Scribd
Upload
64 views

Computer Generations

The document discusses the five generations of computers from the 1940s to present. The first generation used vacuum tubes and consumed a lot of power. The second generation used transistors and were smaller and more efficient. The third generation used integrated circuits and programming languages. The fourth generation used microprocessors and networking. The fifth generation uses artificial intelligence for natural language processing and parallel computing.

Uploaded by

daniyalshakeel573
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
64 views

Computer Generations

The document discusses the five generations of computers from the 1940s to present. The first generation used vacuum tubes and consumed a lot of power. The second generation used transistors and were smaller and more efficient. The third generation used integrated circuits and programming languages. The fourth generation used microprocessors and networking. The fifth generation uses artificial intelligence for natural language processing and parallel computing.

Uploaded by

daniyalshakeel573
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 3

First Generation of Computers

Classification of generations of computers


The evolution of computer technology is often divided into five generations.
Five Generations of Computers
Generations of computers Generations timeline Evolving hardware
First generation 1940s-1950s Vacuum tube based
Second generation 1950s-1960s Transistor based
Third generation 1960s-1970s Integrated circuit based
Fourth generation 1970s-present Microprocessor based
Fifth generation The present and the future Artificial intelligence based

The main characteristics of first generation of


computers (1940s-1950s)
Main electronic component – vacuum tube
Main memory – magnetic drums and magnetic tapes
Programming language – machine language
Power – consume a lot of electricity and generate a lot of heat.
Speed and size – very slow and very large in size (often taking up entire room).
Input/output devices – punched cards and paper tape.
Examples – ENIAC, UNIVAC1, IBM 650, IBM 701, etc.
Quantity – there were about 100 different vacuum tube computers produced between 1942 and1963.

Second Generation of Computers


The main characteristics of second generation of
computers (1950s-1960s)
 Main electronic component – transistor
Memory – magnetic core and magnetic tape / disk
Programming language – assembly language
Power and size – low power consumption, generated less heat, and smaller in size (in comparison with
the first generation computers).
Speed – improvement of speed and reliability (in comparison with the first generation computers).
Input/output devices – punched cards and magnetic tape.
Examples – IBM 1401, IBM 7090 and 7094, UNIVAC 1107, etc.

Third Generation of Computers


The main characteristics of third generation of
computers (1960s-1970s)
Main electronic component – integrated circuits (ICs)
Memory – large magnetic core, magnetic tape / disk
Programming language – high level language (FORTRAN, BASIC, Pascal, COBOL, C, etc.)
Size – smaller, cheaper, and more efficient than second generation computers (they were called
minicomputers).
Speed – improvement of speed and reliability (in comparison with the second generation computers).
Input / output devices – magnetic tape, keyboard, monitor, printer, etc.
Examples – IBM 360, IBM 370, PDP-11, UNIVAC 1108, etc.

Fourth Generation of Computers


The main characteristics of fourth generation of
computers (1970s-present)
Main electronic component – very large-scale integration (VLSI) and microprocessor.
VLSI– thousands of transistors on a single microchip.
Memory – semiconductor memory (such as RAM, ROM, etc.)
RAM (random-access memory) – a type of data storage (memory element) used in computers that
temporary stores of programs and data (volatile: its contents are lost when the computer is turned off).
ROM (read-only memory) – a type of data storage used in computers that permanently stores data and
programs (non-volatile: its contents are retained even when the computer is turned off).
Programming language – high level language (Python, C#, Java, JavaScript, Rust, Kotlin, etc.).
A mix of both third- and fourth-generation languages
Size – smaller, cheaper and more efficient than third generation computers.
Speed – improvement of speed, accuracy, and reliability (in comparison with the third generation
computers).
Input / output devices – keyboard, pointing devices, optical scanning, monitor, printer, etc.

Network – a group of two or more computer systems linked together.


Examples – IBM PC, STAR 1000, APPLE II, Apple Macintosh, etc.

Fifth Generation of Computers


The main characteristics of fifth generation of
computers (the present and the future)
Main electronic component: based on artificial intelligence, uses the Ultra Large-Scale Integration
(ULSI) technology and parallel processing method.
ULSI – millions of transistors on a single microchip
Parallel processing method – use two or more microprocessors to run tasks simultaneously.
Language – understand natural language (human language).
Power – consume less power and generate less heat.
Speed – remarkable improvement of speed, accuracy and reliability (in comparison with the fourth
generation computers).
Size – portable and small in size, and have a huge storage capacity.
Input / output device – keyboard, monitor, mouse, trackpad (or touchpad), touchscreen, pen, speech
input (recognise voice / speech), light scanner, printer, etc.
Example – desktops, laptops, tablets, smartphones, etc.

You might also like