Computer Generations Timeline Evolution Notes & MCQ Quiz PDF

Complete Generations of Computer - Computer Awareness Notes PDF For All Competitive Exams & IT Interviews #Blog-19

Jan 10, 2022, By Careericons

This article will provide you with some important facts about the generations of computers & their evolution of technology that will helpful for all competitive exams like SSC, IBPS, Railway Exams & Various corporate IT Interviews.

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Important facts & key highlights of "Generations of Computer"

Learn Year of Invention Timeline, Switching Device, Operating System, Characteristics, Storage Device/Speed, Hardware Technology Evolution & Applications

A generation refers to the state of improvement in the development of the system. Computers are built of electromechanical, before generation. Each generation of computers is characterised by a major technological development that fundamentally changed the way, computers operate.

A generation of computers refers to the specific improvements & evolution of technologies in time periods with new innovations in computer technology with time. In 1946, electronic pathways called circuits were developed to perform the counting. It replaced the gears and other mechanical parts used for counting in previous computing machines.

In the history of computers, we often refer to the advancements of modern computers as the generation of computers. We are currently on the fifth generation of computers. So let us look at the important features of these five generations of computers.

In each new generation, the circuits became smaller and more advanced than the previous generation circuits. Miniaturization helped increase the speed, memory and power of computers.

There are five generations of computers which are described below;

1. First Generation Computers (1940 - 56)

The first generation (1946 - 1956) computers were slow, huge and expensive. In these computers, vacuum tubes were used as the basic components of CPU and memory. These computers were mainly dependent on the batch operating systems and punch cards. This was when machine language was developed for the use of computers.

They used vacuum tubes for the circuitry. For the purpose of memory, they used magnetic drums. Magnetic tape and paper tape were used as output and input devices in this generation;

Some key highlights of 1^st Generation computers:

Some of the popular first generation computers are;

• ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer)
• EDVAC (Electronic Discrete Variable Automatic Computer)
• UNIVACI (Universal Automatic Computer)
• IBM-701
• IBM-650

2. Second Generation Computers (1956 - 63)

The second generation (1956 - 1963) was the era of transistor computers. These computers used transistors which were cheap, compact and consumed less power; it made transistor computers faster than the first generation computers.

In this generation, magnetic cores were used as the primary memory and magnetic disc and tapes were used as the secondary storage. This made the computers smaller, faster and more energy-efficient. And they advanced from binary to assembly languages. Assembly language and programming languages like COBOL and FORTRAN, and Batch processing and multiprogramming operating systems were used in these computers.

Some key highlights of 2^nd Generation computers:

Some of the popular second generation computers are;

• IBM 1620
• IBM 7094
• IBM-1401
• PDP-8
• CDC 1604
• CDC 3600
• UNIVAC 1108

3. Third Generation Computers (1964 - 71)

The third generation computers used integrated circuits (ICs) instead of transistors. A single IC can pack huge number of transistors which increased the power of a computer and reduced the cost. The hallmark of this period (1964 - 1971) was the development of the integrated circuit. The computers also became more reliable, efficient and smaller in size.

These generation computers used remote processing, time-sharing, multiprogramming as the operating systems. Also, high-level programming languages like FORTRON-II TO IV, COBOL, PASCAL PL/1, ALGOL-68 were used in this generation.

Some key highlights of 3^rd Generation computers:

Some of the popular third generation computers are;

• IBM-360 series
• Honeywell-6000 series
• NCR-395
• B6500
• PDP (Personal Data Processor)
• IBM-370/168
• TDC-316

4. Fourth Generation Computers (1971 - 1980)

The fourth-generation (1971 - 1980) computers used very large scale integrated (VLSI) circuits; a chip containing millions of transistors and other circuit elements. These chips made this generation of computers more compact, powerful, fast and affordable. The invention of the microprocessors brought along the fourth generation of computers.

These generation computers used real-time, time-sharing and distributed operating systems. This was when we started producing computers for home use. Another important aspect is the development of higher computer languages. The programming languages like C, C++, DBASE, JAVA were also used in this generation.

Some key highlights of 4^th Generation computers:

Some of the popular fourth generation computers are;

• DEC 10
• STAR 1000
• PDP 11
• CRAY-1(Super Computer)
• CRAY-X-MP(Super Computer)
• Intel 4004 chip
• Macintosh

5. Fifth Generation Computers (1980 - Present & Beyond)

In fifth generation (1980 - till date) computers, the VLSI technology was replaced with ULSI (Ultra Large Scale Integration). This is the present and the future of the computer world. The defining aspect of this generation is artificial intelligence. It made possible the production of microprocessor chips with ten million electronic components.

This generation of computers used parallel processing hardware and AI (Artificial Intelligence) software. The use of parallel processing and superconductors are making this a reality and provide a lot of scope for the future. The programming languages used in this generation were C, C++, Java, .Net, etc.

Some key highlights of 5^th Generation computers:

Some of the popular fifth generation computers are;

• Desktop
• Laptop
• NoteBook
• UltraBook
• ChromeBook
• Robotics

Online Practice MCQ Test & Quiz for List of all various "Computer Awareness" Topics asked in various Competitive Exams & IT Interviews with Examples PDF:

1. Fundamental & Concepts Of Computer,
2. Computer Security,
3. Computer Acronyms & Abbreviation,
4. Basics Of Hardware & Software,
5. Input & Output Devices,
6. Operating System,
7. Software Concepts,
8. Software Engineering,
9. Data Structures & Algorithms,
10. Computer Networks,
11. Parallel Computing,
12. Window Programming,
13. Internet Awareness,
14. Microsoft Windows Operating System,
15. Microsoft Windows Keyboard Shortcuts,
16. Microsoft Office Quiz,
17. Microsoft Word,
18. Microsoft Excel,
19. Microsoft Powerpoint,
20. Microsoft Access,
21. Computer Memory,
22. Database Management System (DBMS),
23. Data Mining And Data Ware House, &
24. Electronics Data Processing.

Click these above links and learn all individual types with solved examples & practice MCQ useful for all SSC, IBPS, IBPS RRB, BANK, RAILWAY & any other competitive exam preparations and IT Interviews.