The First Computers

Harvard Mark I, ENIAC, UNIVAC I

Early computers launch new era in mathematics,
physics, engineering and economics

“Where a calculator on the ENIAC is equipped with

18,000 vacuum tubes and weighs 30 tons,
computers in the future may have only 1,000
vacuum tubes and perhaps weigh 1.5 tons.”
(Popular Mechanics, 1949)

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 First Generation Hardware
(1951-1959)

Vacuum Tubes
Large, not very reliable, generated a lot of heat

Magnetic Drum
Memory device that rotated under a read/write head

Card Readers  Magnetic Tape Drives

Sequential auxiliary storage devices

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 Second Generation Hardware
(1959-1965)

Transistor
Replaced vacuum tube, fast, small, durable, cheap

Magnetic Cores
Replaced magnetic drums, information available
instantly

Magnetic Disks
Replaced magnetic tape, data can be accessed directly

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 Third Generation Hardware
(1965-1971)

Integrated Circuits
Replaced circuit boards, smaller, cheaper, faster, more
reliable

Transistors
Now used for memory construction

Terminal
An input/output device with a keyboard and screen

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 Fourth Generation Hardware
(1971-?)

Large-scale Integration
Great advances in chip technology

PCs, the Commercial Market, Workstations

Personal Computers and Workstations emerge
New companies emerge: Apple, Sun, Dell …

Laptops
Everyone has his/her own portable computer

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 Parallel Computing

Parallel Computing
Computers rely on interconnected central processing
and/or memory units that increase processing speed

“Real concurrency -- in which one program

actually continues to function while you call up
and use another -- is more amazing but of small
use to the average person. How many programs
do you have that take more than a few seconds
to perform any task?”
New York Times, 1989
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