Computers and Society: Third Generation Of Computers

Integrated Circuits

1964-1971

Advent of the third generation of computers miniaturized and improved computers even more. Also, during that era, computers started to look more like computers we know today. A computer obtained keyboard, monitor with display and more reasonable size. Also, first computer mouse was presented during that era.

Integrated Circuits

The crucial invention ,introduced by Jack Kilby in 1958, was invention of integrated circuit. Transistors, that improved computers during the second generation, were minimized and placed on silicon semiconductor board. Therefore, amount of transistors used for one computer enormously increased. Following, more transistors allowed more efficiency, more speed and more reliability. On the other hand, the cost of computer fall because they became more energy efficient, less material were required to build them, and they stopped breaking so often. All those factors allowed to produce computers in greater number for business and other big organizations. Developed version of integrated circuits are motherboards we see nowadays in our computers.

Another extremely important improvement was multitasking operating system. For the first time, computer was able to perform many different tasks at the same time controlled by a central program. Operating system would store several jobs in the computer's memory. Also, operating system was improved with interface displayed on monitor. Interface allowed for user to punch in commands using keyboard.

To run new computers, high level programming languages, like FORTRAN II-IV or COBOL, were used. Those languages were more abstract from computer environment, which means they used more natural language elements. Thus, programs were easier to make and understand. First kind of the system using integrated circuits was introduced by IBM. System/360 was computer model with integrated operating system.

IBM introduced new type of memory based on silicon. that allowed to miniature the physical size of memory without decreasing capacity of the memory storage.

Third generation computers became smaller and more efficient. They produced less heat. Still, computers of the third generation had not reached households on mass scale. They were still too big and too expensive. Also, they were still not easy to use for regular people.