The history of computer development
is often referred to in reference to the different generations of computing
devices. Each of the five generations of computers is characterized by a major
technological development that fundamentally changed the way computers operate,
resulting in increasingly smaller, cheaper, more powerful and more efficient
and reliable computing devices. These are-
First Generation (1940-1956) Vacuum Tubes
The first computers used vacuum
tubes for circuitry and magnetic drums for memory, and were often enormous,
taking up entire rooms. They were very expensive to operate and in addition to
using a great deal of electricity, generated a lot of heat, which was often the
cause of malfunctions.
First generation computers relied
on machine language, the lowest-level programming language understood by
computers, to perform operations, and they could only solve one problem at a
time.
The UNIVAC and ENIAC computers are
examples of first-generation computing devices. The UNIVAC was the first
commercial computer delivered to a business client, the U.S. Census Bureau in
1951.
Second Generation (1956-1963) Transistors
Transistors replaced vacuum tubes
and ushered in the second generation of computers. The transistor was invented
in 1947 but did not see widespread use in computers until the late 1950s. The
transistor was far superior to the vacuum tube, allowing computers to become
smaller, faster, cheaper, more energy-efficient and more reliable than their
first-generation predecessors.
Second-generation computers moved
from cryptic binary machine language to symbolic, or assembly, languages, which
allowed programmers to specify instructions in words. High-level programming
languages were also being developed at this time, such as early versions of
COBOL and FORTRAN. These were also the first computers that stored their
instructions in their memory, which moved from a magnetic drum to magnetic core
technology. The first computers of this generation were developed for the
atomic energy industry.
Third Generation (1964-1971) Integrated Circuits
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 system, 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.
Fourth Generation
(1971-Present) Microprocessors
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.
Fifth Generation
(Present and Beyond) Artificial Intelligence
Fifth generation
computing devices, based on artificial intelligence, are still in development,
though there are some applications, such as voice recognition, that are being
used today. The use of parallel processing and superconductors is helping to
make artificial intelligence a reality.
Quantum computation and
molecular and nanotechnology will radically change the face of computers in
years to come. The goal of fifth-generation computing is to develop devices
that respond to natural language input and are capable of learning and self-organization.
Read More
