GENERATIONS OF COMPUTERS:

First Generation: Vacuum Tubes (1940-1956)

Vacuum tubes for circuitry and magnetic drums for memory are used in this generation Computers and were such a huge in size, which may

cover entire room. These computers were very expensive to operate and in addition to using a great deal of electricity, the first computers
generated a lot of heat, which was often the cause of malfunctions.Programming are done in Machine Language (often called Binary

Language) the lowest-level programming language which can only be understood by computers to perform Basic operations one at a time.
Punch Cards are used to take input and output is given in Print form. Its Memory Size is only 20Bytes which is to small in size and its

functioning speed is about 5Mbps which shows its sow Processing.

Examples of First Generation Computers:
 UNIVAC(Universal Automatic Computer)
 ENIAC(Electric Numerical Integrater & Calculator)
 EDVAC(Electronic Discrete Variable Automatic Computer)

Second Generation: Transistors (1956-1963)

The creation of Transistors sparked the production of Second Generation’s in Computers. In Second Generation Transistors replaces
Vacuum tubes used in First Generation’s computers. The Transistor was invented at Bell Labs in 1947 is a very small device used to transfer
electronic signals across a resistor. The transistor was far superior to the vacuum tube, allowing computers to become smaller, faster,
cheaper, more energy-efficient and more reliable than their first-generation predecessors. Though the transistor still generated a great deal

of heat that subjected the computer to damage, it was a vast improvement over the vacuum tube. Second-generation computers still relied
on punched cards for input and printouts for output. Programming is done in both Machine Language & Assembly Language .Memory size
and speed of this generation is still low about 32 bytes and 10Mbps respectively.
Examples of Second Generation Computers:
 ATLAS

 Control Data 3600

Third Generation: Integrated Circuits (1964-1971)

The development of Integrated Circuits(IC’s) in 1961 was the hallmark of the third generation of computers. IC’s were formed by miniaturizing
the transistors and placing them on silicon chips called Semiconductors, which drastically increased the speed and efficiency of computers.
Instead of punched cards and printouts, users interacted with third generation computers through keyboards,monitors and interfaced with
Operating System which allowed the device to run many different applications at one time with a central program that monitored the memory.
Computers for the first time became accessible to a mass audience because they were smaller and cheaper than their predecessors.

Storage-Disks are used for Storing data.

Examples of Third Generation Computers:
 IBM 360 Series
 ICL-1900 serious
 Honeywell Model 316

Fourth Generation: Microprocessors (1971-Present Day)

Intel created first Microprocessor (4004 chip) in 1971 which brought the fourth generation of computers, as thousands of integrated circuits

were built onto a single silicon chip. A Microprocessor is a specialized chip which is developed for computer memory and logic. As compared
to first generation computers which filled an entire room could now fit in the palm of our hand. This generation brings a drastic change in the

Generations of Computers .Different types of Secondary memory with high storage capacity (upto TeraBytes) and fast access was possible.
Programming is done in High-Level Languages like Python, Java, C, C++ etc. Fourth Generation computers are portable. As these small

computers became more powerful, they could be linked together to form networks, which eventually led to the development of the Internet.
Fourth generation computers also saw the development of GUI’s, Mouse, Handled Devices etc.
Examples of Fourth Generation Computers:
 Pentium
 Dell Laptop
 Apple Macintosh

Fifth Generation: Artificial Intelligence (Present Day & Beyond)

The Fifth Generation Computers are technologically advance and are still being developed to become more efficient. Based on Artificial

Intelligence there are some applications, such as voice recognition that are being used today. The use of parallel processing and
superconductors is helping to make artificial intelligence a reality. Quantum Computation and molecular and nanotechnology will radically
change the face of computers in coming years. The goal of Fifth-Generation Computers is to develop such devices that respond to natural
languages as input and are capable of learning and self-organization.
Examples of Fifth Generation Computers:
 Robots
 Robotic Devices