analytical engine, in which computational operations were carried out according to pre-established program. The sequence of mathematical operations was managed with the program save on punch cards. The machine includes:
• central computing arithmetic logic unit
• central control unit
• unit for data input
• unit of output data
Babbage's calculating
machine is known as an analytical engine. Analytical machine but was never
completed, because the mechanical parts required accuracy. In the 19th century
were not available technology, which were be ensured they manufacture.
The first
electromechanical counting machine that used punched cards for input
constructed Herman Holler. This machine is used in conjunction with a sorting
box in processing the census in the United States. Hand punched cards were inserted into the matrix and they holes
determined passing of electric current.
Later Herman Holler founded the Tabulating Machine Company. In 1924 it was
renamed the International Bussines
Machine (IBM).
Computers 0. Generation
During the zero generation computers were considered
electromechanical computers. The base component was called electromagnetic
relay. These computers worked mostly with speed of 1 Hz or less (50 operations
per minute).
The first programmable computer was designed by Konrad Zuse
called V1. Later, it was the renamed Z1. The computer worked in a binary system
which worked with floating point numbers. The program was introduced to the
computer by using a punched tape, which had cinema film or a numeric keyboard.Konrad Zuse in 1941 interconnected mechanical memory with a new arithmetic unit which worked on the base of an electromagnetic relay. This computer has been named Z2.
In the same year, Konrad Zuse constructed another model Z3, which was the first digital computer. It consisted of 2600 electromagnetic relays, the half of relays consisted of computing units and the other served as a memory. Computer performed 50 arithmetic operations per minute.
In 1942, Konrad Zuse built the latest model Z4, which was used to calculate the aerodynamic characteristics of direction-wing aircraft.
Howard Aiken proposed an electromechanical device called Automatic Sequence Controlled Calculator. His suggestion was to move information through electrical way instead of mechanical.
In this way significantly reduce the time and increase the accuracy of the calculation. The proposal submitted by the President IBM, which financed construct a computer named MARK 1
Howard Aiken and Grace Hopper in 1943 completed a computer MARK 1 The computer had a length of 10.6 mA at 2.6 m, weighing five tons, containing 800,000 units of parts. The computer worked in decimal fixed-point. Mark 1 was able to add two numbers for 0.3 s, multiply them for 6 seconds. The machine worked 15 years at Harvard University. He was the first operational computer.
In 1947, Howard Aikenhe constructed another computer Mark 2, which was only with relay. It was formed by 13 000 units relay. Mark 2 worked in computer binary system of numbers with floating point. He had RAM for 100 numbers with ten significant digits. Census lasted only 0,125 s and multiply 0.25 s average .
The disadvantage of relay computers were large in size, big noise and also that the mechanical part of the electromagnetic relay is worn out from friction. On cooling was needed several tons of ice a day.
The first relay computer was made Professor Sloboda from the Research Institute of Mathematical Machines in Czech - Slovakia called SAPO. Self computer was put into operation in 1957. This computer was burned after 3 years construction in 1960, down due of a spark from the relay contact, which lighted lubricating oil, which relay was oiled
Computers 1
Generation
Due to the above-mentioned disadvantages have started to
construct a computer - on based vacuum tubes. These computers are referred to
as the first generation of computers.The first fully electronic computer was built by John V Atanasoff and Clifford Berry in 1939. The computer was named Atanasoff-Berry Computer abbreviated ABC. The computer was a 16-bit full adder, which was implemented with 300 vacuum tubes. The computer has never been used, but its architecture has been used on other computers.
Engineer Tommy H. Flowers received an order for your computer from the British secret service. The computer had to decipher the German Enigma cipher. At the end of 1943 he made a computer COLOSSUS Mark 1. In 1944 Englishmen have successfully managed to decipher the German cipher using another computer model COLOSSUS Mark 2. COLOSSUS Mark 2 was used as first fully electronic computer.
In 1945 John Presper Eckert, John William Mauchly, Herman Goldstine and Alan M. Turing designed the first fully electronic general-purpose computer called ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer). This computer had an area of 140 meters square, weighed 40 tons, contained 18,000 vacuum tubes, 1,500 relays, 10,000 capacitors, resistors 7000. He had of the consumption as a smaller village and had to be cooled by two aircraft engines. The computer was programmed with adjustment switches and networking wires, which took from half an hour to one day. Could be turned on only one hour, during which fired a one laundry basket of vacuum tubes. During this time performed many operations, how much Aiken mechanical computer Mark 1 performed throughout the week. The computer was 2000 times faster. The data were input into the computer using punched cards. The disadvantage of this machine was that it worked in decimal and he had not enough memory to store the universal computer programs. The computer was mainly used by the military to calculate the paths of ballistic missiles.
John Von Neumann proposed of scheme of the computer that is used today. He suggested that the program and the data are saved in the same memory. By application of computer EDVAC (Electronic Discrete Variable Automatic Computer) was that commands do not had to set with the switches, but could be stored using punched cards in memory.
In 1947Frederic C. Williams and Tom Kilburn built the first storage tube "Williams Tube", which allow random write and read. This tube was the first type of RAM memory.
Maurice Wilkes and Frederic C. Williams based on the Von Neumann scheme designed computer EDSAC (Electronic Delay Storage Automatic Calculator).
Frederic C. Williams and Tom Kilburn built on the basis of the Von Neumann scheme a first computer Small-Scale Experimental Machine, which also called Baby. It was the first computer which allowed to store of a program in memory. The computer contained 2,500 vacuum tubes and operational memory RAM Wiliamsove tube.
Baby computer been enhanced about magnetic drum memory, which allowed permanent registration. This modified machine was named Manchester Mark 1
John Presper Eckert, John William Mauchly built the Binary Automatic Computer. Computers are composed of two identical computers, which the results were compared. It was also the first computer able to operate in real time and was one of the first which started using for the input and output of data from magnetic tapes. For this machine was first used higher symbolic language called Short Order Code.
Maurice Wilkes and Renwick built a computer EDSAC (Electronic Delay Storage Automatic Calculator), the first computer designed by scheme Von Neumann and was used for practical purposes. On this machine was first used higher symbolic language called Assembler which developed David Wheeler. This language is still used today.
Trevor Pearcey and Maston Beard built the first Australian computer CSIRAC (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research Automatic Computer). It was the first computer equipped with a speakerphone that can played music.
In 1950 was constructed a computer MARK 3 in Germany, which was similar to the dimensions of the ENIAC computer.
Moe Abramson and Stanislaus F. Danko invented the printed circuit board, which consisted of laminated board with two copper foils, in which the was etched a pattern on that were soldered components. This discovery was awarded in 1956 of the U.S. Patent Office.
In 1951 was constructed fully vacuum tube Manchester Mark 4. John Presper Eckert, John William Mauchly completed the first computer designed for commercial purposes called UNIVAC (Universal Automatic Computer). The computer contained 5,600 vacuum tubes, 18,000 crystal diodes, and 300 relays. He had a clock speed of 2.25 MHz and an internal memory of up to 12 000 characters. It was equipped with sequential memory on based piezo electric crystals, magnetic tape, and printer. This computer was the first computer that contained a buffer of type cache.
EDVAC computer, which constructed and designed by Von Neuman itself contained several transistors.
In Wang Laboratories was constructed a ferrite memory. Ferrite memory system consisted of copper wires that formed a grid and were closed in the frame. In places where the wires were crossed was induced magnetic field from electric current, which magnetized a ferrite core.
In 1952, IBM the company built its first electronic digital computer - IBM 701. It was the first computer in which instead of punch cards was used magnetic tape. One such tape had the same capacity as 12,000 punch cards. The computer contained the memory of Wiliamsových vacuum tubes with a capacity of 9 KB (2048 36 bit words) and was able to multiply at a rate of 0.00045. As hard drives used magnetic drum memory with a capacity of 9K bytes. The later model IBM 704 was improved about a ferrite memory.
Computers 2 Generation - Van computer
William Shockley in 1951 patented a semiconductor transistor, which became the basis for the second generation of computers.
A computer comprising a first transistor computer was EDVAC. The computer contained 5,937 vacuum tubes, 12,000 diodes and 328 traznzisorov. The computer was able to multiply and divide in approximately 0.003 seconds with numbers with floating point. Contained 5.5 kB memory (1000 44 bit words). To join, use punch card reader (IBM) and the photoelectric tape reader. Later, the computer memory by ferrite, a magnetic drum memory and device for reading and writing magnetic tapes. The computer was used, of course, mainly for military purposes.
IBM has successfully started selling the first mass-produced computer IBM 650, which included input - výstubné device to punched cards and on magnetic tape unit. Computer itself weighed 900 kg and basic equipment consisted of three separate units - console unit type 650, type 650 power unit and reader / punch cards razička 533 + 537 Computer could be supplemented disk drive 355, 543 punch card reader, razičkou punch card 544, the control unit 652, an auxiliary unit 653, an auxiliary alphabetic jednotkou654, drive to read and write magnetic tape 727 and the interrogator unit (838).
In 1954, Gordon Teal of Texas Instruments invented a way to replace transistors monocrystalline silicon dioxide. This step transistors become cheaper and smaller sizes came from a few centimeters to a few millimeters. The company Texas Instruments became the first fimou, which began producing silicon transistors.
IBM built the first purely commercial transistor computer IBM 702
IBM said magnetic disk storage RAMAC350 (Random Access Method of Accounting and Control). This unit contained 50 steel plates with a magnetic surface, which were mounted in a vertical shaft in which it moved. Read-write head stood on the spot. disk had a capacity of 5,000,000 bytes.
Jack St. Clair Kilby of Texas Instruments designed the first integrated circuit.
Siemens built the first fully transistorized computer in Europe.
Jean Hoerni introduced the first flat semiconductor transistor made of thin semiconductor layers.
Created the first programming languages ALGOL, FORTRAN and LISP 2 and was later created more than 200 programming languages.
They began to produce transistors with production lines.
IBM has unveiled two very successful types of computers. IBM 1401 for commercialization and IBM in 1620 for scientific purposes. Both computers are already equipped with ferrite memory. Model 1401 allows you to connect memory with a maximum size of 14 000 characters (each character has 6 bits) and model 1620 to 60,000 characters.
In 1960 the company introduced the first minicomputer, DEC PDP-1 (Programmed Data Processor-1). It was the first computer equipped with a standard graphic display, which was also the first computer game called Spacewar.
It was created by a programming language COBOL.
Mark Rosenblatt published work on the perceptron, which became the foundation of artificial intelligence.
It was the first computer designed exclusively for teaching called PLATO. Connects to a television screen and was equipped with a special keyboard.
Computers 3 Generation
Computers third and higher generations are built on an integrated circuit, which on its chips integrate a large number of transistors.
With the gradual development of integrated circuits is increasing degree of integration (number of members integrated on-chip integrated circuit). By the following integrated components can distinguish the following levels of integration:
SSI - Small Scale Integration
MSI - Middle Scale Integration
LSI - Large Scale Integration
VLSI - Very Large Scale Integration (sometimes XLSI - Xtra Large Scale Integration)
Computers 4 generation - Personal Computers - Desktop and Tower]
Characteristics of the fourth generation of computers:
miniaturization of integrated circuits
microprocessor
MOS memory
data communications
Modems
floppy disks
hard drives
microcomputers
various software applications
extension of operating systems
Computer 5 Generation
Fifth generation computers are still a pipedream. Sometimes described as machines with artificial intelligence.
