History of Computers

It is supplemented by the two PBS documentaries video tapes "Inventing the Future" And
"The Paperback Computer" The chapter highlights some o! the advances to look !or in the
documentaries
In particular" when viewing the movies you should look !or two things#
The progression in hardware representation o! a bit o! data#
$ %acuum Tubes &$'()s* + one bit on the si,e o! a thumb-
. Transistors &$'()s and $'/)s* + one bit on the si,e o! a !ingernail-
0 Integrated Circuits &$'/)s and 1)s* + thousands o! bits on the si,e o! a hand
2 Silicon computer chips &$'1)s and on* + millions o! bits on the si,e o! a !inger
nail
The progression o! the ease o! use o! computers#
$ Almost impossible to use e3cept by very patient geniuses &$'()s*-
. Programmable by highly trained people only &$'/)s and $'1)s*-
0 4seable by 5ust about anyone &$'6)s and on*
to see how computers got smaller" cheaper" and easier to use
First Computers
The !irst substantial computer was the giant 78IAC machine by 9ohn : ;auchly and 9
Presper 7ckert at the 4niversity o! Pennsylvania 78IAC &7lectrical 8umerical Integrator
and Calculator* used a word o! $) decimal digits instead o! binary ones like previous
automated calculators<computers 78IAC was also the !irst machine to use more than .")))
vacuum tubes" using nearly $6"))) vacuum tubes Storage o! all those vacuum tubes and
the machinery re=uired to keep the cool took up over $/1 s=uare meters &$6)) s=uare !eet*
o! !loor space 8onetheless" it had punched+card input and output and arithmetically had $
multiplier" $ divider+s=uare rooter" and .) adders employing decimal "ring counters"" which
served as adders and also as =uick+access &)))). seconds* read+write register storage
The e3ecutable instructions composing a program were embodied in the separate units o!
78IAC" which were plugged together to !orm a route through the machine !or the !low o!
computations These connections had to be redone !or each di!!erent problem" together with
presetting !unction tables and switches This "wire+your+own" instruction techni=ue was
inconvenient" and only with some license could 78IAC be considered programmable- it
was" however" e!!icient in handling the particular programs !or which it had been designed
78IAC is generally acknowledged to be the !irst success!ul high+speed electronic digital
computer &7>C* and was productively used !rom $'2/ to $'(( A controversy developed in
$'1$" however" over the patentability o! 78IAC?s basic digital concepts" the claim being
made that another 4S physicist" 9ohn % Atanaso!!" had already used the same ideas in a
simpler vacuum+tube device he built in the $'0)s while at Iowa State College In $'10" the
court !ound in !avor o! the company using Atanaso!! claim and Atanaso!! received the
acclaim he rightly deserved
Progression of Hardware
In the $'()?s two devices would be invented that would improve the computer !ield and set
in motion the beginning o! the computer revolution The !irst o! these two devices was the
transistor Invented in $'21 by :illiam Shockley" 9ohn Bardeen" and :alter Brattain o! Bell
@abs" the transistor was !ated to oust the days o! vacuum tubes in computers" radios" and
other electronics
The vacuum tube" used up to this time in almost all the computers and calculating
machines" had been invented by American physicist @ee >e Forest in $')/ The vacuum
tube" which is about the si,e o! a human thumb" worked by using large amounts o!
electricity to heat a !ilament inside the tube until it was cherry red Ane result o! heating
this !ilament up was the release o! electrons into the tube" which could be controlled by
other elements within the tube >e Forest?s original device was a triode" which could
control the !low o! electrons to a positively charged plate inside the tube A ,ero could then
be represented by the absence o! an electron current to the plate- the presence o! a small
but detectable current to the plate represented a one
%acuum tubes were highly ine!!icient" re=uired a great deal o! space" and needed to be
replaced o!ten Computers o! the $'2)s and ()s had $6"))) tubes in them and housing all
these tubes and cooling the rooms !rom the heat produced by $6"))) tubes was not
cheap The transistor promised to solve all o! these problems and it did so Transistors"
however" had their problems too The main problem was that transistors" like other
electronic components" needed to be soldered together As a result" the more comple3 the
circuits became" the more complicated and numerous the connections between the
individual transistors and the likelihood o! !aulty wiring increased
In $'(6" this problem too was solved by 9ack St Clair Bilby o! Te3as Instruments Ce
manu!actured the !irst integrated circuit or chip A chip is really a collection o! tiny transistors
which are connected together when the transistor is manu!actured Thus" the need !or
soldering together large numbers o! transistors was practically nulli!ied- now only
connections were needed to other electronic components In addition to saving space" the
speed o! the machine was now increased since there was a diminished distance that the
electrons had to !ollow