For
better or worse, computers have infiltrated every aspect of our
society. It has been a necessity of life for many decades. Every
individual needs a computer whether it's for personal uses or for
work. I remember how computers were when I was a child and how they
developed over the years; huge monitors that looked like big boxes
became flat screens that weigh so much less.
The
term "computer" was launched as it was derived from the
verb compute which refers to calculate.And
it is not surprising because the computer is built to take care of
all the operations in the form of accounts; add or subtract or
multiply or divide using the binary system.
A computer is defined as any device that is programmed to hold out a
set of arithmetic operations (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer). The
abacus, emerged around 5,000 years ago in Asia Minor and is still
used today; it is considered to be the first computer, a device that
allows users to make computations using a special system. It was used
to keep trading transactions but it lost its value and importance as
the use of paper and pencil spread, mostly in Europe. 12 centuries
later, a development in computing devices emerged. In 1642, an
18-year-old son of a French tax collector, invented a numerical wheel
calculator which was also called a Pascaline. The Pascaline had a
drawback which was its limitation to addition. It was developed,
however, in 1694 by a german mathematician by creating a machine that
could also multiply. Other devices appeared later on, ones that can
do the 4 basic arithmetic functions. The true beginnings of the computer
as we know it nowadays started with Charles Babbege, an English
professor, as he was the first to attempt to amend the errors and the
limitations in the devices and was inspired to create the first
general-purpose computer. Babbage's
steam-powered engine, although ultimately never constructed, may seem
primitive by today's standards. It outlined the basic elements of a
modern general purpose computer and was a breakthrough concept
(www.dia.eui.upm.es/asignatu/).
The
identification of a single point during this journey as the
first digital electronic computer is very difficult. Secret
British Colossus computer in 1944, it had limited
programmability but introduced a device that uses thousands of valves
could be reliable and reprogrammed electronically. Harvard Mark I
1944 computer Aketromekaneki was large and had a limited
capacity to programming. The U.S.
computer system was based on algorithms (1946-ENIAC) and was the first
electronic computer with a general-purpose, but basically the
structure is smooth, which means that key reprogramming requires
reconnect. Z machines for Konrad Zuse, with Alalictromekaneki Z3 (1941) was the first working machine offers automatic calculation
feature of binary digits and the ability to programming a practical
and convenient way. ENIAC had the program architecture default basis of all modern computers. There were a number of projects to develop a computer based on the
stored program architecture in the mid-to-last forties of the
twentieth century. The first computer from Hola was created in Britain.
The
design computer Almkad pipe valve was in use during the
fifties of the twentieth century, but with time it has been replaced
with computers Turanzsturih where it is smaller, faster and cheaper
and more reliable; all that has allowed it to be produced on a
commercial scale in the sixties of the twentieth century. In the
seventies of the twentieth century,came integrated circuit
technology in the production of computers at a cost low enough to
allow for individuals to own a personal computer of the species
currently known (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer).
There
are many types of computers nowadays. PCs are on top of the list. They are computers made and designed for general uses by a single person.
They were first known as microcomputers because they were complete
computers but built on smaller scales than the business systems
operators. Most people relate the term PC to computers that run the
windows operating system when the term actually includes Mac as a
PC. Any PC not designed for portability is called a desktop whether it's used at home or work it can't be moved. A laptop or a
notebook is the exact opposite; it has been designed to be small and
easy to move. Personal
Digital Assistants (PDAs)
are
another type of computer; super small computers that hold
flash-memories instead of a hard drive. Moreover, another type of
computer is a workstation; developed specially for 3D graphics and game designing as it hold a powerful processor. A server is also a
type of computer, its purpose is to provide
services to other computers over a network.
Although a server can be big, mainframes are even bigger. Mainframes
were huge computers that could fill an entire room or even a whole
floor. Finally, supercomputers; they may cost hundreds or thousands of
dollars and sometimes even millions
(computer.howstuffworks.com/10-types-of-computers.htm).
Computers
these days are used everywhere and in every house and workplace. It
can't be determined whether computers changed life in a positive or a
negative way, but for sure it did change life in a big way.
