COMPUTING DEVICES II (SS1 FIRST TERM)

COMPUTING DEVICES II (20TH CENTURY TILL DATE)

ENIAC

In 1946, John Mauchly and J. Presper Eckert completed the ENIAC (Electronic Numerical integrator and Computer). It was the first general purpose computer. ENIAC contained 18,000 vacuum tubes, weighed 30 tons, occupied 1800 square feet of floor space and required 160 kilowatts of electrical power. The ENIAC used punched card for input and output. ENIAC was used by US for hydrogen bomb project and programming.

EDVAC

Features and components

The EDVAC (Electronic Discrete Variable Automatic Computer) is the successor of the ENIAC and was made by the same designers: John Mauchly and Presper Eckert in 1949. 

Unlike its predecessor the ENIAC, it was binary rather than decimal. It was the first designed stored program computer with memory capacity of 1000 words (later set to 1,024 words, thus giving a memory, in modern terms, of 5.5 kilobytes). It contains 6,000 vacuum tubes and consumed 56 KW of power and covered 490 square feet of floor space.

UNIVAC 1

Features and components

The UNIVAC 1 (Universal Automatic Computer 1) was invented by John Mauchly and Presper Eckert in 1951. The machine was 25 feet by 50 feet in length, contained 5,600 tubes, 18,000 crystal diodes, and 300 relays and had an internal storage capacity of 1,000 words  or 12,000 characters. It utilized a Mercury delay line, magnetic tape, and typewriter output.  Magnetic tape was still used for input and output. It was the first commercial computer.

DESKTOP PERSONAL COMPUTER

Desktop personal computers (PCs) are small, relatively inexpensive computer that are designed for individual users. Typically, these devices include a monitor, keyboard, mouse, and other peripherals. Desktop personal computer uses a microprocessor technology that enables manufacturers to place an entire central processing unit (CPU) on a single chip.

USES

A desktop computer is a personal computer in a form intended for regular use at a single location as opposed to a mobile laptop or portable computer.

LAPTOP AND NOTEBOOK COMPUTER

Notebook and laptop computers are portable computers that usually feature integral keyboards and monitors.

There are two basic types;

(i)  Personal computer which run Microsoft windows like Window XP, Vista,  Window 7 or 8.

(ii)  Macintosh which run versions of Mac OS, like Apple OS, Linux, UNIX etc.

ADVANTAGES/Difference between laptop and Notebook

I.   Portability: is usually the first feature mentioned in any comparison of laptops versus desktop.

II.  Productivity: Using a laptop in place where a desktop.

III. Immediacy: Carrying laptop means having instant access to various information, personal and work files.

IV. Connectivity: Laptop can have easy internet and local network connectivity while remaining mobile.

 

Other advantages include size, low power consumption, quiet battery and all – in – one.