The Evolution of Computers

1. A computer is an electronic device used to process information. It is this function of the computer that placed it at the center of our transition from the industrial period of our society to the information age. Some of the key issues regarding the role and usage of today's computers are summarized below. Today, we encounter computers in almost every aspect of society. Computers are highly visible in such professions as education, science, medicine, and business, but they also can be found behind-the-scenes at the grocery store, in our automobiles, microwave ovens, and VCRs.

2. Computers have evolved through several generations. Each new generation is based on technological innovations and new methods of processing data.

The first generation began with the development of the earliest large mainframe computers. These room-sized computers, such as the UNIVAC 1, were based on electromechanical devices and vacuum-tube technology.

3. Computers based on the transistor, which was invented in the late 1950s, mark the beginning of the second generation of computers. Transistors brought about the development of smaller, faster, and more efficient computers.

The third generation of computers used integrated circuits which opened the door for the creation of even smaller and faster computers. These smaller computers were known as minicomputers and were the first to incorporate operating systems which automated many of the computer's operational tasks, tasks that had been formerly handled by humans.

4. The fourth generation of computers is characterized by large-scale integration of computer circuitry and small microprocessors. Microcomputers (also called personal computers or PCs) were based on these microprocessors and they put computing power into the hands of individual users. In the future, computers that utilize artificial intelligence technologies will be able to make decisions based on accumulated evidence.

5. Although the technological innovations that mark the different generations in the evolution of the computer are generally concerned with the central processing capabilities of the computer, a computer system is actually an integrated set of computing components. A computer system requires input devices (keyboard, mouse, scanners, etc.) to get information into the computer and output devices (monitor, printer, etc.) to get information out of the computer. These physical components of the computer are known as hardware. The set of instructions or programs that are created by programmers to control the computer's response to user input are known as software.