2.

History and Evolution of Computers

2.1 History of Computers

The history of computers is a fascinating journey that spans centuries. Here’s a brief
overview:

✓ Ancient Calculating Tools: The earliest devices for computation include the abacus,
which dates back thousands of years and was used for basic arithmetic;

✓ Mechanical Calculators (17th Century): Inventors like Blaise Pascal and Got-
tfried Wilhelm Leibniz developed mechanical calculators in the 17th century. These
machines could perform addition and subtraction;

✓ Charles Babbage and Analytical Engine (19th Century): Often considered the
"father of the computer," Charles Babbage conceptualized the Analytical Engine
in the 1830s. Although it was never built during his lifetime, his designs laid the
groundwork for modern computing concepts;

✓ Ada Lovelace (19th Century): Ada Lovelace, an associate of Babbage, is credited

with writing the first algorithm for the Analytical Engine. She is often regarded as
the world’s first computer programmer;

✓ Mechanical and Electromechanical Computers (Early to Mid-20th Century):

Devices like the Mark I, developed by Howard Aiken and Grace Hopper, were
electromechanical computers that utilized punched cards for input;

✓ ENIAC (1940s): The Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer (ENIAC) is

considered the first general-purpose electronic digital computer. It was massive and
used vacuum tubes for processing;
 30 Chapter 2. History and Evolution of Computers

✓ Transistors and Integrated Circuits (1950s-1960s): The invention of transistors

and later integrated circuits revolutionized computing, leading to smaller, more
powerful, and more reliable computers;

✓ Microprocessors and Personal Computers (1970s): The development of micropro-

cessors, such as the Intel 4004, paved the way for the creation of personal computers.
Companies like Apple and Microsoft emerged during this era.

✓ Home Computers and the Internet (1980s): The 1980s saw the rise of home
computers like the Commodore 64 and the IBM PC. Additionally, the development
of the internet began during this period;

✓ Advancements in Processing Power (1990s-Present): Moore’s Law, which pre-

dicts the doubling of transistors on a microchip approximately every two years, has
held true, leading to consistent advancements in computing power;

✓ Mobile Computing and Smart Devices (21st Century): The 21st century brought
about the era of mobile computing, with smartphones and tablets becoming ubiqui-
tous. Cloud computing also became a significant trend;

✓ Artificial Intelligence and Quantum Computing (Present-Future): Recent years

have seen remarkable progress in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and
quantum computing, pushing the boundaries of what computers can achieve.

2.2 Categories of computers

Computers are typically classified into several categories based on their size, functionality,
and purpose. The main categories include:

▶ Supercomputers: They are designed for high-performance computing tasks. They

are used for weather forecasting, studying climate, and generating physical or
financial simulations. They currently utilize tens of thousands of microprocessors
(IBM Blue Gene, 250,000 µP, Columbia, 10,240 µP).

▶ Mainframe Computers: They are large, powerful, and centrally managed comput-
ing systems designed for handling massive volumes of data and complex computing
tasks. They are Used for data processing, handling large databases, and running
enterprise-level applications.

▶ Minicomputerss: This category was popular in the 1960s and 1970s, and its role is
now absorbed by other categories of computers.

▶ Microcomputers: These are small-sized computers whose central unit consists

of one or more microprocessors. A microcomputer is an individual computer that
operates autonomously. It can be classified into four groups: personal computer
(PC), workstation, single-board computer, and single-chip microcomputer or micro-
controller.
 2.3 Organization of a Computer 31

▶ Servers: They are computers designed to provide services or resources to other

computers (clients) in a network which include web servers, file servers, and database
servers.
▶ Quantum computers: Quantum computers are a type of computing device that
leverages principles from quantum mechanics to perform computations. Unlike
classical computers, which use bits to represent information as either 0 or 1, quantum
computers use quantum bits or qubits that can exist in multiple states simultaneously.
▶ Wearable computers: Wearable computers are electronic devices that can be
worn as accessories, embedded in clothing, or even implanted in the body. These
devices are designed to provide functionality and convenience to the user such as
smartwatches and fitness trackers.

2.3 Organization of a Computer

Computer (or microprocessor-based system) can read instructions from memory, acquire
binary data as input for processing, and provide the results as output.
A microprocessor-based system has four essential components: Central Processing
Unit, memory, input units, and output units, in addition to buses that transfer data between
them, as shown in Figure 2.1."

Figure 2.1: Essential Components of a Microprocessor System

2.3.1 Microprocessor
It is the primary component of a computer responsible for executing instructions and
performing calculations. It acts as the brain of the computer, processing data and controlling
other hardware components. Its main components include:

• Arithmetic and Logic Unit (ALU): The ALU performs arithmetic (+,-,x,/) and
logical (AND, OR, NOT, XOR,..) operations.
• Control Unit (CU): The Control Unit manages the execution of instructions. It
fetches instructions from memory, decodes them, and controls the flow of data
between the CPU and other components.
 32 Chapter 2. History and Evolution of Computers

• Registers: Registers are small, fast storage locations within the CPU used for
temporarily holding data that is being processed..

2.3.2 Memory
Memory stores such binary information as instructions and data, and provides that informa-
tion to the microprocessor whenever necessary. To execute programs, the microprocessor
reads instructions and data from memory and performs the computing operations in its
ALU section. Results are either transferred to the output section for display or stored in
memory for later use.

ROM memory: ROM provides a reliable and non-volatile storage solution for the
fundamental instructions and data that are integral to the system. such as bootstrap
and firmware.

RAM memory: It is a volatile storage used to temporarily store data and instructions
actively being processed by the system. It provides fast access times, allowing the
processor to quickly retrieve and modify data during program execution.

2.3.3 Input/Output
Input/Output (I/O) allows the transfer of information between the microcomputer sys-
tem and an external device. This transfer can be accomplished through three methods:
programmed I/O, interrupt I/O, and direct memory access (DMA).

2.3.4 System bus

The microcomputer’s system bus consists of three buses: address, data, and control buses.
These buses connect the microprocessor (CPU) to each of the ROM, RAM, and I/O chips,
allowing information transfer between the microprocessor and any of the other elements.
1. Data Bus: It is a bidirectional bus that allows data transfer between various com-
ponents of a microprocessor system. The width of the data bus determines the
volume of data that can be transmitted. In some microprocessors, the data pins are
time-shared or multiplexed with addresses or other information pins.
2. Address Bus: It is a unidirectional bus, and its size determines the total number
of memory addresses available for program execution by the microprocessor. The
address bus is defined by the total number of address pins on the microprocessor
chip, which, in turn, determines the direct addressing capability or the size of the
main memory of the microprocessor.
3. Control Bus: The control bus consists of a number of signals that are used to
synchronize the operation of the individual microcomputer elements. The micropro-
cessor sends some of these control signals to the other elements to indicate the type
of operation being performed such as (CS, RD,W R, EN, OE,CLK..).

2.3.5 Clock Signals

The system clock signals are contained in the control bus. These signals generate the
appropriate clock periods during which instruction executions are carried out by the
microprocessor.
 2.4 Input/Output devices 33

2.4 Input/Output devices

The I/O devices serve as an effective communication link between the microprocessor and
the external environment, often referred to as "peripherals." These peripherals encompass
devices like Keyboard, Mouse, Scanner, Microphone, Webcam, Contacts ,Screen, Speaker
and printer. I/O devices typically differ from the microprocessor in terms of speed, word
length, and data format. To ensure compatibility between the characteristics of I/O devices
and the microprocessor, interface hardware circuitry is essential. Interfaces facilitate input
and output transfers between the microprocessor and peripherals through an I/O bus.
Figure 2.2 illustrates the connection of certain peripherals to the microprocessor through
input/output interfaces.

Figure 2.2: Connecting peripherals to the microprocessor through input/output interfaces

2.5 Microprocessor
In 1971, Intel successfully integrated all the transistors that constitute a processor onto a
single integrated circuit, giving rise to the microprocessor. A microprocessor executes in-
structions and performs arithmetic and logic operations, playing a crucial role in processing
data and controlling other components within a computer system.
The main characteristics of a microprocessor are:

(a) Instruction Set : The instruction set of a microprocessor is the list of commands it
is designed to execute. Typical instructions include ADD, SUBTRACT, and STORE.
Each instruction is coded as a unique bit pattern, recognized and executed by the
microprocessor. If a microprocessor allocates 3 bits for instruction representation, it
can recognize a maximum of 23 instructions in its instruction set. The instructions
set varies depending on the microprocessor type and manufacturer. Microprocessor
can execute from several tens to thousands of instructions.

(b) Architecture: Microprocessors can have different architectures, such as Complex

Instruction Set Computing (CISC) or Reduced Instruction Set Computing (RISC),
 34 Chapter 2. History and Evolution of Computers

influencing how instructions are processed.

(c) Data Bus Width: It indicates the number of bits that can be transferred between the
microprocessor and memory in a single operation. It also reflects the number of bits
the processor can process simultaneously. The first microprocessors began with 4
bits, and currently, they have widths of 64 bits.

(d) Address Bus Width: The number of bits used to address memory locations, deter-
mining the maximum addressable memory.

(e) Clock Speed: The speed at which the microprocessor can execute instructions;
the higher the clock speed, the more instructions the microprocessor executes, it is
measured in hertz (Hz) or gigahertz (GHz).

(f) Cache Memory: Microprocessors often have small, high-speed memory caches to
store frequently accessed instructions and data, reducing the need to fetch them from
slower main memory. This feature was introduced in more advanced microprocessor.

(g) Multicore Capability: Many modern microprocessors are multicore, meaning they
have multiple processing units on a single chip, allowing for parallel processing and
improved performance.
Note: The metric used to express the processing speed of a microprocessor is how many
Million Instructions Per Second (MIPS) it can execute.

2.6 History of Microprocessors

Table 1 summarizes the history of microprocessors from the appearance of the first micro-
processor until recent years.

2.7 Assembly and Machine Languages

The processor can only execute binary code (1s and 0s). The group of binary instructions
written in binary code is called machine language. It is the low-level programming lan-
guage that permits communication with the processor. However, as direct programming in
machine language is quite tedious, each binary code is associated with a mnemonic to facil-
itate human-readable program writing. The instruction set written using these mnemonics
is called assembly language. The translator from assembly language to machine language
is called an assembler. The example below makes clear the difference between these two
languages with three instructions.

Exemple:

Mnemonic Operation Code Operand Function

JMP 00H Address Jump to the specified address
INR 3CH Implicit Increment the content of the accumulator
ADD B 80H Data Add the content of register B to that of the accumulator
 2.8 High-level Languages 35

Table 2.1: History of Microprocessor Development

Processor Year No. of Clock Address Data Bus MIPS
transistor speed Bus
Intel 4004 1971 2300 108KHz 4-bit 4-bit 0.06
Intel 4040 1974 3000 108KHz 10-bit 4-bit 0.06
Intel 8008 1972 3500 108KHz 14-bit 8-bit 0.064
Intel 8080 1974 4500 2MHz 16-bit 8-bit 0.5
Intel 8085 1976 6500 3MHz 16-bit 8-bit 0.77
Intel 8086 1978 29000 10MHz 20-bit 16-bit 2.5
. . . . . . .
Intel 80386 1986 275000 33MHz 32-bit 32-bit .
. . . . . . .
. . . . . . .
Pentium 1993 12M 66MHz 32-bit 32-bit 110
. . . . . . .
Pentium 4 2000 42M 1.4GHz 32-bit 32-bit 100
. . . . . . .
Core 2 Duo 2006 291M 2.4GHz 64-bit 64-bit 2200
. . . . . . .
Core i7 2008 781M 3.33GHz 64-bit 64-bit .
. . . . . . .

2.8 High-level Languages

To bring the language closer to human comprehension and be machine-independent ,
high-level languages are designed, rendering programs more readable and understandable.
Examples of such languages include Python, Java, C++, and others. Programs written in
high-level languages undergo translation into machine language through a process known
as compilation or interpretation. This process is carried out by a compiler or an interpreter,
respectively. Figure 2.3 clarifies the three levels of programming languages with examples.

2.9 Von Neumann and Harvard Architectures

There are two fundamental computer architectures that differ in the way they handle data
and instructions.

2.9.1 Von Neumann Architecture

In this architecture, as shown in Figure 2.4, the data and the program codes are both stored
in the computer’s memory in the same address space.

2.9.2 Harvard Architecture

This architecture, as illustrated in Figure 2.5, stores code and data in two distinct memories
that operate independently, each possesses its own communication path (i.e., bus) that
enables the simultaneous transfer of data and instructions, improving the execution time.
36 Chapter 2. History and Evolution of Computers

Figure 2.3: Levels of Programming Languages

Figure 2.4: Principle of Von Neumann Architecture

2.9 Von Neumann and Harvard Architectures 37

This architecture is often used in Digital Signal Processing (DSP) and microcontrollers,
notably Microchip’s PIC and Atmel’s AVR.

Figure 2.5: Principle of Harvard Architecture

Example:
LDA 2000H Load the content of the address into the accumulator

The LDA instruction and the address 2000H are in the same memory for Von Neumann.
For Harvard, LDA is in the instruction memory, and 2000H is in the data memory.