What is a Computer?

A computer is an electronic machine that collects information, stores it, processes it

according to user instructions, and then returns the result.
A computer is a programmable electronic device that performs arithmetic and logical
operations automatically using a set of instructions provided by the user.
Early Computing Devices
People used sticks, stones, and bones as counting tools before computers were invented.
More computing devices were produced as technology advanced and the human intellect
improved over time. Let us look at a few of the early-age computing devices used by
mankind.

1. Abacus
Abacus was invented by the Chinese around 4000 years ago. It’s a wooden rack with metal
rods with beads attached to them. The abacus operator moves the beads according to
certain guidelines to complete arithmetic computations.

2. Napier’s Bone
John Napier devised Napier’s Bones, a manually operated calculating apparatus. For
calculating, this instrument used 9 separate ivory strips (bones) marked with numerals to
multiply and divide. It was also the first machine to calculate using the decimal point
system.

3. Pascaline
Pascaline was invented in 1642 by Biaise Pascal, a French mathematician and philosopher.
It is thought to be the first mechanical and automated calculator. It was a wooden box
with gears and wheels inside.

4. Stepped Reckoner or Leibniz wheel

In 1673, a German mathematician-philosopher named Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz improved
on Pascal’s invention to create this apparatus. It was a digital mechanical calculator known
as the stepped reckoner because it used fluted drums instead of gears.

5. Difference Engine
In the early 1820s, Charles Babbage created the Difference Engine. It was a mechanical
computer that could do basic computations. It was a steam-powered calculating machine
used to solve numerical tables such as logarithmic tables.
6. Analytical Engine
Charles Babbage created another calculating machine, the Analytical Engine, in 1830. It
was a mechanical computer that took input from punch cards. It was capable of solving
any mathematical problem and storing data in an indefinite memory.
 7. Tabulating machine
An American Statistician – Herman Hollerith invented this machine in the year 1890.
Tabulating Machine was a punch card-based mechanical tabulator. It could compute
statistics and record or sort data or information. Hollerith began manufacturing these
machines in his company, which ultimately became International Business Machines (IBM)
in 1924.

8. Differential Analyzer
Vannevar Bush introduced the first electrical computer, the Differential Analyzer, in 1930.
This machine is made up of vacuum tubes that switch electrical impulses in order to do
calculations. It was capable of performing 25 calculations in a matter of minutes.

9. Mark I
Howard Aiken planned to build a machine in 1937 that could conduct massive calculations
or calculations using enormous numbers. The Mark I computer was constructed in 1944 as
a collaboration between IBM and Harvard.
History of Computers Generation
The word ‘computer’ has a very interesting origin. It was first used in the 16th century for
a person who used to compute, i.e. do calculations. The word was used in the same sense
as a noun until the 20th century. Women were hired as human computers to carry out all
forms of calculations and computations.
By the last part of the 19th century, the word was also used to describe machines that did
calculations. The modern-day use of the word is generally to describe programmable
digital devices that run on electricity.

Early History of Computer

Since the evolution of humans, devices have been used for calculations for thousands of
years. One of the earliest and most well-known devices was an abacus. Then in 1822, the
father of computers, Charles Babbage began developing what would be the first
mechanical computer. And then in 1833 he actually designed an Analytical Engine which
was a general-purpose computer. It contained an ALU, some basic flow chart principles
and the concept of integrated memory.
Then more than a century later in the history of computers, we got our first electronic
computer for general purpose. It was the ENIAC, which stands for Electronic Numerical
Integrator and Computer. The inventors of this computer were John W. Mauchly
and J.Presper Eckert.
And with times the technology developed and the computers got smaller and the
processing got faster. We got our first laptop in 1981 and it was introduced by Adam
Osborne and EPSON.
Browse more Topics under Basics Of Computers
 Number Systems
 Number System Conversions
 Generations of Computers
 Computer Organisation
 Computer Memory
 Computers Abbreviations
 Basic Computer Terminology
 Computer Languages
 Basic Internet Knowledge and Protocols
 Hardware and Software
 Keyboard Shortcuts
 I/O Devices
 Practice Problems On Basics Of Computers
Generations of Computers
In the history of computers, we often refer to the advancements of modern computers as
the generation of computers. We are currently on the fifth generation of computers. So let
us look at the important features of these five generations of computers.
 1st Generation: This was from the period of 1940 to 1955. This was when machine
language was developed for the use of computers. They used vacuum tubes for the
circuitry. For the purpose of memory, they used magnetic drums. These machines
were complicated, large, and expensive. They were mostly reliant on batch
operating systems and punch cards. As output and input devices, magnetic tape
 and paper tape were implemented. For example, ENIAC, UNIVAC-1, EDVAC, and so
on.
 2nd Generation: The years 1957-1963 were referred to as the “second generation
of computers” at the time. In second-generation computers, COBOL and FORTRAN
are employed as assembly languages and programming languages. Here they
advanced from vacuum tubes to transistors. This made the computers smaller,
faster and more energy-efficient. And they advanced from binary to assembly
languages. For instance, IBM 1620, IBM 7094, CDC 1604, CDC 3600, and so forth.
 3rd Generation: The hallmark of this period (1964-1971) was the development of
the integrated circuit. A single integrated circuit (IC) is made up of many
transistors, which increases the power of a computer while simultaneously
lowering its cost. These computers were quicker, smaller, more reliable, and less
expensive than their predecessors. High-level programming languages such as
FORTRON-II to IV, COBOL, and PASCAL PL/1 were utilized. For example, the IBM-
360 series, the Honeywell-6000 series, and the IBM-370/168.
 4th Generation: The invention of the microprocessors brought along the fourth
generation of computers. The years 1971-1980 were dominated by fourth
generation computers. C, C++ and Java were the programming languages utilized in
this generation of computers. For instance, the STAR 1000, PDP 11, CRAY-1, CRAY-X-
MP, and Apple II. This was when we started producing computers for home use.
 5th Generation: These computers have been utilized since 1980 and continue to be
used now. This is the present and the future of the computer world. The defining
aspect of this generation is artificial intelligence. The use of parallel processing and
superconductors are making this a reality and provide a lot of scope for the
future. Fifth-generation computers use ULSI (Ultra Large Scale Integration)
technology. These are the most recent and sophisticated computers. C, C++,
Java,.Net, and more programming languages are used. For instance, IBM, Pentium,
Desktop, Laptop, Notebook, Ultrabook, and so on.
Brief History of Computers
The naive understanding of computation had to be overcome before the true power of
computing could be realized. The inventors who worked tirelessly to bring the computer
into the world had to realize that what they were creating was more than just a number
cruncher or a calculator. They had to address all of the difficulties associated with
inventing such a machine, implementing the design, and actually building the thing. The
history of the computer is the history of these difficulties being solved.
19th Century
1801 – Joseph Marie Jacquard, a weaver and businessman from France, devised a loom
that employed punched wooden cards to automatically weave cloth designs.
1822 – Charles Babbage, a mathematician, invented the steam-powered calculating
machine capable of calculating number tables. The “Difference Engine” idea failed owing
to a lack of technology at the time.
1848 – The world’s first computer program was written by Ada Lovelace, an English
mathematician. Lovelace also includes a step-by-step tutorial on how to compute
Bernoulli numbers using Babbage’s machine.
1890 – Herman Hollerith, an inventor, creates the punch card technique used to calculate
the 1880 U.S. census. He would go on to start the corporation that would become IBM.
Early 20th Century
1930 – Differential Analyzer was the first large-scale automatic general-purpose
mechanical analogue computer invented and built by Vannevar Bush.
1936 – Alan Turing had an idea for a universal machine, which he called the Turing
machine, that could compute anything that could be computed.
1939 – Hewlett-Packard was discovered in a garage in Palo Alto, California by Bill Hewlett
and David Packard.
1941 – Konrad Zuse, a German inventor and engineer, completed his Z3 machine, the
world’s first digital computer. However, the machine was destroyed during a World War II
bombing strike on Berlin.
1941 – J.V. Atanasoff and graduate student Clifford Berry devise a computer capable of
solving 29 equations at the same time. The first time a computer can store data in its
primary memory.
1945 – University of Pennsylvania academics John Mauchly and J. Presper Eckert create an
Electronic Numerical Integrator and Calculator (ENIAC). It was Turing-complete and
capable of solving “a vast class of numerical problems” by reprogramming, earning it the
title of “Grandfather of computers.”
1946 – The UNIVAC I (Universal Automatic Computer) was the first general-purpose
electronic digital computer designed in the United States for corporate applications.
1949 – The Electronic Delay Storage Automatic Calculator (EDSAC), developed by a team at
the University of Cambridge, is the “first practical stored-program computer.”
1950 – The Standards Eastern Automatic Computer (SEAC) was built in Washington, DC,
and it was the first stored-program computer completed in the United States.
Late 20th Century
1953 – Grace Hopper, a computer scientist, creates the first computer language, which
becomes known as COBOL, which stands for COmmon, Business-Oriented Language. It
allowed a computer user to offer the computer instructions in English-like words rather
than numbers.
1954 – John Backus and a team of IBM programmers created the FORTRAN programming
language, an acronym for FORmula TRANslation. In addition, IBM developed the 650.
1958 – The integrated circuit, sometimes known as the computer chip, was created by Jack
Kirby and Robert Noyce.
1962 – Atlas, the computer, makes its appearance. It was the fastest computer in the world
at the time, and it pioneered the concept of “virtual memory.”
1964 – Douglas Engelbart proposes a modern computer prototype that combines a mouse
and a graphical user interface (GUI).
1969 – Bell Labs developers, led by Ken Thompson and Dennis Ritchie, revealed UNIX, an
operating system developed in the C programming language that addressed program
compatibility difficulties.
1970 – The Intel 1103, the first Dynamic Access Memory (DRAM) chip, is unveiled by Intel.
1971 – The floppy disc was invented by Alan Shugart and a team of IBM engineers. In
the same year, Xerox developed the first laser printer, which not only produced billions of
dollars but also heralded the beginning of a new age in computer printing.
1973 – Robert Metcalfe, a member of Xerox’s research department, created Ethernet,
which is used to connect many computers and other gear.
1974 – Personal computers were introduced into the market. The first were the Altair
Scelbi & Mark-8, IBM 5100, and Radio Shack’s TRS-80.
1975 – Popular Electronics magazine touted the Altair 8800 as the world’s first
minicomputer kit in January. Paul Allen and Bill Gates offer to build software in the BASIC
language for the Altair.
1976 – Apple Computers is founded by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, who expose the
world to the Apple I, the first computer with a single-circuit board.
1977 – At the first West Coast Computer Faire, Jobs and Wozniak announce the Apple II. It
has colour graphics and a cassette drive for storing music.
1978 – The first computerized spreadsheet program, VisiCalc, is introduced.
1979 – WordStar, a word processing tool from MicroPro International, is released.
1981 – IBM unveils the Acorn, their first personal computer, which has an Intel CPU, two
floppy drives, and a colour display. The MS-DOS operating system from Microsoft is used
by Acorn.
1983 – The CD-ROM, which could carry 550 megabytes of pre-recorded data, hit the
market. This year also saw the release of the Gavilan SC, the first portable computer with a
flip-form design and the first to be offered as a “laptop.”
1984 – Apple launched Macintosh during the Superbowl XVIII commercial. It was priced at
$2,500
1985 – Microsoft introduces Windows, which enables multitasking via a graphical user
interface. In addition, the programming language C++ has been released.
1990 – Tim Berners-Lee, an English programmer and scientist, creates HyperText Markup
Language, widely known as HTML. He also coined the term “WorldWideWeb.” It includes
the first browser, a server, HTML, and URLs.
1993 – The Pentium CPU improves the usage of graphics and music on personal
computers.
1995 – Microsoft’s Windows 95 operating system was released. A $300 million
promotional campaign was launched to get the news out. Sun Microsystems introduces
Java 1.0, followed by Netscape Communications’ JavaScript.
1996 – At Stanford University, Sergey Brin and Larry Page created the Google search
engine.
1998 – Apple introduces the iMac, an all-in-one Macintosh desktop computer. These PCs
cost $1,300 and came with a 4GB hard drive, 32MB RAM, a CD-ROM, and a 15-inch
monitor.
1999 – Wi-Fi, an abbreviation for “wireless fidelity,” is created, originally covering a range
of up to 300 feet.
21st Century
2000 – The USB flash drive is first introduced in 2000. They were speedier and had more
storage space than other storage media options when used for data storage.
2001 – Apple releases Mac OS X, later renamed OS X and eventually simply macOS, as the
successor to its conventional Mac Operating System.
2003 – Customers could purchase AMD’s Athlon 64, the first 64-bit CPU for consumer
computers.
2004 – Facebook began as a social networking website.
2005 – Google acquires Android, a mobile phone OS based on Linux.
2006 – Apple’s MacBook Pro was available. The Pro was the company’s first dual-core,
Intel-based mobile computer.
Amazon Web Services, including Amazon Elastic Cloud 2 (EC2) and Amazon Simple Storage
Service, were also launched (S3)
2007 – The first iPhone was produced by Apple, bringing many computer operations into
the palm of our hands. Amazon also released the Kindle, one of the first electronic reading
systems, in 2007.
2009 – Microsoft released Windows 7.
2011 – Google introduces the Chromebook, which runs Google Chrome OS.
2014 – The University of Michigan Micro Mote (M3), the world’s smallest computer, was
constructed.
2015 – Apple introduces the Apple Watch. Windows 10 was also released by Microsoft.
2016 – The world’s first reprogrammable quantum computer is built.
Types of Computers
1. Analog Computers – Analog computers are built with various components such as
gears and levers, with no electrical components. One advantage of analogue
computation is that designing and building an analogue computer to tackle a
specific problem can be quite straightforward.
2. Digital Computers – Information in digital computers is represented in discrete
form, typically as sequences of 0s and 1s (binary digits, or bits). A digital computer
is a system or gadget that can process any type of information in a matter of
seconds. Digital computers are categorized into many different types. They are as
follows:
a. Mainframe computers – It is a computer that is generally utilized by large
enterprises for mission-critical activities such as massive data processing.
Mainframe computers were distinguished by massive storage capacities,
quick components, and powerful computational capabilities. Because they
were complicated systems, they were managed by a team of systems
programmers who had sole access to the computer. These machines are
now referred to as servers rather than mainframes.
b. Supercomputers – The most powerful computers to date are commonly
referred to as supercomputers. Supercomputers are enormous systems that
are purpose-built to solve complicated scientific and industrial problems.
Quantum mechanics, weather forecasting, oil and gas exploration,
molecular modelling, physical simulations, aerodynamics, nuclear fusion
research, and cryptoanalysis are all done on supercomputers.
c. Minicomputers – A minicomputer is a type of computer that has many of
the same features and capabilities as a larger computer but is smaller in
size. Minicomputers, which were relatively small and affordable, were often
employed in a single department of an organization and were often
dedicated to a specific task or shared by a small group.
d. Microcomputers – A microcomputer is a small computer that is based on a
microprocessor integrated circuit, often known as a chip. A microcomputer
is a system that incorporates at a minimum a microprocessor, program
memory, data memory, and input-output system (I/O). A microcomputer is
now commonly referred to as a personal computer (PC).
e. Embedded processors – These are miniature computers that control
electrical and mechanical processes with basic microprocessors. Embedded
 processors are often simple in design, have limited processing capability and
I/O capabilities, and need little power. Ordinary microprocessors and
microcontrollers are the two primary types of embedded processors.
Embedded processors are employed in systems that do not require the
computing capability of traditional devices such as desktop computers,
laptop computers, or workstations.
FAQs on History of Computers
Q: The principle of modern computers was proposed by ____
A. Steve Jobs
B. Adam Osborne
C. Alan Turing
D. Charles Babbage
Ans: The correct answer is C.
Q: Who introduced the first computer from home use in 1981?
A. IBM
B. Apple
C. Microsoft
D. Sun Technology
Ans: Answer is A. IBM made the first home-use personal computer.
Q: Third generation computers used which programming language?
A. Java
B. Machine language
C. FORTRAN
D. C and C++
Ans: The correct option is C.