First Generation Computers

     

- The first generation of computers took place during 1946 – 1958. Unlike, the sleek and compact computers we know and love today, the first generation computers were massive and normally took up entire rooms, if not buildings. They were made-up of vacuum tubes (rather than mechanical switches) for circuitry and used magnetic drums to hold the memory. Due to the technology and the size, they were extremely expensive to made and use (using a lot of electricity). John Mauchly and Presper Eckert, in 1946, created ENIAC which was an electronic computer using vacuum tubes. At the same time, Thomas Edison created the light bulb, which functioned similar to the vacuum tubes. “Without any moving parts, vacuum tubes could take very weak signals and make the signal stronger (amplify it).  Vacuum tubes could also stop and start the flow of electricity instantly (switch).  These two properties made the ENIAC computer possible” (- Hames, The Computer Generations). The video below gives a great visual and understanding of vacuum tubes and how they work.

- These first computers used an early and low form of programming language to carry out action. That is right, these computers could only work out one operation at a time. Seeing as it was only able to do one output and running the machine produced so much heat (which in turn lead to malfunctions), left not much to be desired. Even though this was a huge advancement in the technology world, advancement would not stop there.



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Source

• Hames, Roderick. "The Computer Chronicles - Computer Generations." The Computer Chronicles - Computer Generations. N.p., 2011. Web. 30 Mar. 2014.