A Brief Introduction to the History of Computing - 3 ANU Faculty of Engineering and IT Department of Computer Science COMP1200 Perspectives on Computing.

A Brief Introduction to theHistory of Computing - 3

ANU Faculty of Engineering and ITDepartment of Computer Science

COMP1200 Perspectives on Computing

Chris Johnson April 2003

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 2

Intro to history of computing – 4.3

Moore’s Law: driver of 3rd and 4th generations

What computers were used for, who made them:Operating systems, applications and the market

4 generations of computer systems and manufacturers

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 3

2. Moore’s Law

The density of transistors on a chip(i.e. the number per unit area)

doubles every 18 months

1964: Gordon Moore (Intel) observed the fact and fitted the “law” to the figures to that date

literally “exponential growth”

is it still true 40 years later?

what does doubling every 1.5 or 2 years actually imply?

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 4

2. Moore’s Law

Number of transistors on onechip - Intel 80x86 family processors

0100000200000300000400000500000600000700000800000900000

1000000

1972 78 83 86 90

transistors

1972 2,500

1978 30,000

1983 100,000

1986 300,000

1990 1,000,000

data from Intel

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 5

2. Moore’s Lawdata from

Intel

1,000,000

2500

<- - - - Linear scale - - - - ->

log scale

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 6

2. Moore’s Law

what are all those extra transistors used for in processors? in memory (RAM) chips?

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 7

3. 3rd & 4th generation: von Neumann architecture with virtual memory and cache

Secondarystorageuse for

online filestorage

I/Ocontrollers

Virtualmemory

Onlinefile

storage

fast cache memory

ALUregisters

pipelines

Memory

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 8

3. 4th generation (my numbering) Integrated circuits mark the start of 3rd generation -

but no hardware change marks the start of the 4th

a change in packaging and utilisation:desktop personal computerse.g. Apple II 1979, Apple Macintosh 1984 IBM PC personal computer 1981

personal productivity tools:spreadsheets, word processing programs

(and PowerpointPowerpoint) GUI – WIMP interface

Windows–Icons–Menus-Pointer invented 1975 Xerox PARCmass market 1984 (Mac) 1985 (IBM PC)

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 9

1. Big Ideas - the stored program computer

Why is the ability tostore the program in memory significant?

(2): the 3rd and 4th generations

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 10

4.3 History of computer systems, applications and markets

4 generations

operating systems and

software tools applications system configurations the size of the market manufacturers

•generation11945-59

•generation 21959-1964

•generation31964-1981

•generation 41981-----

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 11

1st. generation 1945-59 vacuum tubes storage: magnetic core, mercury delay line,

magnetic drum I/O: paper tape, punch cards, line printer software: no operating system

assembly program, library 1951 symbolic assembler language invented

(Grace Hopper) to improve on programming by numeric codes

one user at a time

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 12

1st. generation 1945-59 - configuration

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 13

1st. generation 1945-59 - applications

accounting (typically decimal computers) business stock control general substitute for punched card

business data processing: personnel, payroll

military (binary computers): calculation of artillery tables

decryption air traffic/air defence displays

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 14

1st. generation 1945-59– the market (started 1951)

most made by existing business equipment manufacturers IBM

1951-55 IBM 701 (scientific), IBM 702 (commercial): 50 of each 24 computers installed in 1956 1956-61 sold 1,100 IBM 350 RAMAC

Random Access Memory Accounting Machine- with a notable 5MByte disk storage unit

Remington Rand -> Sperry Rand - 24 sold in 1956 USA: RCA, GE, Philco, Burroughs, NCR, Honeywell a few companies in UK and France

top-end:SAGE air traffic control/air defence system:8k x 32 bit words, 75KHz, 100 radar display consoles1952-62: 46 computers installed

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 15

2nd generation – 1959-1964

discrete transistors replace vacuum tubes in CPU

magnetic core memory I/O: punched cards, high speed line

printer removable disk packs

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 16

2nd generation – 1959-64Operating system and software tools Batch operating systems:

professional operators,sequential execution of jobs controlled by operator switches,using magnetic tapes loaded by operator from library

single job at a time systems software: assembler, compilers High level languages

FORTRAN(from 1954-7); Algol (1960); COBOL (1961); LISP (1960)

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 17

2nd generation – 1959-1964 configuration

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 18

2nd generation – 1959-1964 applications

more business operations airline reservation system SABRE: IBM

7090, 1100 users, leased phone lines, transaction based

more scientific calculations: computational modelling

military...

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 19

2nd generation 1959-1964markets - growth example: IBM 1400 series (1401 - 7010) (1959-1965)

1.4k to 16k memory 6 bit characters, decimal arithmetic chain printer: 600 lines per minute (10 lines/second) 14,000 machines sold (IBM original estimate: 1,000)

Manufacturers“a fierce shakeout” - IBM and the seven dwarfs (1964)

IBM Sperry Rand RCA GE Burroughs->Sperry Rand/Unisys NCR Honeywell Control Data Corporation CDC

a few in UK (Ferranti->ICL), France (Bull), Germany (Nixdorf), Italy

(Olivetti)

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 20

3rd generation 1964-1981 integrated circuits in CPU: Moore’s Law

takes off magnetic core memory, solid state (RAM) memory from 1970 magnetic disk secondary store, virtual

memory magnetic tape offline storage high speed line printer remote data terminals

VDU, 24 x 80 characters, fixed char. set;short range serial line (1200, 2400, 9600 bps)

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 21

3. From 3rd to 4th generation 3rd generation from approx 1964

mainframe computers first, then minis minicomputers: e.g.DEC PDP/8, PDP/11,

Birth of UNIX operating system 1975 microcomputers PET TRS-80 1979 Apple II, VisiCalc spreadsheet 1979

4th generation............................ IBM PC, Microsoft DOS 1981

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 22

3rd generation 1964-81 mainframe, minicomputer, microcomputer

mainframe: enterprise scale, multiple boards in CPU, room-sized; 24-60 bit words; ~100 users (supercomputer 10x cost, 10x speed)

mini: compact, solid state, fairly rugged, suits equipment rack 1972 DEC PDP-8: 12 bit word;DG Nova, DEC PDP-11: 16 bit, VAX: 32 bit.20-30 circuit boards for CPU initially, down to 4-5Cheaper than mainframes e.g. $100,000 1970; ~10 users

micro: very compact, single chip processor: 8 bit to 16 bit; slower than minicomputers, much cheaper again: $2,000-10,000; 1 user 1971-79

pocket calculator replaces slide rule ~1970

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 23

3rd generation 1964-81 operating system and software tools

multiprogramming O/S: concurrent processing and I/O, “time-sharing” multiple jobs apparently simultaneously

database management systems time-sharing terminals, multiple users [early 70s] interactive programming environments:

debugger programs interactive data entry, transaction systems

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 24

3rd generation – 1964-81 - software rapid development of high level languages

1965 revised COBOL 65 (ANSI standard COBOL in 1968)

1966 FORTRAN 66 (FORTRAN IV) ANSI standard ->F77, F95

1967 Algol W -> Pascal 1972 1971 PROLOG programming in logic 1972 C BASIC

1968 NATO Software Conference identifies “the software crisis”: human inability to create and manage programs-> software engineering

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 25

3rd generation 1964-1981 - configuration

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 26

3rd generation 1964-81 applications more business operations databases scientific calculations, mathematical, industrial

modelling, weather forecasting minicomputers

industrial and other equipment control data concentrators - front ends to mainframes

microcomputers digital watches, games, calculators (special purpose

systems) embedded systems, hobby systems

military... embedded micro computers – digital avionics

computer networks

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 27

3rd generation 1964-81 – the market

Mainframes e.g. IBM System/360 family 1965-71

not time-shared 18,000 machines sold

System 370 1971-88 upward compatible from 360 series time-shared (multiproccessing) semi-conductor memory 80,000 sold

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 28

3rd generation 1964-81 – the manufacturers IBM and the BUNCH (approx 1968) [not 7 any longer]

IBM Burroughs->Sperry Rand/Unisys UNIVAC NCR Control Data Corporation CDC - supercomputers Honeywell

a few in UK (ICL), France (Bull), Germany (Siemens)

the minis (approx 1970) [new companies, electronics cos] DEC Digital Equipment Corporation Data General Varian Hewlett-Packard... and others

the micros Apple (and Apricot and Acorn and...) Xerox Commodore ... many others

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 29

4th generation 1981- 1981 IBM PC – a 16 bit personal computer for

office desktops;command line operating system MS-DOS. “Word processing” becomes a software application for PC not a dedicated box

productivity software: word processor, spreadsheet, paint and draw

1984 Apple Macintosh: WIMP 1985 Microsoft Windows for PC 2000 common processor chips drive nearly all

large and small computers

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 30

4th generation 1981 – mainframes, personal computers applications become centred on Graphical

User Interface, need for memory and processor speed grow enormously

mainframes continue as main computers – re-invented as servers to enterprise networks of personal workstations and PCs

mid 1980s: local computer networks transform the personal to the enterpise network; the Internet for email

mid 1990s: the World Wide Web on the Internet transforms the personal computer from a local information management and processing tool to a communication tool

Intro to history of computing: systems, apps, markets 31

4th generation – the marketBiggest manufacturers of servers, workstations, desktops, laptops: a

very volatile market, year by year [in 2001: Compaq (includes DEC) [1 million servers; 14 million PCs

worldwide; 12% of Australian PC market] Dell [700k servers; 11% Australian PC market IBM [660,000 servers] Hewlett-Packard [10%] now merged Compaq 2002 Sun [360,000 workstations; 9% Australian PC market] Apple [4% of Australian PC market] NEC [6 million PCs world] many other small companies: 48% Australian PC market, 25%

servers, 80 million PCs figures from Gartner Group press release web pages

The software market is now where the big money flows – Microsoft, Oracle

There are very few chip manufacturers. They produce millions.