Generations of Computer

The computer as we see it today is a result of extensive research and development through the
decades. The word 'computer' comes from the word compute which means 'to calculate'.
Computers were developed from calculators as the need arose for more complex and scientific
calculations. Charles Babbage is known as the father of computers because of his immense
contribution to the world of programming. His idea was soon developed into a programmable
computer that could calculate and print logarithmic tables with huge precision. But there were
many practical problems and the progress was slow.
Generations of Computer are:
First Generation (1940-1956)
Second Generation (1956-1963)
Third Generation (1964-1971)
Fourth Generation (1972-1984)
Fifth Generation (1984-1990)
Sixth Generation (1990-continue)

Fourth Generation: Very Large Scale Integration (1972 to 1984):

The fourth generation of computers began around 1975 and lasted until around 1985. It
recognizes that period of computer history when the integrated circuit chip evolved into the
microprocessor, a "computer on a chip." The period marks the successful introduction and
mass production of the early desktop models of the IBM PC, its several clones, and the Apple
Macintosh.
The fourth generation computers use VLSI chips for both CPU and memory. The VLSI
technology allowed millions of transistors on a single chip. This high density of fabrication
directly affected the size and sped of the machine. With heavy drop in price, it was feasible for
single individual to have his/her own computer. Some of the achievements in this generation are:

RISC (Reduced Instruction Set Computers) was introduced.

Superscalar computers and personal computers were introduced.

User friendly and fast computer with virtual technology is available in the market.

Progress in neural network and AI has helped to produce intelligent machines that the
fifth generation computers are under development stage. Highly developed can learn,
adopt and analyze the knowledge itself.

Improvement on distributed system, and network communication system.

Examples of fourth generation computers are: Apple Macintosh, IBM PCs etc.

Fifth Generation: (1984-1990)

While the microprocessor has revolutionized the computing industry, the fifth generation of
computer looks to turn the whole industry on its head once again. The fifth generation of
computing is called "artificial intelligence," and it is the goal of computer scientists and
developers to eventually create computers than outsmart, outwit, and maybe even outlast their
human inventors.
Artificial intelligence can be broken into five distinct categories: games playing, robotics, expert
systems, neural networks, and natural language. Each of these categories is being developed
largely independent of one another; game playing, for instance, has seen great success over the
course of the past 15 years, while natural language has taken longer to full develop and perfect.

Game Playing
No longer will computing simply be a person playing a
game alone on their computer; in the future, computers
wil be able to play along, and possibly win.

Neural Networks
A neural network tries to reproduce the thoughts and
physical connections of human or animal brains, and is
one of the hottest areas of fifth generation computing.

Natural Language
Now the computer can hear the words and transcribe
them into text, but it doesn't really have the ability to
understand their meaning or their context.

Expert Systems
We've all been victims of so-called "human error,"
Increasingly, researchers are looking to artificia intelligence as a sort of fail-proof way of
diagnosing patients and doing everyday human tasks.

Robotics
Robotics in the realm of artificial intelligence is about creating robots which can experience, and
react to, external stimuli -- just like their human counterparts.
In a word the fifth generation computers are under development stage. Highly developed
countries such as have undertaken projects to design and develop such computers. These
computers will use ULSI (Ultra Large Scale Integration) chips.
There will be progress on intelligent system and expert system to develop intelligent

computers which can have vision, learning ability, object recognition and synthesis ability,
natural language understanding ability.
The input and output of the computes will be in the form of speech and graphic

Reference:

http://www.techiwarehouse.com
http://it-history.net
http://www.webopedia.com