History of Computing Timelines - Essay Example

HISTORY OF COMPUTING TIMELINES INTRODUCTION Before the invention of computers centuries ago the mode of relaying information was by the caravans who were common in India and the Middle East. These groups of people were mostly mathematicians who traveled long distances and passed the information to the people. This continued for quite some time as the technological evolution took place until the realization of a computer. The invention of the computer was not for email or entertainment purposes but was particularly to aid in solving serious issues of crunching numbers. For instance by the year 1880 the population of the United States was so large that it could take almost seven years that to tabulate the results of the census. As a result there was some invention like the punch card computers which were designed to help solve the crisis (Smith, 1926). Timelines of Computing History from 2400 BC TO 1949 2400 B.C TO 1641 2400 BC: The first known calculator known as Abacus was invented by the Babylonians to solve mathematics problems. This was the first step in developing computers and dealing with positional notations. 1115 BC: In ancient China a south pointing chariot was invented and contributed very much towards the differential gear. 500 BC: During this period there was use of Zero mathematics where the formulated grammar of Sanskrit was highly systematized. As a result the computing power was developed and was similar to the Turing machine. This was simply a precursor to the modern computing (Smith, 1926). 60 BC: Sequence control was invented by Heron of Alexandria where the machine was set running by an operator and then responds to a series of instructions in a very unique manner. This was actually the first program that contributed towards the establishment of robotics. 850 B.C: Cryptography was developed by Al-Kindi who was an Arab mathematician. This led to the development of the frequency analysis where by letters could be easily analyzed and the encryption ciphers broken with a lot of easy (Turner, 2006). 1206 BC: There was invention of automata by Al-Jazari an Arabian Engineer, which was a foundation for the design of a programmable humanoid shaped mannequin. Eventually this lead to a castle clock invention also known as the earliest analog programmable computer. 1400 BC: During this time an analog instrument of the computer was invented by Jamshid al –Kashi. This was used in determining the time of the day at which the conjunctions of the planet would occur. It was also used in for linear interpolation purposes (Black 2001). 1492 BC: A mechanical calculator with the ability of adding and subtracting was developed. This was of great importance to the art field particularly when Leonardo da Vinci really contributed towards the success of the machine. 1642-1850 A mechanical calculator was invented in the year 1642 by Blaise Pascal who was a French mathematician. This was the first machine to have the ability of carry mechanism (Walter,2011). 1671: Gottfried Leibniz from Germany developed a machine that could multiply numbers of up to 5 to 12 digits to give a result of 16 digits. 1709: Was another unique year in the history of computers where a calculator that used pinwheel was designed. It was designed from wood and was molted in the form of a calculating clock by Giovanni Poleni (Turner, 2006). 1774: A portable calculator that was able to perform all the four mathematical operations was developed in Germany by Philipp Hahn. 1820: This was a significant year in the history of computing with the invention of the Arithometer that was capable of performing long multiplications and divisions. All these operations were done in a faster and efficient way with the help of a movable accumulator (Walter, 2011). 1822: A first mechanical computer was designed by Charles Babbage. This was the first prototype of the decimal difference engine mostly used for tabulating polynomials. 1834: Advancement continued in the computer field where new ideas were conceived and an analytical engine was invented. This was simply a program that was used on read only memory in the form of punched cards. Several modifications were made on the central processing unit (CPU) where it had two main accumulators and some auxiliary ones for specific duties. It also had a large memory store that could accommodate a thousand 50 digit numbers. (Turner,2001) In the year 1848 a British Mathematician by the name George Boole came up with binary algebra also known as Boolean algebra. This was later to be used greatly in the binary computer design and operation. 1851 to 1899 Computer Timeline It took thirty years of development before a mechanical calculator industry was established by Thomas de Colmar. This mainly focused on manufacturing Arithmometers that were simplified in nature. They are the most reliable calculators up to date and they are the size of a desktop (Black, 2001). 1853: During this year a tabulating machine was invented. Its mode of operation was based on a 15 digit numbers and fourth order difference. 1875: A modified engine like machine was invented by Martin Wiberg. The main function of this machine was to form logarithmic tables commonly used for mathematical purposes. 1878: A calculator with an internal multiplication table was invented in the City of New York by Verea Ramon. This machine was different from the previous ones as it was much faster as compared to the shifting carriage already existing. A comptometer was developed in the year 1884 by Felt Dorr from Chicago. Being the first unique calculator it had its operands entered by pressing the keys rather than the conventional way of dialing in. It gained fame and was common since it was easy to work with as the keys could easily return to the original position after being pressed (Turner, 2006). 1890: Herman Hollerith came up with a punch card system that was used to calculate the census of 1880 in the United States of America. This was very crucial as it helped perform the task in three years instead of the programmed seven years thus saving the government about $ 5 million. 1900 to the year 1960 In the year 1937 a professor of Physics and mathematics at Iowa University by the name Atanasoff worked on the first computer that had no cams, belts or shafts and gears (Walter,2011). 1941: This marked a very significant period in the error of computers since this was the first time a computer was able to store data on its main memory. The design of this computer allowed it to solve twenty nine equations simultaneously. 1943-1944: An Electronic Numerical Integrator and Calculator (ENIAC) was invented by two professors from the university of Pennsylvania namely: Presper Eckert and Mauchly John. The instrument was large in size as measured 40 foot by 20 foot and included 18,000 vacuum tubes (Black, 2001). 1953: During this year the first ever computer language was developed. Grace Hopper was the person behind the development of the language which was commonly known as COBOL. 1954: Another programming language with name of FORTRAN IS developed. This continued improving the modification of computers. 1958: Robert Noyce and Jack Kilby invented the integrated circuit which was widely known as the computer chip. 1960-1980. 1964: A prototype of the modern computer was showcased by Engelbart Douglas. This comprised of a graphical user interface (GUI) and a mouse. This year marked the revolution of the computer from the reserve of mathematicians and scientist to general public technology. 1970: The first Dynamic Access Memory (DRAM) chip was invented during this period. This was later followed with the invention of floppy disk in the year 1971 by Shugart Alan. As a result data could easily be shared among several computers.(Turner,2006). 1973: Ethernet was developed and enabled connection of multiple computers and other hardware. All this invention was attributed to the hard work of a Xerox researcher by the name Robert Metcalfe. 1971-1977: During this timeline several personal computers appeared on the market. They included; Commodore PET, Scelbi and Mark-8 Altair, TRS-80,IBM 5100 and RadioShack’s. 1978: The first computerized spreadsheet program known as VisiCalc was introduced. This was then followed by word processing in the year 1979 where WordStar had become a reality by the MicroPro international. 1980: The number of computers in use rises to 1 million. Conferon Company comes up with beepers and a system of wireless headsets used to improve on site communication particularly during meetings. 1981-2010 1981: The first IBM personal computer was introduced and commonly known as Acorn. This type of computer used a Microsoft MS-DOS operating system. It had an Intel chip, an optional color monitor and two floppy disks. 1983: A personal computer with a GUI, a drop down menu and Icons was introduced in the market. This was mostly referred to as Apple’s Lisa. 1986: Deskpro 386 was introduced into the market by Compaq. This was a 32 bit computer that had a speed similar that of the mainframes (Black, 2001). 1990: A Hyper Text Markup Language (HTML) was developed by Tim Berners-Lee who was at the high energy physics laboratory (CERN) in Geneva. This lead to the establishment of World Wide Web. 1993: The use of graphics and music on PCs was advanced by the Pentium microprocessor. 2001: Mac OS X operating system was developed by Apple. The outcome of this invention was the pre-emptive multi-tasking and protection of memory architecture (Walter, 2011). 2010: The introduction of iPad has positive impacts on the perception of media by customers. REFERENCES Black, E. (2001). IBM and the Holocust: the strategic alliance between Nazi Germany and America’s most powerful corporation. New York, Random House Publisher. Smith, D (1929). A Source Book in Mathematics. New York and London: McGraw-Hill Book Company, Inc. Turner, F. (2006). From Counterculture to cyber culture: Stewart Brand, the Whole Earth Network and the rise of Digital Utopianism. Chicago, University of Chicago Press Walter, I.(2011).Steve Jobs. Washington D.C. Simon & Schuster Publisher Read More