“TOPIC: TYPE OF COMPUTER”

 Super Computer.
 Mainframe Computer.
 Mini Computer.
 Micro Computer.

“SUPER COMPUTER”
The “super computer” is the most powerful computers in performance and
processing. Supercomputers are capable to solve immense mathematical
calculations, scientific problems and hence it is called number crunchers. They are
difficult to design and need teamwork research and development. The
supercomputers are very expensive and very large in size. It can be
accommodated in large air-conditioned rooms, some super computers can span
an entire building.
In 1964, the world first supercomputer CDC 6600 was designed by Seymour Cray.

The CDC 6600 was manufactured by Control Data Corporation. It perform up to

three Megaflops. The CDC 6600 was the world’s fastest computer from 1964 to
1969.
ScREC is a supercomputer developed by the Research Centre for Modeling and
Simulation (RCMS) at the National University of Sciences and Technology,
Pakistan (NUST) in Islamabad, Pakistan. With a 132 teraflops performance, it is
currently the fastest supercomputer in Pakistan.
In the run of supercomputers Japan is still No. 1, In November 2020 FUGAKU is
the fastest supercomputer in the world, at the RIKEN Center for Computational
Science in Kobe, Japan.  It is capable to perform 415 Petaflops (quadrillions of
calculations per second). It can best use for simulation, analysis and government
security applications.
Supercomputers are optimized to execute a few numbers of programs. This
makes it possible for them to execute these few programs at a very high speed.

USES OF SUPERCOMPUTERS
In Pakistan Supercomputers are used by Educational Institutes like NUST for
research purposes. Pakistan Atomic Energy commission & Heavy Industry Taxila
uses supercomputers for Research purposes.
SPACE EXPLORATION: Supercomputers are used to study the origin of the
universe, the dark-matters. For these studies scientist use IBM’s powerful
supercomputer “Roadrunner” at National Laboratory Los Alamos.
EARTHQUAKE STUDIES: Supercomputers are used to study the Earthquakes
phenomenon. Besides that supercomputers are used for natural resources
exploration, like natural gas, petroleum, coal, etc.
WEATHER FORCASTING: Supercomputers are used for weather forecasting, and
to study the nature and extent of Hurricanes, Rainfalls, windstorms, etc.
NUCLER WEAPON TESTING: Supercomputers are used to run weapon simulation
that can test the Range, accuracy & impact of Nuclear weapons.
Supercomputers allow us to understand things that are too difficult to see or
measure in real life. For example, they may be too big, too small, too dangerous,
to quick, too slow, etc. Many of these things are very important to us.

“MAINFRAME COMPUTER”
Mainframe computers also known as “Big Iron” are multi-user, multi-
programming and high performance computers. They operate at a very high
speed, have very large storage capacity and can handle the workload of many
users. Mainframe computers are large and powerful systems generally used in
centralized databases. The user accesses the mainframe computer via a terminal
that may be a dumb terminal, an intelligent terminal or a PC. A dumb terminal
cannot store data or do processing of its own. It has the input and output device
only. An intelligent terminal has the input and output device, can do processing,
but, cannot store data of its own. The dumb and the intelligent terminal use the
processing power and the storage facility of the Mainframe computer.
In August 7, 1944, the first
Mainframe computer
HARVARD MARK 1 also known as
Automatic Sequence
Controlled Calculator (ASCC)
was developed by Howard Aiken. A
project conceived by Harvard
University.
The MARK 1
built by IBM

Engineers in Endicott, N.Y. The original concept was presented to IBM by Howard
Aiken in November 1937.
In September 12, 2019, IBM introduced z15 for their IBM Z Mainframe computers.
IBM said z15 mainframe server is designed to help clients securely and quickly sift
through massive amounts of data, meeting the demands of retail and other
clients in the age of "Big Data". Running at 5.2 GHz, IBM said the microprocessor
that powers the mainframe is the fastest chip in the world.
IBM z15

USES OF MAINFRAME COMPUTERS

e-BUSINESS: The Mainframe is a must for large-scale e-business. It is almost
impossible for any other computers to keep track of a large number of
transactions taking place every second. Paying the bills of the employees, keeping
track of the inventories from what is being sold and bought, keeping track of
product those are on the road for delivery, taking orders online etc.
HEALTHCARE: Mainframes are also used in health care. Use for Keeping track of
patient’s and doctor’s schedules, test results of the patient, keeping patient
confidentiality, which is a must for the Health Insurance Portability etc.
MILITARY: The military started to use mainframes from the very beginning for
combat purposes. Navy, Air force, and any other armed forces use mainframes for
reliable live communication between ships, planes, and any other places. Also
used for combat strategies to find the best location for attacking or to take shelter
in a war etc.

A (modern) Mainframe is still a very large machine, sometimes tens of square

meters. Has usually more than one processor and loads of memory and running
between a few mega- to several Hundreds GB of RAM.

“MINI COMPUTERS”
Minicomputers are midrange computers. In terms of size and power,
minicomputers are ranked below mainframes. A Minicomputer is a
multiprocessing system capable of supporting from 4 to about 200 users
simultaneously. Users connects to the minicomputers using dumb terminal – a
keyboard and monitor. A dumb terminal is simply an output device that accepts
data from the CPU. In contrast, a smart terminal is a monitor that has its own
processor for special features, such as bold and blinking characters. Dumb
terminals are not as fast as smart terminals, and they do not support as many
display features, but they are suitable for most applications.
In November 1960, the world's first small, inexpensive & interactive
Minicomputer PDP-1 (Programmed Data Processor) released by DEC (Digital
Equipment Corporation).

The PDP-1 uses an 18-bit word size and has 4096 words as standard main

memory (equivalent to 9,216 bytes). Its arithmetic instructions take 10.7
microseconds (93,458 operations per second) because they use two memory
cycles: the first to fetch the instruction, the second to fetch or store the data
word & the PDP-1 weighed about 730 kg.
In late 1970s, Superminicomputer
was a high-end Minicomputer
manufactured by DEC (Digital
Equipment Corporation).

USES OF
MINICOMPUTERS

PROCESS CONTROL: Minicomputer used for process control had two primary
functions, data acquisition and feedback. For example, factories used
minicomputers to monitor the manufacturing process. If an element of the
process slowed, stopped or accelerated, the computer recognized the change and
made necessary adjustments to the system.
DATA MANAGMAENT: Minicomputers used for data management could acquire
data, generate data or store data. For example, the PDP-8 computer bought in the
early 1970s by the Wesson Memorial Hospital in Springfield, Massachusetts, was
used to generate and store radiation treatment plans for patients and as a
database of all patient tumors and related information.
COMMUNICATION: Minicomputers were also used as communication tools in
larger systems, acting as a "portal" between the human operator and a larger,
central computer or processor. The user could run operations such as error
checking, polling and line buffering through the minicomputer and then use the
device to make system adjustments to the central computer or processor.

As technology improved rapidly the distinction between minicomputer and

superminicomputer performance blurred. Companies that sold mainframe
computers began to offer machines in the same price and performance range as
superminicomputers. By the mid-1980s microprocessors with the hardware
architecture of superminicomputers were used to produce scientific and
engineering workstations. The minicomputer industry then declined through the
early 1990s. The term is now considered out of date but still remains of interest
for students/researchers of computer history.

“MICRO COMPUTER”
A Microcomputer is a computer that has a microprocessor chip (or multiple
microprocessors) that is CPU (Central Processing Unit), data memory (RAM,
ROM), and I/O buses; these are connected on the motherboard. They are more
commonly called personal computers (PCs) because they are designed to be used
by one person at a time. Desktop computers, laptops, personal digital assistant
(PDA), tablets & smartphones are all types of microcomputers. The micro-
computers are widely used & the fastest growing computers. These computers
are the cheapest among the other three types of computers. The Micro-
computers are specially designed for general usage like entertainment, education
and work purposes. Well known manufacturers of Micro-computer are Dell,
Apple, Samsung, Sony & Toshiba.

The first microcomputer was the MCM/70, first built in 1973 in Toronto, Ontario,

Canada and released in 1974.Based on the Intel 8008, it was the first non-kit

computer based on a microprocessor. It is considered by some historians to be
the first usable personal microcomputer system. The Intel 8008-based MCM/70
Microcomputer was released by Micro Computer Machines Inc. (later known as
MCM Computers).
The MCM/70, manufactured by Micro Computer Machines in Kingston, was
encased in a wedge-shaped metal box about half a meter on a side, with a
keyboard at the front, a compact audio cassette tape recorder(s) in the
middle, and a one-line plasma display at the top. The MCM/70 had a one-line
display and alphanumeric keyboard, and optional had a second tape drive. It
resembled desktop calculators of the time.
An APL interpreter was built into the read-only memory (ROM), and the machine
included a battery which allowed it time to save the workspace automatically
when it was turned off. The MCM/70 weighed 20 pounds (9 kg) and shipped with
up to 8 kilobytes of RAM and zero, one, or two cassette drives.

USES OF MICROCOMPUTERS

HOME FOR PERSONAL USAGE: Microcomputers are used in the home for several
purposes such as playing games, entertainment (listen music, Watching movies).
BUSINESS: Microcomputers playing vital role in every sector of business because
due to use of this computer, massive paperwork has been reduced. Every
organization needs microcomputers to process of massive data such as each
bank’s employees use computer to perform their task in short duration. Other
sector where to use microcomputer such as graphic design, architecture firms,
film studios and more.
EDUCATION: Microcomputers are used in the Universities, Colleges & Schools for
teaching students on the projectors. Other computer centers also use several
microcomputers for providing computer education to their students. Personal
computers can be used for online education & research. With the help
of the internet, students can find useful information about their projects,
assignments and also can take useful help from other researchers as they store &
organize their research materials in personal computers.

“In the future Computers users can expect even faster & more advanced
computer technology”