History and Development of Computers

History and Development of Computers

Early Computing Machines:

Abacus:

It was the first mathematical device used to  facilitate arithmetic computation and is still in use  today, and may be considered the first computer. It  was developed around 3000 years ago. This device allows users to make computations using a system of  sliding beads arranged on a rack.

Leibnitz Arithmetic Machine: 

In 1694, a German  mathematician and philosopher, Gottfried Wilhem Von  Leibnitz, improved the pascaline by creating a machine  that could also multiply and divide. Like its predecessor,  Leibnitz‟s mechanical multiplier worked by a system of  gears and dials.

Pascaline (Pascal Arithmetic Machine): 

Pascaline was  invented by Blaise Pascal in 1642 that added and  subtracted, automatically carrying and borrowing digits  from column to column. Pascal built 50 copies of his  machine.

Charles Babbage’s Analytical and Difference Engine: 

The  computers started with the invention of Difference Engine  in 1822 and an Analytical Engine by English  Mathematician, Professor, Charles Babbage. The  Difference Engine was a mechanical device that could  count and subtract. The Analytical Engine on the other  hand had advanced features and mainly contained four  components: the store (memory), the mill (computation  unit), the input section and the output section. The great  advantage of the Analytical Engine was that it was general  purpose. But, Charles Babbage's Engines suffered from  the problem of frequent breakdowns.

Lady Augusta Ada contributed in the refinement of this machine by inventing and using a new number system called the binary number system using only two digits 0 and 1 instead of using decimal digits.

Hollerith Punch Card Machine: 

In 1889, an American  Inverter, Herman Hollerith invented a punch card machine  to process census data. The data was in punch cards in  coded form. He designed a wire brush with a wire for each  possible location. The card was placed on a metal plate.  Wires made contact with plate in the punched hole  locations and generated electric pulses. This machine was  very successful for tabulation work. This aided to the  development of data processing machine. Hollerith  brought his punch card reader into the business world,  founding Tabulating Machine Company in 1896. Hollerith's  Tabulating Machine Company eventually merged with  other companies in 1924 to become International Business

In the 1930s American mathematician Howard Aiken developed the Mark I calculating machine, which was built by IBM. This electronic calculating machine used relays and electromagnetic components to replace mechanical  components. In later machines, Aiken used vacuum tubes and  solid state transistors to manipulate the binary numbers. Aiken  also introduced computers to universities by establishing the  first computer science program at Harvard University.

John V. Atanasoff, a Professor at Lowa State College and his  graduate student, Clifford Berry, envisioned an all-electronic  computer that applied Booloean algebra to computer circuitry.  This approach was based on the mid-19th century work of  George Boole who clarified the binary system of algebra,  which stated that any mathematical equations could be stated  simply as either true or false. By extending this concept to  electronic circuits in the form of on or off, Atanasoff and Berry  had developed the first all-electronic computer by 1940.

John Mauchely, an Americian physicist, proposed an electronic  digital computer, called the Electronic Numerical Intergrator  And Computer (ENIAC), which was built at the Moore School  of Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania in  Philadelphia by Mauchely and J. Presper Eckert, an American  Engineer. ENIAC was completed in 1945 and is regarded as the  first successful, general digital computer. It weighed more than  27,000 kg and contained more than 18,000 vacuum tubes.  Many of ENIAC‟s first task were for military purposes, such as  calculating ballistic firing tables and designing atomic  weapons.

Eckert and Mauchley eventually formed their own company,  which was then bought by the Rand Corporation. They  produced the Universal Automatic Computer (UNIVAC), which  was used for a broader variety of commercial applications.  UNIVAC was the first successful commercial computer.

At the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, Hungarian-  American mathematician John von Neumann developed one  of the first computers used to solve problems in mathematics,  meteorology, economics, and hydrodynamics. Von Neumann’s  1945 Electronic Discrete Variable Computer (EDVAC) was the  first electronic computer to use a program stored entirely  within its memory.