Computer Generations

Option A: Vaccum Tubes and Magnetic Drum

Option B: PARAM 8000

Transistors

1980

Machine language

GFLOPS

Fourth Generation

Napier’s Bones (1617)

Inventor: John Napier (Scotland)

Characteristics: 

• Three dimensional structure.
• Holding numbers from 0 to 9 only.
• Represent graphical structure of calculatingresult.

Applications:

• Perform multiplication on numbers.
• Technology used for calculation called Rabdologia.

Pascaline (1642)

Inventor: Blaise Pascal (France)

Characteristics:

• First mechanical adding machine.
• It was structured like rectangular box, with eight disc (represent number of units).

Applications:

Perform addition and subtraction of two numbers.
Mainly designed with regard to the pressure of liquid.

Analytical Engine (1837)

Inventor: Charles Babbage (Father of Computer) (London)

Characteristics:

• First general-purpose computer.
• Stored program in the form of ‘pegs’ also called barrels.

Applications:

• It was a decimal machine used sign and magnitude for representation of a number.

The Analytical Engine developed during first generation of computers used ___Counter wheels _____ as a memory unit.
[RBI Grade B 2012]

EDSAC (1949)

Inventor: John Von Neumann (America)

Characteristics: 

• It was first computer which provided storage capacity.
• First computer program was run on machine.

Applications:

• Capable of storing instructions and data in memory.
• Used mercury delay lines for memory, vacuumtubes for logic.

Computer size was very large in first generation

Generation: First ((1940-56))

Switching Device: Vacuum tubes 

Storage Device/Speed: Magnetic drums (333 micro seconds)

Operating System: Batch operating system (Machine language (Binary number 0’s and 1’s)

Characteristics:

• Fastest computing device.
• Generate large amount of heat.
• Non-portable.

Applications:

Used for scientific purpose e.g. ENIAC, UNIVAC, MARK-1, etc.

A generation refers to the state of improvement in the development of system. Computers are built of electromechanical, before generation.

First generation computers used ___machine___ languages.
[SBI Clerk 2012]

Generation: First ((1940-56))

Switching Device: Vacuum tubes 

Storage Device/Speed: Magnetic drums (333 micro seconds)

Operating System: Batch operating system (Machine language (Binary number 0’s and 1’s)

Characteristics:

• Fastest computing device.
• Generate large amount of heat.
• Non-portable.

Applications:

Used for scientific purpose e.g. ENIAC, UNIVAC, MARK-1, etc.

Generation: Second (1956-63) 

Switching Device: Transistors (Made up of semiconductor)

Storage Device/Speed: Magnetic core technology (10 micro seconds)

Operating System: Time sharing OS, Multitasking OS (Assembly language, high level language)

Characteristics:

• More reliable and less prone to hardware failure.
• Portable and generate less amount of heat.

Applications:

Used for commercial production e.g. PDP-8, IBM-1401, etc.

Generation: Second (1956-63) 

Switching Device: Transistors (Made up of semiconductor)

Storage Device/Speed: Magnetic core technology (10 micro seconds)

Operating System: Time sharing OS, Multitasking OS (Assembly language, high level language)

Characteristics:

• More reliable and less prone to hardware failure.
• Portable and generate less amount of heat.

Applications:

Used for commercial production e.g. PDP-8, IBM-1401, etc.

Generation: Third (1964-71)

Switching Device: Integrated Circuits (ICs) (Made up of silicon)

Storage Device/Speed: Magnetic core as primary storage medium (100 nano seconds)

Operating System: Real-time system (High level language (FORTRAN, COBOL, ALGOL))

Characteristics:

• Consumed less power.
• Highly sophisticated technology required.

Applications:

Database management system e.g. NCR-395, B6500, etc.

integrated circuit.
[IBPS Clerk 2014, 15]

Generation: Third (1964-71)

Switching Device: Integrated Circuits (ICs) (Made up of silicon)

Storage Device/Speed: Magnetic core as primary storage medium (100 nano seconds)

Operating System: Real-time system (High level language (FORTRAN, COBOL, ALGOL))

Characteristics:

• Consumed less power.
• Highly sophisticated technology required.

Applications:

Database management system e.g. NCR-395, B6500, etc.

integrated circuit
[RBI Grade B 2012]

microprocessors
[SBI PO 2014]

fifth generation computer

Both ‘1’ and ‘2’

system unit, input/output, memory

Personal computers widely available to individual workers with which they can access information from layer systems and increase their personal productivity
[IBPS PO 2012]

Personal computer [SBI Clerk 2014]

microcomputer

mainframe computers

microcomputers
[SBI Clerk 2012]

A PDA
[SBI PO 2013]

handheld computer

server

Minicomputer

Mainframe
[SBI Clerk 2012, IBPS Clerk 2015]

node

Supercomputers

supercomputer

Supercomputer
These are the fastest and most expensive machines. They have high processing speed compared to other computers. Supercomputers are most powerful, large in size and memory, compared to all other computers. The speed of supercomputers are measured in FLOPS (Floating Point Operations Per Second).

Supercomputers are used for highly calculation intensive tasks, such as weather forecasting, nuclear research, military agencies and scientific research laboratories.

(i) CRAY-1 was the world’s first supercomputer introduced by Seymour R CRAY in 1976.
(ii) PARAM was the first supercomputer developed in India in 1990.
(iii) PARAM ISHAN is the latest machine in the series of PARAM made by C-DAC and IIT Guwahati on 20th September, 2016.

Pratyush India’s fastest and first multi-petaflops (PF) supercomputer named Pratyush was unveiled at Pune based Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM).
Pratyush has 6.8 PF computational power installed at two MoES Institutes. 4.0 Peta Flops HPC facility at IITM, Pune and 2.8 Peta Flops facility at NCMRWF, Noida. Pratyush is fourth fastest supercomputer in the world dedicated for weather and climate research.

Note: PF is a measure of a computer’s processing speed.

Pratyush India’s fastest and first multi-petaflops (PF) supercomputer named Pratyush was unveiled at Pune based Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM).
Pratyush has 6.8 PF computational power installed at two MoES Institutes. 4.0 Peta Flops HPC facility at IITM, Pune and 2.8 Peta Flops facility at NCMRWF, Noida. Pratyush is fourth fastest supercomputer in the world dedicated for weather and climate research.

Note: PF is a measure of a computer’s processing speed.

Pratyush India’s fastest and first multi-petaflops (PF) supercomputer named Pratyush was unveiled at Pune based Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM).
Pratyush has 6.8 PF computational power installed at two MoES Institutes. 4.0 Peta Flops HPC facility at IITM, Pune and 2.8 Peta Flops facility at NCMRWF, Noida. Pratyush is fourth fastest supercomputer in the world dedicated for weather and climate research.

Note: PF is a measure of a computer’s processing speed.

continuous electrical pulses

Analog computer

Digital

Microcomputer A microprocessor-based computer, consisting of an CPU, internal semiconductor memory, input and output sections and a system bus, all on one, or several monolithic IC chips inserted into one or several PC boards.

Minicomputer Considered to be more capable than a microcomputer but less powerful than a mainframe.

Supercomputer The largest mainframe computer featuring exceptionally high speed operation while manipulating huge amounts of information.

Hybrid Computer These computers are made by taking the best features of the analog computer and digital computer.

Hybrid Computer
These are the combination of analog and digital computers. Machines used in hospitals like ECG and DIALYSIS are the commonly used hybrid computers.

Special Purpose Computer
Special purpose computers are those computers which are used to solve a single and dedicated types of problem. e.g. Automatic aircraft landing, multimedia computer, etc.

Quantum computer was first introduced by Richard Feynman. It uses quantum mechanical phenomena. It is the fastest computer imitating brain working.
Nano computer is a general team used to describe a computer smaller than a microcomputer, usually about the size of a credit card. e.g. Raspberry Pi which could be used in schools to teach science to children.
Pratyush India’s fastest and first multi-petaflops (PF) supercomputer named Pratyush was unveiled at Pune based Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM).
Pratyush has 6.8 PF computational power installed at two MoES Institutes. 4.0 Peta Flops HPC facility at IITM, Pune and 2.8 Peta Flops facility at NCMRWF, Noida. Pratyush is fourth fastest supercomputer in the world dedicated for weather and climate research.
Note PF is a measure of a computer’s processing speed.

Special Purpose Computer
Special purpose computers are those computers which are used to solve a single and dedicated types of problem. e.g. Automatic aircraft landing, multimedia computer, etc.

Quantum computer was first introduced by Richard Feynman. It uses quantum mechanical phenomena. It is the fastest computer imitating brain working.
Nano computer is a general team used to describe a computer smaller than a microcomputer, usually about the size of a credit card. e.g. Raspberry Pi which could be used in schools to teach science to children.
Pratyush India’s fastest and first multi-petaflops (PF) supercomputer named Pratyush was unveiled at Pune based Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM).
Pratyush has 6.8 PF computational power installed at two MoES Institutes. 4.0 Peta Flops HPC facility at IITM, Pune and 2.8 Peta Flops facility at NCMRWF, Noida. Pratyush is fourth fastest supercomputer in the world dedicated for weather and climate research.
Note PF is a measure of a computer’s processing speed.

Applications of Computer
Some of the areas where computers are being used areas follows

• Banking Computers are used in bank for electronic money transfer, making deposits, voucher, bank sheet, etc.
• Education Computer is a very effective tool which can be used for teaching and learning, result processing, student data processing, notes preparation, etc.
• Entertainment Different types of entertainment fields such as multimedia, film making with animation, graphics, audio and visual design are done with the help of computer.
• Offices Computers are used for preparing reports, storing/deleting reports, updating reports, etc. in office.
• Advertisement Computers are used in the different fields of advertisement such as business advertisement, film advertisement, education advertisement, etc.
• Business Computers are used in business foraccounting, keeping all records up-to date,etc.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is an area of computer science that emphasises the creation of intelligent machines that work and react like humans. Some of the activities computers with AI are designed for include : speech recognition, learning, planning, problem solving, etc.

Robotics is the branch of engineering and science that deals with the design, construction, operation and use of robots as well as computer systems for their control, sensory feedback and information processing.

Explanation: A computer is a machine that can be programmed to carry out sequences of arithmetic or logical operations automatically. It is not limited to performing calculations only, but can also perform a wide range of tasks.

Explanation: The operating system (OS) is the main software that manages the computer hardware and software resources and provides common services for computer programs. It is a set of programs that control and manage the computer's hardware and software resources, and allows applications to run on the computer.

Explanation: A computer network is a group of computers that are linked together and function together, allowing them to share resources and communicate with each other. Examples include local area networks (LANs) and wide area networks (WANs).

Explanation: Moore's law is a prediction made by Gordon Moore, co-founder of Intel, in 1965, which states that the number of transistors on a microchip will double approximately every two years, leading to an exponential increase in processing power and decrease in cost per transistor.

Explanation: Peripheral devices include input devices (such as keyboards and mice), output devices (such as monitors and printers), and input/output devices (such as touchscreens) that allow information to be retrieved from an external source and enable the result of operations to be saved and retrieved. They are not responsible for carrying out arithmetic and logical operations, managing hardware and software resources, or providing common services for computer programs.

Explanation: A computer system is a complete computer that includes the hardware, operating system, and peripheral equipment needed for full operation. It can also refer to a group of computers that are linked and function together, such as a computer network or computer cluster.

Explanation: The first digital electronic calculating machines were developed during World War II, and the Colossus computer was one of the earliest examples of this technology. It was developed by British codebreakers to help decrypt messages sent by the German military

Explanation: Moore's law is a prediction made by Intel co-founder Gordon Moore in 1965 that the number of transistors in a microprocessor would double roughly every two years. This prediction has held true for several decades and has been a driving force behind the rapid advancement of computer technology.

Explanation: The central processing unit (CPU) is the processing element in a modern computer system. It carries out arithmetic and logical operations and responds to stored information. Other elements in a computer system include peripheral devices, such as input and output devices, and memory chips

Explanation: According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the first known use of the term computer was in a 1613 book called The Yong Mans Gleanings by the English writer Richard Brathwait.

Explanation: In the early days, the term "computer" referred to a person who carried out calculations or computations.

Explanation: The first digital electronic calculating machines were developed during World War II.

Explanation: The processing element in a modern computer carries out arithmetic and logical operations.

Explanation: Peripheral devices in a computer system allow information to be retrieved from an external source.

Explanation: The Antikythera mechanism is believed to be the earliest known mechanical analog computer, designed to calculate astronomical positions. It was discovered in 1901 in the Antikythera wreck off the Greek island of Antikythera, between Kythera and Crete, and has been dated to approximately c. 100 BC.

Explanation: The slide rule is a hand-operated analog computer for doing multiplication and division. As slide rule development progressed, added scales provided reciprocals, squares and square roots, cubes and cube roots, as well as transcendental functions such as logarithms and exponentials, circular and hyperbolic trigonometry, and other functions.

Explanation: The slide rule was invented around 1620-1630 by the English clergyman William Oughtred, shortly after the publication of the concept of the logarithm.

Explanation: The planimeter is a manual instrument used to calculate the area of a closed figure by tracing over it with a mechanical linkage.

Explanation: The differential analyzer is a mechanical analog computer designed to solve differential equations by integration, using wheel-and-disc mechanisms to perform the integration.

Explanation: In 1831-1835, mathematician and engineer Giovanni Plana devised a Perpetual Calendar machine, which, through a system of pulleys and cylinders and over, could predict the perpetual calendar for every year from AD 0 (that is, 1 BC) to AD 4000, keeping track of leap years and varying day length.

Explanation: The Astrolabe was invented in the Hellenistic world in either the 1st or 2nd centuries BC and is often attributed to Hipparchus. It was effectively an analog computer capable of working out several different kinds of problems

Explanation: Abi Bakr of Isfahan. He invented the astrolabe incorporating a mechanical calendar computer and gear-wheels in 1235.

Explanation: Solving problems in proportion, trigonometry, multiplication and division. The sector was developed in the late 16th century and found application in gunnery, surveying, and navigation.

Explanation: A hand-operated analog computer for doing multiplication and division. The slide rule was invented around 1620-1630 by the English clergyman William Oughtred.

Explanation: Vannevar Bush and others developed mechanical differential analyzers starting in the 1920s. Sir William Thomson had discussed the possible construction of such calculators earlier but had been stymied by the limited output torque of the ball-and-disk integrators.

Explanation: The Antikythera mechanism is believed to be the earliest known mechanical analog computer, designed to calculate astronomical positions. It was discovered in 1901 in the Antikythera wreck off the Greek island of Antikythera.

Explanation: The planisphere was a star chart invented by Abū Rayhān al-Bīrūnī in the early 11th century.

Explanation: He devised a Perpetual Calendar machine, which could predict the perpetual calendar for every year from AD 0 to AD 4000.

Explanation: Predicting tide levels for a set period at a particular location. The tide-predicting machine was invented by the Scottish scientist Sir William Thomson in 1872.

Explanation: Charles Babbage is considered the "father of the computer" for conceptualizing and inventing the first mechanical computer in the early 19th century.

Explanation: Babbage's first mechanical computer was called the Analytical Engine, which incorporated an arithmetic logic unit, control flow, and integrated memory

Explanation: Data input was provided to the Analytical Engine via punched cards, a method used at the time to direct mechanical looms.

Explanation: The construction of the Analytical Engine was hindered by political and financial difficulties, as well as Babbage's desire to develop an increasingly sophisticated computer.

Explanation: The tide-predicting machine, invented by William Thomson in 1872, was the first modern analog computer.

Explanation: An analog computer uses direct mechanical or electrical models of problems as a basis for computation.

Explanation: The differential analyzer was a mechanical analog computer designed to solve differential equations using wheel-and-disc mechanisms.

Explanation: The differential analyzer was conceptualized by James Thomson, the elder brother of William Thomson, in 1876.

Explanation: The differential analyzer was built by H. L. Hazen and Vannevar Bush at MIT starting in 1927.

Explanation: A dozen differential analyzers were built before their obsolescence became obvious

Explanation: The differential analyzer was the first modern analog computer, which was built by H. L. Hazen and Vannevar Bush at MIT starting in 1927.

Explanation: Analog computers used a direct mechanical or electrical model of the problem as a basis for computation, but they were generally not programmable and lacked the versatility and accuracy of modern digital computers.

Explanation: Punched cards were a method of providing input to early computers and were used to direct mechanical looms such as the Jacquard loom. For computers, punched cards allowed for the input of programs and data.

Explanation: Charles Babbage invented the Analytical Engine, but his son Henry Babbage completed a simplified version of the Analytical Engine's computing unit (the mill) in 1888.

Explanation: James Thomson, the elder brother of Sir William Thomson, conceptualized the differential analyzer, a mechanical analog computer designed to solve differential equations by integration using wheel-and-disc mechanisms.

Explanation: The differential analyzer built upon the mechanical integrators of James Thomson and the torque amplifiers invented by H. W. Nieman.

Explanation: By the 1950s, the success of digital electronic computers had spelled the end for most analog computing machines.