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Computer History
This category includes questions and answers about the history of the computer. Ask questions about the first computer and major developments in computing.
5,564 Questions
Who invented the first computer keyboard?
Christopher Latham Scholes invented the qwerty keyboard in 1875.
christopher latham scholes
Picture Comment for Picture Comment. On Myspace, it means that if you leave them a comment, they'll leave you one.
What are some functions of information systems?
The following are benefits of information systems: * central access * easy backup * central distribution of information * easy record-keeping * easy tax preparation * easy customer trait identification
Did Charles Babbage have any siblings?
Charles Babbage was the eldest of four children born to Benjamin and Betty Plumleigh Babbage. His mother gave birth to a son, Henry, in October 1874, but the child died in infancy. In May 1876, she gave birth to another son, whom they also named Henry, who died as a small child. Finally, in March 1878, Betty bore a fourth child, a girl, named Mary Anne.
Charles and Mary Anne had a warm, lifelong relationship. He preceded her in death.
What are the advantages of different generations of computer over one another?
Every genration has advantages over other genration of computers, second generation of computers are in small in size as compared to first generation of computers, as well as faster in speed and more reliable, so as third genration of computers are more faster than ist and 2nd generation of computers, fast in speed, more reliable, more commercial use, less heat generation..... simpliarly 4th generation of computers are fastest than all the three generation of computers and more reliable, network fascilities and etc..... Naveed Rehman Pakistan
Why does the ENIAC computer give off so much heat?
the eniac and other computers like to give off so much heat because they use thousands of vacuum tubes that took up lots of space and gave a great deal of heat just like a light bulb does.
What was the date when the first apple computer was made?
The Apple 2 was introduced into the market on June 6, 1977.
Who invented the first usable computer?
ENIAC was unveiled in February 1946.
However UK specialists at Bletchley Park who were working on decoding the German armed forces ENIGMA traffic, built the first working computers. These were called Collosus and there were 10 working by the August 1945.
What was the world's first computer?
The credit for the first programmable digital computer goes to Colossus which was an Allied WWII code-breaking machine at Bletchley Park. For other uses of the term computer besides the modern "digital computer" one, an earlier answer might apply. For additional information including a discussion of analog and mechanical computers, non-programmable digital computers, and the general history of machine computation, see the Wikipedia article on "Computer".
What was the first computer and what does it look like?
Go to http://inventors.about.com/. Then go to the column on the left-hand side and click 'Find: A to Z Inventors'. There will be an alphabet at the top. Click on 'Z'. Then scroll down till you find Konrad Zuse. Click on the name and it will come up with a page about Konrad Zuse and a picture of the first computer.
I hope you have found what you need!!!!!!!
What were computers called in the olden days?
The astrolabe was the first computer. It was first used around 150 BC to determine the location of a person in relation to the sun or the stars. It had calculable positions that gave data in relation to many different variables. It was the first programmable instrument. It was mainly used to navigate the seas.
What are the predecessor inventions to the computer?
Well, this might suprise you. The first computer was actually originally envisioned in 1834 by Charles Babbage. It was not a computer as we think of one today. It was made up of mechanical (not electrical) parts. He never actually could build it because at the time parts could not be made to the precision needed for it to work correctly. See this page for interesting info: http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/on-line/babbage/index.asp The first electronic computer was made during WWII by the U.S. to help create mathematical tables that helped the military aim its weapons, such as, bombs, precisely. Prior to this, these tables were created by humans painstakingly calculating the values mostly by hand. This computer was named ENIAC (electronic numerical integrator and computer). To create this machine certain technologies needed to be used that already existed at the time. It took a number of years to build ENIAC and was finally finished in the fall of 1945. Read this: http://www.seas.upenn.edu/~museum/3tech.html I hope this sheds some light on the evolution of the computer. RS 13/20/51 John Vincent Atanasoff (1903-1995) Papers, 1925-2003 Special Collections Department 403 Parks Library Iowa State University Ames, IA 50011-2140 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------The other answer that is better prooved and supported is: creator: John Vincent Atanasoff (1903-1995) repository: University Archives, Special Collections Department, Iowa State University. preferred citation: John Vincent Atanasoff Papers, RS 13/20/51, Special Collections Department, Iowa State University Library. Biographical note John Vincent Atanasoff was born in 1903 in New York State. His father was a Bulgarian immigrant named Ivan (John) Atanasov and his mother was Iva Lucena Purdy, a mathematics schoolteacher. The couple had nine children and resided in Brewster, Florida, during John Vincent
How do you delete temporary files from computer?
From Start menu open "Run"
Type %temp% hit enter
Now the files shown in the file explorer are temporary internet files which you can delete as required.
You can also delete the temp files, clear history, clear cache date etc from web browsers settings. Different browser have different preferences and settings for the same.
Where did computers came from?
You can't really put the credit on just one or two people. One guy discovered electricity (B. Franklin) then another guy used this electricity to make the first micro chip. Then another guy made another part that can be found in a PC, till voila! You got one great invention that was pieced together over thousands of years by thousands of different guys!
Try making your question more specific, like: "Who (what company or what group of nerds :P ) was responsible for making the version [put version name here] of the PC?" OR "Who made [put name of computer part here] and when did they make it?"
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Or if you want to just get right to the point, Ed Roberts of MITS (Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems--the company was founded to make telemetry equipment for model rockets, and its first successful product was a calculator) is considered the father of the personal computer. He designed the Altair 8800, which sold in kit form for about $400.
Now understand that a "computer kit" in the 1970s was far different from one today. If you were to "build your own computer" right now, you'd buy a big pile of prebuilt parts, put a premade operating system and premade programs on it, and be playing Doom within two or three hours. In the 1970s you got a printed circuit board with nothing soldered to it, and big bags of resistors, capacitors, integrated circuits and so on. And you better know how to read a resistor color code because that's the only labeling you were going to get. Added bonus: it LOOKED like a computer, which computers don't anymore.
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The first general purpose computer was the Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer (ENIAC) it was unveiled February 14, 1946 and created by John Adam Presper Eckert Jr and John Mauchly for the purpose of calculating artillery firing tables. It was also able to be reprogrammed to solve a full range of computing problems.
DECADES LATER, Henry Edward "Ed" Roberts invented the first commercially successful personal computer in 1975.
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Where is Charles Babbage born?
Charles Babbage did not invent the computer. He improved and made what we call the computer. He finished it in 1812.
He did not design the Analytical Engine until the 1840s and he never built it. He could not finish anything as he always got distracted by a better idea.
What are the characteristic of computer generations?
First Generation (1940-1956) Vacuum Tubes Sponsored
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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 UNIVAC and ENIAC computers are examples of first-generation computing devices. The UNIVAC was the first commercial computer delivered to a business client, the U.S. Census Bureau in 1951. Second Generation (1956-1963) TransistorsTransistors replaced vacuum tubes and ushered in the second generation of computers. The transistor was invented in 1947 but did not see widespread use in computers until the late 1950s. The transistor was far superior to the vacuum tube, allowing computers to become smaller, faster, cheaper, more energy-efficient and more reliable than their first-generation predecessors. Though the transistor still generated a great deal of heat that subjected the computer to damage, it was a vast improvement over the vacuum tube. Second-generation computers still relied on punched cards for input and printouts for output.
Second-generation computers moved from cryptic binary machine language to symbolic, or assembly, languages, which allowed programmers to specify instructions in words. High-level programming languages were also being developed at this time, such as early versions of COBOL and FORTRAN. These were also the first computers that stored their instructions in their memory, which moved from a magnetic drum to magnetic core technology.
The first computers of this generation were developed for the atomic energy industry. Third Generation (1964-1971) Integrated CircuitsThe development of the integrated circuit was the hallmark of the third generation of computers. Transistors were miniaturized and placed on silicon chips, called semiconductors, which drastically increased the speed and efficiency of computers.
Instead of punched cards and printouts, users interacted with third generation computers through keyboards and monitors and interfaced with an operating system, which allowed the device to run many different applications at one time with a central program that monitored the memory. Computers for the first time became accessible to a mass audience because they were smaller and cheaper than their predecessors. Fourth Generation (1971-Present) MicroprocessorsThe microprocessor brought the fourth generation of computers, as thousands of integrated circuits were built onto a single silicon chip. What in the first generation filled an entire room could now fit in the palm of the hand. The Intel 4004 chip, developed in 1971, located all the components of the computer-from the central processing unit and memory to input/output controls-on a single chip.
In 1981 IBM introduced its first computer for the home user, and in 1984 Apple introduced the Macintosh. Microprocessors also moved out of the realm of desktop computers and into many areas of life as more and more everyday products began to use microprocessors.
As these small computers became more powerful, they could be linked together to form networks, which eventually led to the development of the Internet. Fourth generation computers also saw the development of GUIs, the mouse and handheld devices. Fifth Generation (Present and Beyond) Artificial IntelligenceFifth generation computing devices, based on artificial intelligence, are still in development, though there are some applications, such as voice recognition, that are being used today. The use of parallel processing and superconductors is helping to make artificial intelligence a reality. Quantum computation and molecular and nanotechnology will radically change the face of computers in years to come. The goal of fifth-generation computing is to develop devices that respond to natural language input and are capable of learning and self-organization.
How many vocum tubes were in the eniac?
The ENIAC has 17,468 vacuum tubes. These tubes were the first technology that made computers function. Modern computers do not use this technology.
What does the analytical engine do?
nothing, it was never built. however had it been built it would have done computations, like any modern computer but much slower.
Sorry, I don't understand the question. Be specific. Use a complete english language question.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of digital computers and analog computers?
Digital
- Advantages
- exact reproducible results of calculation
- insensitive to drift, component aging, temperature, etc.
- Disadvantages
- all data encoded to nearest representable value
- slow and expensive when implemented with same technology as analog computer
Analog
- Advantages
- continuous representation of all data within the range of the machine
- fast and inexpensive when implemented with same technology as digital computer
- Disadvantages
- results of calculations may not be reproducible due to undetectable setup errors
- sensitive to drift, component aging, temperature, etc.
etc., etc., etc.
What was the first personal computer invented?
The Altair in 1975 the first personal computer was the digicomp http://www.retrothing.com/2006/02/build_your_own_.html The Digicomp is a plastic mechanical computer from the 1960s. It offered three bits of tabletop computing, back in an age where corded telephones were considered high-tech. The machine arrived in kit form; your first task was to assemble the jumble of tubes, rods, and elastic bands into something that resembles a Jetson's parking garage. Once complete, it's a fantastic hands-on way to teach Boolean algebra and binary numbers.
What is the definition of a supercomputer?
supercomputerA supercomputer is a computer that performs at or near the currently highest operational rate for computers. A supercomputer is typically used for scientific and engineering applications that must handle very large databases or do a great amount of computation (or both).
At any given time, there are usually a few well-publicized supercomputers that operate at extremely high speeds. The term is also sometimes applied to far slower (but still impressively fast) computers. Most supercomputers are really multiple computers that perform parallel processing. In general, there are two parallel processing approaches: symmetric multiprocessing (SMP) and massively parallel processing (MPP).
The great compromise resolved the controversial issue of what?
The Great Compromise decided how Congressional votes would be allocated and how the representatives would be elected. The House would be based on population and voted on by the people. The Senate would consist of two representatives from each states appointed by the state legislatures.
How many ENIAC computers were built?
1946: The Eniac Computer is Unveiled
ENIAC (Electrical Numerical Integrator And Calculator) was originally developed during Word War II to perform complex trajectory calculations for artillary, but the war ended before the machine was operational. But it continued to be used after the war, performing calculations for the design of the hydrogen bomb, weather prediction, cosmic-ray analysis, thermal ignition, random numbers, and wind-tunnel design. The ENIAC contained 17,468 vacuum tubes, along with 70,000 resistors, 10,000 capacitors, 1,500 relays, 6,000 manual switches and 5 million soldered joints. It covered 1,800 square feet of floor space, weighed 30 tons, and consumed 160,000 Watts of electrical power, making the lights go dim in Philadelphia each time it was powered up. On October 2, 1955 the ENIAC was shut down for the last time, but by then inventors John Mauchly and John Presper Eckert had already had the UNIVAC computer on the market for several years.
