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The historical development of computers
History of computer development
The history of computer development
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Every advancement in computers and technology in general, has come from improvements in existing designs and the new ideas presented by computer scientists.
When the word computer is mentioned, many words come to people’s minds. Among these are laptop, pc, desktop, windows, and maybe even cellphones. Before recent times however, a computer was actually a job for “one who calculates”, or computes (dictionary). We now tend to think of computers as an object, not a person. The word computer is now used to describe a device, usually electronic, that processes data according to a set of instructions (dictionary). When most people think of computers, they think of this definition of a computer. With this definition, many objects can be considered a computer such as a calculator or a phone. A definition for computer that describes a desktop or a laptop, is a programmable machine that performs high-speed processing of numbers, as well as of text, graphics, symbols, and sound. All computers contain a central processing unit that interprets and executes instructions; input devices, such as a keyboard and a mouse, through which data and commands enter the computer; memory that enables the computer to store programs and data; and output devices, such as printers and display screens, that show the results after the computer has processed data (dictionary). This definition of computer describes the machine that this paper was typed on, the laptop you check your email on, and the desktop you update your Facebook status on. However, all these updates and advances to computers did not come up over night, not even in the last century.
In fact, considering the fact that the term computer used to describe a person who calculates, the history o...
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...History of Computers. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Feb. 2014.
"Charles Babbage (Dec. 1791 Oct. 1871)." Charles Babbage Biography, Computer Models and Inventions. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Mar. 2014.
"Computer." Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com, n.d. Web. 10 Feb. 2014.
"History of Computers and Computing, Automata, Joseph Jacquard." History of Computers and Computing, Automata, Joseph Jacquard. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Mar. 2014
"History of Computers and Computing, Mechanical Calculators, Pioneers, Blaise Pascal." History of Computers and Computing, Mechanical Calculators, Pioneers, Blaise Pascal. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Mar. 2014.
"Slide Rules." Slide Rules. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Mar. 2014.
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"The History of Early Computing Machines, from Ancient Times to 1981." Io9. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Feb. 2014.
The subject of this term paper will be about computers in the 1950’s. The divisions that will be covered are; the types of computers there were, the memory capacity of computers, the programming languages of that time, and the uses of the computers for that time. Information will be gathered from the Internet, from books, and from magazines, and from the encyclopedia.
In 500 B.C. the abacus was first used by the Babylonians as an aid to simple arithmetic. In 1623 Wihelm Schickard (1592 - 1635) invented a "Calculating Clock". This mechanical machine could add and subtract up to 6 digit numbers, and warned of an overflow by ringing a bell. J. H. Mueller comes up with the idea of the "difference engine", in 1786. This calculator could tabulate values of a polynomial. Muellers attempt to raise funds fails and the project was forgotten. Scheutz and his son Edward produced a 3rd order difference engine with a printer in 1843 and their government agreed to fund their next project.
...) - “John W. Mauchly and the Development of the ENIAC Computer.” Penn Library Exhibitions. http://www.library.upenn.edu/exhibits/rbm/maucly/jwm6.html
Computer engineering started about 5,000 years ago in China when they invented the abacus. The abacus is a manual calculator in which you move beads back and forth on rods to add or subtract. Other inventors of simple computers include Blaise Pascal who came up with the arithmetic machine for his father’s work. Also Charles Babbage produced the Analytical Engine, which combined math calculations from one problem and applied it to solve other complex problems. The Analytical Engine is similar to today’s computers.
Ceruzzi, P. E. (1998). A history of modern computing (pp. 270-272). London, England: The MIT Press.
"Technology is like fish. The longer it stays on the shelf, the less desirable it becomes." (1) Since the dawn of computers, there has always been a want for a faster, better technology. These needs can be provided for quickly, but become obsolete even quicker. In 1981, the first "true portable computer", the Osborne 1 was introduced by the Osborne Computer Corporation. (2) This computer revolutionized the way that computers were used and introduced a brand new working opportunity.
Over the years, man has come up with countless inventions, each more resourceful than the last. However, as the computer age continues, mankind is threatened. Ridiculous, some may say, but I say look around! The computer has already begun to control so many of the vital functions that man has prided himself upon before. Our lives are now dependent on a computer and what it tells you. Even now, I type this essay on a computer, trusting that it will produce a result far superior to what I can do with my own to hands.
The First Generation of Computers The first generation of computers, beginning around the end of World War 2, and continuing until around the year 1957, included computers that used vacuum tubes, drum memories, and programming in machine code. Computers at that time where mammoth machines that did not have the power our present day desktop microcomputers. In 1950, the first real-time, interactive computer was completed by a design team at MIT. The "Whirlwind Computer," as it was called, was a revamped U.S. Navy project for developing an aircraft simulator.
The fist computer, known as the abacus, was made of wood and parallel wires on which beads were strung. Arithmetic operations were performed when the beads were moved along the wire according to “programming” rules that had to be memorized by the user (Soma, 14). The second earliest computer, invented by Blaise Pascal in 1694, was a “digital calculating machine.” Pascal designed this first known digital computer to help his father, who was a tax collector. Pascal’s computer could only add numbers, and they had to be entered by turning dials (Soma, 32). It required a manual process like its ancestor, the abacus. Automation was introduced in the early 1800’s by a mathematics professor named Charles Babbage. He created an automatic calculation machine that was steam powered and stored up to 1000 50-digit numbers. Unlike its two earliest ancestors, Babbage’s invention was able to perform various operations. It relied on cards with holes punched in them, which are called “punch cards.” These cards carried out the programming and storing operations for the machine. Unluckily, Babbage’s creation flopped due to the lack of mechanical precision and the lack of demand for the product (Soma, 46). The machine could not operate efficiently because technology was t adequate to make the machine operate efficiently Computer interest dwindled for many years, and it wasn’t until the mid-1800’s that people became interested in them once again.
Since the beginning of time, humans have thought and made many inventions. Repeatedly the newer one is better than the older. Our minds have created many remarkable things, however the best invention we ever created is the computer. computers are constantly growing and becoming better every day. Every day computers are capable of doing new things. Even though computers have helped us a lot in our daily lives, many jobs have been lost because of it, now the computer can do all of the things a man can do in seconds! Everything in the world relies on computers and if a universal threat happens in which all computers just malfunction then we are doomed. Computers need to be programmed to be able to work or else it would just be a useless chunk of metal. And we humans need tools to be able to live; we program the computer and it could do a lot of necessary functions that have to be done. It is like a mutual effect between us and he computer (s01821169 1).
Computer engineering started about 5,000 years ago in China when they invented the abacus. The abacus is a manual calculator in which you move beads back and forth on rods to add or subtract. Other inventors of simple computers include Blaise Pascal who came up with the arithmetic machine for his father’s work. Also Charles Babbage produced the Analytical Engine, which combined math calculations from one problem and applied it to solve other complex problems. The Analytical Engine is similar to today’s computers.
The history of the computer dates back all the way to the prehistoric times. The first step towards the development of the computer, the abacus, was developed in Babylonia in 500 B.C. and functioned as a simple counting tool. It was not until thousands of years later that the first calculator was produced. In 1623, the first mechanical calculator was invented by Wilhelm Schikard, the “Calculating Clock,” as it was often referred to as, “performed it’s operations by wheels, which worked similar to a car’s odometer” (Evolution, 1). Still, there had not yet been anything invented that could even be characterized as a computer. Finally, in 1625 the slide rule was created becoming “the first analog computer of the modern ages” (Evolution, 1). One of the biggest breakthroughs came from by Blaise Pascal in 1642, who invented a mechanical calculator whose main function was adding and subtracting numbers. Years later, Gottfried Leibnez improved Pascal’s model by allowing it to also perform such operations as multiplying, dividing, taking the square root.
Computer is one of the greatest man made invention,. In short period since the "invention" of the computer, its impact on our lives has been felt in a variety of ways. From the work place to the home, the computer is rapidly becoming an indispensable tool. Our computer technology has been undergoing significant improvement over years. Modern technologies such as computers, cameras and mobile phones which are already on the market since early 20th century are not the same as its now. On every aspect, such as function and capabilities, it is the things that bring the development of computer and technology from 1980 to 2014.The word computer itself means an electronic device for storing and processing data, typically in binary form according to
aspect of our lives, we are faced with computers. They are in our classrooms, cars, and even used
From classroom activities to space flight and everything in between, computers are a vital part of daily life. Everything we do and every aspect of our life is affected by modern technology, like the computers. Computers let us dissect any sort of data. Computers make us reflect, hence we develop. Because of computers and the Internet, we can talk with individuals from diverse nations, and even see them via webcams.