INTRODUCTION TO
THE WORLD OF
COMPUTERS
OBJECTIVES
Trace the historical development of computers
Appreciate the importance of computers
Identify the different types of computers
Identify the parts of a computer
HISTORY OF COMPUTER
Development of Computers
ABACUS – first
manual data
processing device
developed in China
in the early 12th
Century. The
device has a frame
with beads strung
on wires or rod.
Development of Computers
NAPIER BONES –
named after John
Napier; popular in
the 17th century in
Europe. Each of its
rod contained the
digits 1-9, with their
multiples in columns
underneath them.
Multiplication was
done by rotating the
rods
Development of Computers
SLIDE RULE – by
William Oughtred;
appeared in various
forms in Europe
during the 17th
century. By sliding
the rulers one can
quickly multiply
and divide
Development of Computers
ADDING
MACHINE
(pascaline)- Invented
in 1642 by French
Philosopher and
Mathematician
Blaise Pascal,
capable of adding
and subtracting
numbers.
Development of Computers
CALCULATOR (step
reckoner)– by
Gottfried Wilhelm von
Leibnitz in 1694; can
add, subtract,
multiply, divide and
extract square roots.
Development of Computers
DIFFERENCE
ENGINE – designed
by Charles Babbage, a
19th century English
inventor to calculate
and print
mathematical tables.
Development of Computers
PUNCH CARD
MACHINE – by
Herman Hollerith an
American engineer, in
1890; first data-
processing machine to
use punched cards.
Development of Computers
DIFFERENTIAL
ANALYZER – A giant
modern mechanical
computer built in 1930
at M.I.T. to solve
differential equations;
invented by Dr.
Vannervar Bush.
Development of Computers
M ARK I– Howard
Aiken in 1937 built an
automatic calculating
machine which was
put to use by the US
navy during World
War II.
Completed device was known as
Mark 1 digital computer
Development of Computers
ENIAC (Electronic
Numerical Integrator
and Calculator)
developed during the
period 1943 – 1946;
first large-scale
vacuum tube
computer; under the
direction of Presper
Eckert Jr. and John
Mauchly.
Development of Computers
EDVAC (Electronic
Discrete Variable
Automatic Computer) –
John Von Neumann, a
Hungarian born
Mathematician (1946)
proposed a modified
version of the ENIAC.
Employs binary
arithmetic
Stored program
capabilites
Development of Computers
EDSAC (Electronic Delay
Storage Automatic
Calculator) – an English
made computer in 1949 at
Campbridge University.
Four Generations of Computers
Generation Dates Hardware
First 1951 - 1958 Vacuum tubes
Second 1959 - 1964 Transistors
Third 1965 - 1971 Integrated
circuits
Fourth 1971 - Present Large-scale
integration
Components
of
Computer Systems
Components of Computer System
Hardware
Components of Computer System - Hardware
Hardware – physical parts (parts which can be
seen and touched) of a computer system.
1. Input devices - devices used to enter data to the
system
2. Output devices - devices used to output
information from the system
3. Storage devices - devices used to store
programs, data and information
Components of Computer System - Hardware
2 Kinds of Storage Devices
1. Primary storage – This is also called RAM
(random access memory). It stores currently
running operating system, application
programs and data files.
2. Secondary storage – This stores programs, data
and information for future use e.g. hard disks,
CDs, magnetic tapes, flash drives etc
Components of Computer System - Hardware
2 Kinds of Storage Devices
1. Primary storage – This is also called RAM
(random access memory). It stores currently
running operating system, application
programs and data files.
2. Secondary storage – This stores programs, data
and information for future use e.g. hard disks,
CDs, magnetic tapes, flash drives etc
Components of Computer System - Hardware
4. Communication devices - devices used to
transmit data between computers in a network
such as modems, ISDN adaptors, network interface
cards, bridges and routers
Components of Computer System – Peopleware
Peopleware (Live ware) - people involved in
developing and implementing an information
system e.g. system analysts, software engineers,
network administrators, etc.
Components of Computer System - Software
Software - is a set of instructions coded in a
programming language, which tells the computer’s
processor how to perform a certain data processing
task.
- makes the computer system produce useful
results
