The Generations of Computer Hardware: Arithmetic, Control Unit, and Characteristics - Essay Sample

Introduction

The first principal component of a central processing unit is arithmetic, which is a digital circuit containing registers that perform arithmetic as well as logical operations like addition, subtraction, multiplication and division (Stair & Reynolds 63). The second component is the control unit, and this is the unit controlling all computer operations and transferring data from one unit to another within the computer system.

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Generations of Computer Hardware and Their Characteristics

The vacuum tubes were the first generation, which was enormous and could take up an entire room. Their feature was reliance on machine language to do their operations. These computers could solve only one problem at a time. The second generation is transistors, and they relied on punched cards to produce an output although they were a bit faster compared to first the generation. The third phase of computer hardware is integrated circuits (Ravichandran 12). Their primary characteristic was using keyboards and monitors. The fourth generation is microprocessors, and they attributed with the development of a single chip built from many integrated circuits. The fifth generation is artificial intelligence characterized by parallel processing as well as superconductors.

Applications of IBM Watson

The first application of IBM Watson is the healthcare sector to help with diagnosis. For example, doctors use an app called schema to input patient data with the help of natural language processing (Miller 28). Moreover, it is applied in the finance sector since it is geared towards answering questions and analyzing results; thus, helping to provide effective risk management and financial analysis.

How Many Apps Were Available for Android and Ios Devices as of 2016?

As of June 2016, there were a total of 2 million iOs apps, while there were 1 million iPad applications (Costello). The number of these applications is expected to increase every year because of the number of people using smartphones.

Which Type of Memory Is Volatile? Meaning of Volatile

Volatile memory is the type of memory requiring power to store and retrieve the information. It is a type of memory that is not available when the device is not connected to power. An example of volatile memory is Static random access memory (Stair & Reynolds 63). This type of content requires regular refreshes so that it will not be lost.

Three Waves of Computing

Sweep ashore is the first wave, and this involves a period of supercomputers used for research while minicomputers are small computers fitting the needs of different departments and small-medium enterprises. There is also the development of microprocessor equipped with colossal memory and graphic displays (Ravichandran 14). Rises is the second wave, and this involves the introduction of robust parallel as well as distributed processing. Other elements at this phase include use of personal computers, laptops and other information appliances. There is also rises as the third wave involving the introduction of supercomputers and architectures within the machines. It includes massive leveraging and investment in research and development.

Two Advantages of Office 365 Compared to the Traditional Office

First, office 365 helps people to work from anywhere where there is internet connection, unlike the traditional office where people have to carry their personal computers or information with them. Secondly, office 365 makes collaboration easy (Katzer & Crawford 3). It has features that help people to work in teams, and they can work from different locations, unlike traditional office where people have to meet and share files. In a traditional office, team members may be using different versions to combine their work, which is cumbersome.

Definition of an Operating System and Examples of Operating Systems for Pcs and Mainframe Computers

An operating system is a software that supports essential functions of computers. It helps a computer user to run different applications as well as managing other hardware resources like keyboards and monitors (Sousa & Oz 168). Examples of operating systems for personal computers are Microsoft Windows, and Chrome OS. Operating systems for mainframe computers are z/VM and z/OS.

Works Cited

Costello, Sam. How many apps are in the app store? Lifewire, 15 April 2019, https://www.lifewire.com/how-many-apps-in-app-store-2000252. Accessed 12 June 2019.

Katzer, Mathew & Crawford, Don. Office 365: Migrating and managing your business in the cloud. New York: Apress open. 2014.

Miller, James. Learning IBM Watson Analytics. Mumbai: PACKT Publishing. 2016.

Ravichandran. Introduction to computers and communication. New Delhi: McGraw-Hill Publishing. 2006.

Sousa, Kenneth & Oz, Effy. Management information systems. New York: Cengage learning. 2014.

Stair, Ralph & Reynolds, George. Fundamentals of information systems. London: Cengage learning. 2015.