WK 1-2

HISTORY OF COMPUTING
Computing
Computing is the study of how computers and computer systems work and how they are constructed
and programmed.
It is a process of utilizing computer technology to complete a task.
Swiping a debit card, sending an email, or using a cell phone is all forms of computing.

All types of information in computers can be represented using binary code. Some examples are:
-Numbers
-Letters of the alphabet and punctuation marks
-Microprocessor instruction
-Graphics/Video
-Sound
Base:
The base of a number indicates how many absolute values are used in the system.
Absolute value:
This denotes whole numbers represented by a symbol e.g. 6, 7, 8, 4, 5 etc.
For example:
*In binary system, there are only two absolute values (0, 1)
*octal system has eight absolute values (0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
*ln decimal system there are ten absolute values represented by the digits (0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9). etc.
Position:
In the decimal system the zero position has the positional value 10oor1.

NUMBER SYSTEM
This is a way of counting. There common number systems used in computing are:
*Decimal Number System (Base 10)
*Binary Number System (Base 2)
*Octal Number System (Base 8)
*Hexadecimal Number System (Base 16)

Binary Or base 2: There are only two numbers in binary, 0 and 1.

Octal Or base 8: Uses the numbers 0 to 7. There are eight bits in a byte, which is used very often in the
computer field. (A bit is great, but it's too small to hold any useful data, thus the byte is used.)
Decimal Or base 10: Uses the numbers 0-9. Computers only display numbers in decimal; they actually do
all their work in binary.
Hexadecimal Or base 16: Uses the numbers O-F. Because there are 16 values per placeholder, six new
numbers has to be created. Those numbers are A, B, C, D, E, and F. "A" has a value of 10; "B" is 11, and so
on. Math in hexadecimal is not very simple compared to decimal.
 WK 3
HISTORY OF COMPUTER
19TH CENTURY
ABACUS
Abacus is known to be the first mechanical calculating device.
It performs addition and subtraction easily and speedily.
This device was first developed by the Egyptians in the 10th century B.C, but it was shape in the
12th century A.D. by Chinese educationists.
Abacus is made up of wooden frame in which rod where fitted across with rounds beads sliding on the rod.

Napier Bones
In 1617 an eccentric (some say mad) Scotsman named John Napier invented logarithms, which is a
mathematical method that allows multiplication to be performed via addition. The magic ingredient is the
logarithm of each operand, which was originally obtained from a printed table. But Napier also invented an
alternative to tables, where the logarithm values were carved on ivory sticks which are now called Napier's
bones.

Slide Rule
Napier's invention led directly to the slide rule, first built in England in 1632 and still in use in the 1960's by
the NASA engineers of the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo programs which landed men on the moon.

2oth century

Schickard's Calculating Clock

The first gear-driven calculating machine to be built was probably the calculating clock, so named by its
inventor, a German professor, Wilhelm Schickard in 1623. This device got little publicity because
Schickard died soon afterward in the bubonic plague.

Pascal Calculator
In the year 1642, Blasé Pascal a French scientist invented an adding machine called Pascal's calculator
or Pascaline, which represents the position of digit with the help of gears in it.

Leibniz Gottfried
Leibniz Gottfried a German mathematics in 1671, modified the Pascal calculator and he developed
a machine which could perform various calculation based on multiplication and division as well.

Analytical Engine
In 1833, Babbage designed a machine called an "Analytical Engine". This device is large as a house,
powered by 6 steam engines, more general purpose in nature and programmable due to the punched
card technology of Jacquard. Through the connection to the Jacquard loom, Babbage called the two
main parts of his Analytical Engine the "Store" and the "Mill", as both terms are used in the weaving
industry. The Store was where numbers were held and the Mill was where they were "woven" into new
results. In a modern computer the same parts are called the memory unit and the Central Processing
Unit (CPU).

Herman Hollerith
The first commercial data processing machines were punched card tabulating systems. Herman Hollerith
(18604929) worked at the US Census Bureau. While there he began designing machines that could reduce
the labor and time that would be required to process the data that would be collected in the 1890
Census. In 1884, Hollerith applied for his first patent. He proposed to store information in the form of
holes punched through a strip of paper. "Holes punched in a strip of paper were sensed by pins or
pointers making contact through the holes to a drum. The completion of an electric circuit through a
hole advanced a counter on a dial."

John von Neumann

John von Neumann who was a Hungarian American mathematician, an early computer scientist and
the inventor of the merge sort algorithm, described in his first draft of a Report on the EDVAC
(distributed on June 30, 1945) a computer architecture in which the data and the program
(instructions) are both stored in the computer's memory in the same address space. EDVAC is a
computer that by design includes an instruction set and can store in memory a set of instructions (a
program) that details a computation. The idea of the stored-program computer changed everything.

WK 4

GENERATION OF COMPUTER
There are five generation of computer namely:
I. lst generation Computers
II. 2nd generation Computers
III. 3rd generation Computers
IV. 4th generation Computers
V. 5th generation Computers

(1) FIRST GENERATION COMPUTERS (1940-1956)

-First generation computers used vacuum tubes for circuitry and magnetic drums for memory, and were large
taking up an entire room.
- They relied on machine language to perform operations. And they could only solve one problem at a time.
- Their Input was based on punch cards and paper tape.
-Examples of Computers here include
* Electronic Numerical Integrator and calculator (ENIAC)
* Electronic discrete variable automatic computer (EDVAC)
Some other notable machines of this era were:
*Electronic Numerical Integrator and Calculator (UNIVAC)
*Electronic Discrete Variable Automatic Computer (EDVAC) Numerical.

LIMITATIONS OF FIRST GENERATION COMPUTERS

i. The operation speed of that computer was very slow (millisecond range)
ii. The power consumption is very high.
iii. They generate much heat and therefore need cooling to function very we
iv. They require large space for installation.
v. The programming capacity was quite low.

(2) SECOND GENERATION COMPUTERS (1956-1963)

-Second Generation Computers used Transistors. Transistors are reliable when compared with vacuum tubes
as they generated less heat.
Computers of this era were smaller in size, faster, cheaper, and reliable with less power consumption.
-This generation also brought about the concept of Central Processing Unit (CPU).
-This generation still relied on punched card technology for input, output was on printer.
- It was in this period that the early version of High Level Programming Languages like COBOL,
FORTRAN and ALGOL were developed.
-Operating System and Batch Operating System were also developed in this era.
-It was also the period during which instructions were stored in the magnetic core as against the magnetic
drum.
-Examples include IBM 1620, NCR 304 (National Cash Register 304), IBM7080, HONEY WELL 800, and
CDC 1604, TRADIC etc.
advantages of second generation computers over the first generation
computers
i. They consume less electricity power.
ii. They produce less heat.
iii. They are smaller.
iv. They are cheaper
v. They have higher capacity of internal storage

(3) THIRD GENERATION COMPUTER (1964-1971)

-Third generation computer used Integrated Circuits. Transistors were miniaturized and embedded on silicon
chips, called semiconductors; which help to increase the speed and efficiency of computers.
-Instead of punch cards and printouts, users interacted through peripherals such as keyboards and monitors
and interfaced with an operating system, which allowed the device to run many different applications at a
time.

In comparing the computers here with that of second generation computers;

i. They are cheaper
ii. They are faster in operations
iii. They are smaller in sizes
iv. they have large memory
v. They have very high processing speed.
-Examples of computer in this generation include 1BM -360, 1CL-1900, 1BM-370, VAX-750, BASIC
(Beginners All purpose symbolic instruction code). COBOL (Common Business oriented language)

(4) FOURTH GENERATION COMPUTERS ( 1 9 7 0 ’ s )

-Fourth generation computers used microprocessor. Integrated circuits of the third generation computers
were built onto a single silicon chip.
-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 personal computer for the home user, and in 1984 Apple introduced the
Macintosh. As microprocessor based technology developed they became fully integrated into our lifestyles.
-Fourth generation computers also saw the development of GUIs, the mouse and handheld devices.
-Example of computer in this generation include PC (Personal Computer)

(5) Fifth Generation Computers (1990 till date)

. --Artificial Intelligence (AI) thus computers with automated input and output operations with self-
organization capability, they are designed to reason like human beings.
-AI was developed to respond to natural language.
-This generation would bring about reduction in human efforts as most complex jobs would be handled by
computers. Areas of applications would include: Medicine, Administration, computer animation, speech
processing, pattern recognition etc.
-Examples of computer hardware to be used include - Ultra Book and Chrome Book.
 WK 5-6

CLASSIFICATION OF COMPUTER
Computer is classified based on the following:
I. Type
II. Size
III. Degree of Versatility(Purpose)

CLASSIFICATION OF COMPUTER BY TYPE

i. Analog Computer
ii. Digital Computer
iii. Hybrid Computer

(1) ANALOGUE COMPUTER

-This type of computer holds data or number in continuous or real form.
-It processes data in the form of electrical voltage.
- Example of analog computers includes speedometer, thermometer, conventional wristwatch, slide rule, rain
gauge, stethoscope etc.

(2) DIGITAL COMPUTER

-This is the type of computer in which data are represented in digit or in discrete form.. For example 0,
1, 2, 3, 4, 5 ... etc. it is a type of computer that is used for processing numeric information.
-Examples of devices that hold data in digital form include digital stop watch, electronic watch,
table calculator, general purpose computer, digital camera, digital car speedometer, Fuel dispensers at
the petrol filling stations. Traffic-light e.tc.

(3) HYBRID COMPUTERS

-Hybrid Computers are computers that exhibit the features of both Analogue and Digital Computers.
They can process analogue signals as well as digital signals depending on the type of signal that is fed into
them.
-Hybrid computers are generally used in scientific applications or in controlling industrial processes.
- examples of Hybrid Computers used in hospitals to measure the heartbeat of patients, the Automatic Teller
Machine (ATM), Telephone, Web cam etc.

CLASSIFICATION OF COMPUTER BY SIZE

i. Mini Computer
ii. Mainframe Computer,
iii. Super Computer

CLASSIFICATION OF COMPUTER ACCORDING TO THE SIZE

(1)MICRO COMPUTER
-They are commonly known as “personal Computer” (PC).
-They are the smallest and most common types of computer we see every day.
-They are invented using micro-processor technology.
-Examples are desktops, laptops, Hand-held, palmtop, notebook etc.

Desktop Computers
-They are Personal Computers (PCs) used regularly at a single location.
- It can either be rectangular (flat) shape or tower casing with separate Screens, Keyboards, Mouse and other
Input/output devices attached to the System Unit for higher processing power.
-Desktop or Personal Computers are useful at home, in the office, business environment etc.

Laptop Computers
-Laptop Computers are portable and energy efficient Personal Computers that are mobile (it can be carried
around easily because of the size).
-They have equal components as a desktop computer but more costly than the Desktop Computers.
-The Display, the Keyboard, Printing Device, Web Cam, Microphone and Speaker: are integrated into a
single unit unlike the Desktop Personal Computers are separate.

Notebook
Notebooks are extremely lightweight Personal Computers,
Notebook Computers are small enough to fit easily in a briefcase,
They are designed with functions of a Computer and it is easy to handle carry.
-They are used in Airplanes, Libraries, Temporary Offices, Meetings etc,
-They are smaller in size and handier than laptop. However, Notebook Computers are sometimes called
Laptop computers.

Palmtop
Palmtops called hand-held Computers, PDAs or Pocket Computers are Portable Computers, small enough to
hold in one hand and operate with the other.
-They have limited functions than computer but they are practical for certain functions.
-Most Palmtops use a stylus pen rather than a keyboard for input.
-Because of their small size, most Palmtop Computers do not include disk drives. However, contain
(PCMCIA) Slots where external Disk Drives, Modems, Memory and other Devices can be installed.

(2) MINI COMPUTERS

-Minicomputers are smaller, less powerful and less expensive than mainframe computers.
- They are used for special purpose or small scale general works.
-They are not as large as mainframe computer but they can store large amount of data.
-The installation of minicomputer is easy compare to that of mainframe and it does not need special
environment.
-They are useful tools in a network environment
-Example are PDP 7, HCL Magnum, HCL Oaysi, IBM 9375 etc

(4) MAINFRAME COMPUTERS

-These are largest in the range of computer.
-They are powerful and very expensive
-They are used for complex and intensive computer tasks.
-They have multiple chips for large processing and allow many users at a time.
-Example of mainframe computer are DEC 1CL, lBM 3000 series

(3) SUPER COMPUTERS.

-They are the fastest and the most expensive computer.
-They have higher processing Speed compared to others.
-They are designed to solve complex problems like whether forecasting, biomedical research, Remote
sensing, Air-craft design etc.
-Special environment and a reliable cooling system are required because they generate a lot of heat.
-Examples: CYBER 205, CRAY 1, CRAY 2, CRAY XMP,CRAY YMP etc.

CLASSIFICATION OF COMPUTER BY PURPOSE OR DEGREE OF VERSATILITY

i. Special purpose computer
ii. General Purpose Computer

(1) General purpose computer:

- This is a computer designed to solve variety of problems.
-Example: mainframe computer, desktop, laptops, smart phones, tablets etc.
- ENIAC was the first general purpose computer.
(2) Special purpose computer: This is a computer designed for a particular job for example DNA which is
designed to be used in hospital.
Other examples include computer designed for Aircraft, elevator control, Automated Teller Machine, traffic
control, petrol pumping etc.. '