-
1st Generation
The first generation used vacuum tube technology and were built between 1946 and 1959. Vacuum tubes were expensive and produced a lot of heat, which made these computers very expensive and only affordable to large organizations. Machine language was the programming language used for these computers, and they could not multitask. -
1st Generation
The first ENIAC computer -
2nd Generation
Characterized by transistors
Computers were smaller, faster, and more reliable
Examples:
IBM 7090 (1959)
DEC PDP-1 (1960)
Key features:
Used transistors for logic and memory
Introduced assembly languages
Magnetic tapes and disks were introduced for storage -
2nd Generation
Magnetic tapes and disks were introduced for storage -
Period: to
2nd Generation
-
4th Generation
Characterized by integrated circuits
Computers were smaller, faster, and more powerful
Examples:
IBM System/360 (1964)
DEC PDP-8 (1965)
Key features:
Used integrated circuits for logic and memory
Introduced high-level programming languages (e.g., COBOL, FORTRAN)
Operating systems were developed -
Period: to
3rd Generation
-
4th Generation
Characterized by microprocessors
Computers were smaller, faster, and more affordable
Examples:
Intel 4004 (1971)
Apple II (1977)
Key features:
Used microprocessors for logic and memory
Introduced personal computers
Graphical user interfaces (GUIs) were developed -
Period: to
4th Generation
-
Period: to
5th Generation
Characterized by artificial intelligence and expert systems
Computers were more powerful and user-friendly
Examples:
IBM PC (1981)
Apple Macintosh (1984)
Key features:
Used RISC (Reduced Instruction Set Computing) processors
Introduced expert systems and artificial intelligence
GUIs became more widespread