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The First Computer
In only a few decades, the computer has been transformed from a huge room sized contraption to the tiny laptop that sits on our desks today. This transformation is all the more miraculous when one takes the time to consider that these huge advances in technology have been accompanied by just as startling a reduction in price. While the building and maintenance of a computer once required the funding of entire governments and corporations, computer technology far more powerful is now within the financial reach of just about every middle class family.
Those who study computers and computer technologies often refer to computer technology in generational terms. The first computers, those of the first generation, used vacuum tubes for their computing power. This first generation of computers began in 1940 and stretched through the mid 1950s. These early computers, such as the famous UNIVAC and ENIAC, used vacuum tubes for their circuitry, combined with magnetic drums for memory storage. As one would expect, these early machines were huge, filling entire rooms with row upon row of vacuum tubes and circuits.
In addition, these early computers were extremely expensive, not only to build but to maintain as well. It cost a great deal of money to operate, maintain and repair these early computers, and the huge number of vacuum tubes they contained made them prone to overheating. This excess heat would often cause malfunctions, sometimes resulting in the loss of days or even weeks worth of data.
These first generation computers relied on machine languages to perform their basic functions, and they were limited to solving only one problem at a time. Even the most inexpensive computer manufactured today is capable of performing far more calculations, at a fraction of the cost, of these earliest computers. The input for these first generation computers was in the form of punch cards and paper tape, with the output displayed on huge printouts.
The next leap forward in the world of the early computer came in 1956, with the use the transistor. This new transistor technology would replace the vacuum tubes that typified the first generation machines. This new transistor based technology had a number of important advantages over vacuum tubes, including reduced heat, lower cost and greater reliability. The use of transistors also allowed computers to become much smaller, allowing them to be used in businesses, educational institutions and similar venues. Even though the technology was much improved, however, they still relied on the use of punch cards for input and computer printouts for outputting data.
These transistor based computers, however, relied not on the machine language of their predecessors, but on more symbolic language, allowing computer programmers to specify their instructions in words. This time period also saw the introduction of high level programming languages such as COBOL and FORTRAN, and versions of these programs continue to be used in mainframe computing even today.
These transistor based computers are also unique in being the first machines to store their instructions in memory, allowing them to move from magnetic drum to more advanced magnetic core technology.
The third generation of computers represented another great leap forward, brought about by the use of the integrated circuit. This allowed transistors to be made even smaller, and to be placed on silicon chips known as semiconductors, again dramatically increasing the speed and efficiency of the resulting computer. This shrinking of components also allowed computers to become accessible and useful to a far wider audience.
The fourth generation of computers was made possible by the appearance of the microprocessor in 1971. This advance allowed thousands of integrated circuits to be placed on a single silicon chip, providing for radically smaller and more efficient computers. This advance allowed everything from the input and output to the memory to take place on a single chip.
The fifth, but surely not final, generation of computers is represented by the modern day computer, and by computers yet to come. The foundations for this future technology, from artificial technology to nanotechnology, is already in place, and the best scientists in the world are working hard to make further advances for the betterment of mankind.
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