lOMoARcPSD|16248954
GENERATIONS OF COMPUTER
Contents
Generations of Computers........................................................................................................................3
First Generation (1940-1956)..................................................................................................................3
Second Generation (1956-1963)..............................................................................................................4
Third Generation.....................................................................................................................................5
Fourth Generation (1971-1990)...............................................................................................................6
Fifth Generation (Present and Beyond)...................................................................................................7
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Generations of Computers
The history of computer development is often referred to in reference to the different generations
of computing devices. Each generation of computer is characterized by a major technological
development that fundamentally changed the way computers operate, resulting in increasingly
smaller, cheaper, more powerful, more efficient and reliable devices.
There are five generations of computer.
First Generation (1940-1956)
The first computers used vacuum tubes for circuitry and magnetic drums for memory, and were
often enormous, taking up entire rooms. They were very expensive to operate and in addition to
using a great deal of electricity, generated a lot of heat, which was often the cause of
malfunctions.
First generation computers relied on machine language, the lowest-level programming language
understood by computers, to perform operations, and they could only solve one problem at a
time. Input was based on punched cards and paper tape, and output was displayed on printouts.
The main features of First Generation are:
➢ Vacuum tube technology
➢ Unreliable
➢ Supported Machine language only
➢ Very costly
➢ Huge size
Some examples are:
➢ ENIAC
➢ EDVAC
➢ UNIVAC
Figure 1 UNIVAC
GENERATIONS OF COMPUTER
Contents
Generations of Computers........................................................................................................................3
First Generation (1940-1956)..................................................................................................................3
Second Generation (1956-1963)..............................................................................................................4
Third Generation.....................................................................................................................................5
Fourth Generation (1971-1990)...............................................................................................................6
Fifth Generation (Present and Beyond)...................................................................................................7
Downloaded by bakr amar ()
, lOMoARcPSD|16248954
Generations of Computers
The history of computer development is often referred to in reference to the different generations
of computing devices. Each generation of computer is characterized by a major technological
development that fundamentally changed the way computers operate, resulting in increasingly
smaller, cheaper, more powerful, more efficient and reliable devices.
There are five generations of computer.
First Generation (1940-1956)
The first computers used vacuum tubes for circuitry and magnetic drums for memory, and were
often enormous, taking up entire rooms. They were very expensive to operate and in addition to
using a great deal of electricity, generated a lot of heat, which was often the cause of
malfunctions.
First generation computers relied on machine language, the lowest-level programming language
understood by computers, to perform operations, and they could only solve one problem at a
time. Input was based on punched cards and paper tape, and output was displayed on printouts.
The main features of First Generation are:
➢ Vacuum tube technology
➢ Unreliable
➢ Supported Machine language only
➢ Very costly
➢ Huge size
Some examples are:
➢ ENIAC
➢ EDVAC
➢ UNIVAC
Figure 1 UNIVAC
