COMPUTER: An

Introduction
 What is a Computer?

A computer is a general-purpose
device that can be programmed to
carry out a set of arithmetic or
logical operations automatically.
Since a sequence of operations can be
readily changed, the computer can
solve more than one kind of problem.
 Why was computer
invented?
For centuries, humans have needed
help in calculating. Making trade
transactions, taking a population
census, or figuring out the distance
between two stars takes tons of
calculating. And if you want an
accurate result, no mistakes are
allowed.
 Why was computer
invented?
The earliest calculator was the human
hand and its fingers. When quantities
larger than fingers needed counting,
various natural items like pebbles and
twigs were used.
 Why was computer
invented?
The abacus was one of many counting devices
invented to help count large numbers.
There is a difference between counting boards
and abaci. The counting board is a piece of
wood, stone or metal with carved grooves or
painted lines. Beads, pebbles or metal discs
were moved between the lines or grooves to
count. The abacus is a device of wood or
plastic with a frame that holds rods with freely-
sliding beads mounted on them.
 Why was computer
invented?
Both the abacus and the counting board
are mechanical aids used for counting.
They are not what we think of as a modern
calculators. The person operating the
abacus performs calculations in his head
and uses the abacus as a physical aid to
keep track of the sums. Some tradesmen
still use them nowadays to make their
calculations on the markets in Asia, for
example.
 Why was computer
invented?
Computers were invented to make
complex mathematical calculations
possible and make tasks easier for
humans. Even modern computers perform
calculations in addition to the myriad
other tasks they perform. While the first
computers were simple devices, modern
computers use cutting-edge technology
and advanced materials to perform
calculations at an incredible rate.
The History of Computer
 Abacus...

 About 2000 years ago in Babylonia

(Mesopotamia), computers started by a
wooden rack holding two horizontal
wires with beads strung on them.
Abacus...
 First Digital Computer...

 Blaise Pascal is usually credited for

building the first digital computer in
1642. It added numbers entered with
dials and was made to help his father,
a tax collector.
Blaise Pascal...
 The Pascaline...

 This first mechanical calculator, called

the Pascaline, had several
disadvantages. Although it did offer a
substantial improvement over manual
calculations, only Pascal himself could
repair the device and it cost more than
the people it replaced.
The Pascaline...
 Timeline...
1822 English mathematician, Charles
Babbage, conceives of a steam-driven
calculating machine that would be able
to compute tables of numbers. More
than a century later, however,
the world’s first computer was actually
built.
1890 Herman Hollerith designs a punch
punch card system to calculate the
1880 census, accomplishing the task in
just three years and saving the
government $5 million. He establishes a
company that would ultimately
become IBM.
The First Computer...
 Timeline...
1936 Konrad Zuse - Z1 Computer
First freely programmable computer.
1937 John Vincent Atanasoff, a professor of
physics and mathematics at Lowa State
University, attempts to build the first
computer without gears, cams, belts or
shafts.
1941 J.V. Atanasoff and Clifford Berry
designed a computer that can solve 29
equations simultaneously. This marks
the first time a computer is able to store
information on its main memory.
Z1 Computer...
ABC Computer...
1943 - John Mauchly and J. Presper Eckert built
1946 the Electronic Numerical Integrator and
Calculator (ENIAC - 1946) I Computer
that used about 18,000 vacuum tubes.
Mauchly and Presper received funding
from the Census Bureau to build
the UNIVAC (UNIVersal Automatic
Computer - 1951), the first commercial
computer for business and government
applications.
1947-1948 John Bardeen, Walter Brattain & William
Shockley
The Transistor
The transistor is not a computer, but this
invention greatly affected the history of
computers.
ENIAC...
UNIVAC...
Transistor...
1953 Grace Hopper develops the first
computer language, which eventually
becomes known as COBOL (Common
Business Oriented Language), a high-
level programming language.
International Business Machines
IBM 701 EDPM Computer
IBM enters into 'The History of
Computers'.
1954 The FORTRAN programming language is
born. The first successful high level
programming language.
COBOL...
IBM 701...
1958 Jack Kilby and Robert Noyce unveil
the integrated circuit, known as the
computer chip.
1962 The first computer game invented by
Steve Russell called “Spacewar!”
1964 Douglas Engelbart
Computer Mouse & Windows
Douglas Engelbart shows a prototype of
the modern computer, with a mouse and
a graphical user interface (GUI).
Spacewar...
Computer Mouse...
1969 ARPAnet The original Internet.
The first internet was called ARPANET.
The original internet wasn't used very
widely because not many people had
access to it.
1970 Intel 1103 Computer Memory
The world's first available dynamic RAM
chip.
1971 Alan Shugart leads a team of IBM
engineers who invent the “floppy disk,”
allowing data to be shared among
computers.
Faggin, Hoff & Mazor
Intel 4004 Computer Microprocessor
The first microprocessor.
ARPAnet...
1973 Robert Metcalfe develops Ethernet for
connecting multiple computers and
other hardware.
1975 Microsoft is born. Bill Gates worked with
Paul Allen to develop BASIC for the Altair
8800.
1976 - Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak started
1977 Apple Computers and rolled out the
Apple I, the first computer with a single-
circuit board, and Apple II that offers
color graphics and incorporates an audio
cassette drive for storage.
Ethernet...
1978 Accountants rejoice at the introduction
of VisiCalc, the first computerized
spreadsheet program.
1981 The first IBM (International Business
Machines) personal computer, code
named “Acorn,” is introduced. It uses
Microsoft’s MS-DOS operating system. It
has an Intel chip, two floppy disks and
an optional color monitor.
1983 Apple’s Lisa is the first personal
computer with a GUI. It also features a
drop-down menu and icons. It flops but
eventually evolves into the Macintosh.
VisiCalc...
First IBM...
Apple’s Lisa...
1985 The first dot-com domain name is
registered on March 15, years before the
World Wide Web would mark the formal
beginning of Internet history.
1990 Tim Berners-Lee  develops HyperText
Markup Language (HTML), giving rise to
the World Wide Web.
1993 The Pentium microprocessor advances
the use of graphics and music on PCs.
Pentium M 1.4
1994 PCs become gaming machines.
1999 The term Wi-Fi becomes part of the
computing language and users begin
connecting to the Internet without wires.
2001 - Many companies, such as Apple, have
Present upgraded their systems, web browers,
gadgets, etc. In this generation, Mac OS
X, Windows XP, Mozilla Firefox 1.0
(versus Internet Explorer), Macbook Pro
(the first Intel-based, dual-core mobile
computer), iPhone, Windows 7 (which
offers the ability to pin applications to
the taskbar and advances in touch and
handwriting recognition, among other
features.), iPad, etc. were born.
Mozilla Firefox 1.0
Gadgets