Chapter 5 BIS

Second Generation Computers (1956-1963)

During this period, vacuum tubes were replaced with transistors. → The transistor was far superior to the vacuum tube, allowed computers to become smaller, faster, cheaper, more energy efficient, and more reliable that first generation computers. → Supported assembly languages and some high-level programming languages like FORTRAN and COBOL. → Examples: IBM 1620, IBM 7094 etc.

Further Developments in IT

Networks Databases Personal Computer Server Mainframe Supercomputer Secondary Storage Input and Output Devices

Fifth Generation Computers (Present and Beyond)

This generation of computers, based on Artificial Intelligence, is still in development → Artificial Intelligence includes: robotics, neural networks, game playing, development of expert systems to make decisions in real life situations and natural language understanding. → The use of parallel processing and supercomputers is helping to make artificial intelligence a reality. → Quantum computation and molecular and nanotechnology will radically change the face of computers in the 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 → Aims to be able to solve highly complex problems including decision-making and logical reasoning. They also aim to be able to recognize images and graphs.

Information technology

is the application of computers to store, study, retrieve, transmit and manipulate data or information, often in the context of business or other enterprise.

Supercomputer

• A fast computer normally dedicated to scientific processing • It is used to optimize the speed of calculation • The speed advantage is to quickly execute a mathematical operation on all the values • Consists of a large number of processors and support simultaneous processing • Weather forecasting is one application of supercomputing

Personal Computer

• A small, general purpose computer, used by one person • The computer can be used stand-alone or access systems or data over a network • It can be a desktop model or a laptop • The PC has an operating system • Business PCs are networked within the organization and give access to the organization's server/mainframe systems

Disadvantages

• Air-conditioning was required • Highly sophisticated technology required for the manufacturing of integrated circuit chips

Databases

• Computer systems hold large stores of data/information/ This might be text documents on PCs or standing and transaction data held by business systems • This data is held on secondary storage, typically on hard disks, with large organizations needing vast data storage capacity • The data needs to be organized, updated and accessible using a database management system (DBMS)

Disadvantages of Second Generation Computers

• Cooling system was still required • Constant maintenance was required • Commercial production was difficult • Only used for specific purposes • Costly and not versatile

Generations of Computers

• First Generation Computers (1940-1956) • Second Generation Computers (1956-1963) • Third Generation Computers (1964-1971) • Fourth Generation Computers (1971-Present) • Fifth Generation Computers (Present and Beyond)

Advantages of Fifth Generation Computers

• High Speed • More reliable • Available in Different sizes with unique features

Input and Output Devices

• Input devices are external/physical devices that are used in order to input data into the computer for processing • Input devices: keyboard, mouse, touchpad, trackball, joystick, touch screen, scanners and microphone • Output devices produce the processed results. Output devices are typically: CRT monitor, flat panel display, ink jet printer, and laser printer.

Server

• It is a computer that provides services to other computers • It is a networked computer that runs applications and/or stores software/data for access by end user computers • The server might be just an ordinary PC or it may be something much more powerful • Used by many large organizations (universities, etc)

Mainframe

• It is a large powerful computer used for commercial applications - essentially a server but distinguished by its size and resilience • A number of processors run the applications and further processors are responsible for input/output processing, memory control etc. • It is designed to provide a very high level of service availability • It is used for mission-critical systems connected to large networks and large databases

Advantages of Fourth Generation Computers

• More powerful and reliable than previous generations • Small in size • Fast processing power with less power consumption • No air condition required • Fan for heat discharging and thus to keep cold

Networks

• PC's at work are connected by local area networks (LAN) for communications and access to enterprise systems

Disadvantages of Fifth Generation Computers

• Possibility that computers will become smart enough to replace humans altogether • Many people are becoming reliant on the advanced technology for tasks that they can do without computers.

Secondary Storage

• Secondary storage is a non-volatile medium for storing software and data - it is a hard disk in our PCs. • The size of the hard disk on a PC is typically in the range of 128 to 1000 GB. • Servers may require more storage • Secondary storage devices include: diskettes, CDs, DVDs, and pen drives • ROM is another example of non-volatile memory

Advantages of Second Generation Computers

• Smaller in size compared to first generation computers • They were more reliable • Used less energy and were not heated • Better speed • Better portability as compared to first generation computers • Used assembly language instead of machine language

Advantages of Third Generation Computers

• Smaller in size compared to previous generations • More reliable • Used less energy • Produced less heat than previous generations • Better speed and use fan for heath discharge • Less expensive

Disadvantages of First Generation Computers

• The computers were very large in size • They consumed a large amount of energy • They heated very soon due to thousands on vacuum tubes • Cooling system was required because of the heat • Slow speed • Non-portable

Disadvantages of Fourth Generation Computers

• The latest technology is required for manufacturing of microprocessors • Air-conditioning was still required in many cases due to Integrated Circuits.

Advantages of First Generation Computers

• Vacuum tubes were the only electronic component available during those days • Vacuum tube technology made it possible to make electronic digital computers

Third-Generation Computers (1964-1971)

→ The development of the integrated circuit was the hallmark of this generation computer → 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 started to interact with this generation computers through keyboards and monitors interfaced with an operating system → This allowed the device to run many different applications at one time. → Computers because accessible to the mass audience for the first time because they were smaller and cheaper than their predecessors.

Fourth Generation Computers (1971-Present)

→ Thousands of integrated circuits were built onto a single silicon chip (microprocessors) → What in the first generation filled an entire room could now fit in the palm of the hand. → The Intel 4004 chip was able to locate all the components of the computer - from the CPU and memory to input/output controls → As these small computers became more powerful, they could be linked together to form networks, which eventually led to the development of Internet. → Fourth generation computers also saw the development of Graphic User Interfaces, mouse, and handheld devices. → Languages used by this computer: C, C++, SQL etc.

First Generation Computers (1940-1956)

→The earliest computers are labeled as first-generation computers. → They were large machines; the logic functions were implemented using valves or vacuum tubes that looked like small light bulbs. → Early computers were not the beginning of data processing. Prior to the use of the computers, large organizations had made use of punched card systems. This involved recording data by punching holes in the standard sized cards. Data on the punched cards could be sorted, collated and tabulated using a series of conventional machines. → The first use of the punched card system was the Hollerith system, which was developed for processing 1890 US Census data. → Some computers of the First Generation are: ENIAC, EDVAC, UNIVAC etc.