History of Computers

The first counting device was used by the primitive people. They used sticks, stones and bones as counting tools. As human mind and technology improved with time more computing devices were developed. Some of the popular computing devices starting with the first to recent ones are described below;

Abacus

The history of computer begins with the birth of abacus which is believed to be the first computer. It is said that Chinese invented Abacus around 3,000 years ago.

It was a wooden rack which has metal rods with beads mounted on them. The beads were moved by the abacus operator according to some rules to perform arithmetic calculations. Abacus is still used in some countries like China, Russia and Japan. An image of this tool is shown below;

Napier's Bones

It was a manually-operated calculating device which was invented by John Napier of Merchiston(Scotland) in 1617. In this calculating tool, he used 9 different ivory strips or bones marked with numbers to multiply and divide. So, the tool became known as "Napier's Bones. It was also the first machine to use the decimal point.

Pascilne
Pascaline was the first calculator invented in the world, it worked by means of a series of wheels and different gears, which could add, subtract, divide and multiply by subtractions and additions in a repetitive way.Pascaline was invented by Blaise Pascal in 1642. It was the son of a civil servant whose job was to collect taxes.

Difference Engine

In the year 1822, it was designed by Charles Babbage who is known as "Father of Modern Computer". It was a mechanical computer which could perform simple calculations. It was a steam driven calculating machine designed to solve tables of numbers like logarithm tables.

Analytical Engine

This calculating machine was also developed by Charles Babbage in 1837. It was a mechanical computer that used punch-cards as input. It was capable of solving any mathematical problem and storing information as a permanent memory.

Ved Prakash

Hello guys, I am Ved, from Dehradun, A MCA student of Graphic Era University Dehradun. Graduated with BCA In 2014 from VEER KUNWAR SINGH University. My Professional Career Start Early At My 2nd University Year of BCA, Utilizing My Passion for Computer System, I Start Working as Computer Teacher at Unisoft Solutions. I spend most of my free time reading books, articles and papers. Hundreds of books and thousands of hours serving online helped me expand my knowledge of the world and improve my understanding of what, I do..