A Decade in History The Invention of The Computer. By: Kylene Cashman.

1936-Konrad Zuse z1 computer. The Konrad Zuse Z1 computer was the first binary computer. It was also the first freely programmable computer. It was a mechanical calculator. It had all the basic ingredients of modern machines. The Z1 used the binary system and today's standard separation of storage and control. It was used to explore several It was used to explore several innovative technologies in calculator evolution, including: high-capacity memory modules regulating on the yes/no principle.

The ABC computer was built at Iowa State University between 1939 and It was the first electronic computer. The Atanasoff computer was relatively the size of a bulky computer desk. It was made of approximately 270 vacuum tubes. The arithmetic unit was made up of 210 tubes, 30 tubes controlled the card reader, and the rest of the tubes helped maintain charges in the condensers. Even though it was a revolutionary achievement, it had a wide variety of limitations. It was very slow, and also required long hours of maintenance. The computer was dismantled in ABC COMPUTER.

 It was invented and designed by Howard Aiken and Grace Hopper at Harvard University.  It was 55 feet long and 8 feet high.  The device was 5 tons, and contained approximately 760,000 pieces.  It was used for the US navy for ballistic and gunnery calculations.  The Harvard I could carry out certain functions such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.  The data was stored and counted using 3000 decimal storage wheels, 1400 rotary dial switches, and 500 miles of wire.  All the outputs were displayed on a typewriter.  The Harvard Mark I computer was slow comparing to todays standards, taking 3-5 seconds for a multiplication operation HARVARD MARK 1 COMPUTER.

The ENIAC 1 Computer was created by John Presper Eckert and John Mauchly. It was used for computing artillery-firing tables, the setting for different weapons varied between target accuracy. The ENIAC1 computer was composed of 17,468 vacuum tubes, along with 70,000 resistors, 10,000 capacitors, 1,500 relays, 6,000 manual switches and 5 million soldered joints. It weighed 30 tons and covered 1,800 square feet of space. It also consumed 160 kilowatts of electricity. There is even an urban myth that states that the ENIAC 1 computer would cause the city of Philadelphia to have rolling blackouts. In one second, the ENIAC could perform 5,000 additions, 357 multiplications and 38 divisions. It was one thousand times faster than any other calculating machine to date. The use of thousands of vacuum tubes instead of switches made the machine more intense in speed. But this also caused the machine to not be quick to program. The machine required long hours of matinence to operate. At 11:45 p.m., October 2, 1955, with the power finally shut off, and the ENIAC was retired ENIAC 1 COMPUTER.

KONRAD ZUSE AND ABC COMPUTER. weekly/aa htm Konrad Zuse Z1 Computer. page/ABC-Computer-1940.htm page/ABC-Computer-1940.htm ABC Computer.

ENIAC 1 Computer. sciencelab.com/Comp uterHistory/HistoryPt 4.htm

Harvard Mark 1 Computer- /harvard-mark-1-action.jpg