History of computers
  
  500 B.C.	 	The abacus was invented by the Babylonians
  1625			Slide rule was invented
  1848			George Bool invented Boolean algebra, or binary numbers
  				This laid the foundation for modern digital computers
  1906			Electronic Tube invented which made digital electronic computers
  				possible
  1939			The first computer was invented using vacuum tubes.  It was a 16
  				bit adder.
  1941			First computer built that used capacitors instead of tubes
  1950			Floppy disk invented
  1964			first computer suitable for home use.  Cost - $16,000
  1965			Mouse Invented
  1969			ARPANET started by US Department of Defense, became the Internet
  1971			First Microprocesor, clocked at 108KHz
  1972			First video game - 'Pong'
  1980			DOS introduced
  1982			Audio CD was introduced
  1990			Windows 3.0
  1991			Linux is born
  1995			Windows '95 and NT
  1998			Windows '98
  2000			Windows 2000, ME
  2001			Windows XP


2.1) How data is represented on a computer
  Binary code - 10110101
  
  ASCII - American Standard Code for Information Interchange
  
  EBCDIC - Extended Binary Coded Decimal Interchange Code
  
  Parity Bit - 9th bit used to check for errors
  
  Bit:   a single 0 or 1
  Byte:	 8 bits
  Kilobyte: 1000 bytes
  Megabyte: 1 million bytes
  Gigabyte: 1 billion bytes
  Terabyte: 1 trillion bytes
  Petabyte: 1 million gigabytes!
  
2.2) The Processor

  CPU - Central Processing unit (speed measured in mhz)
  
  Control Unit - tells the rest of the computer what to do.  Directs traffic 
                 between the ALU and the main memory
  ALU - Arithmetic Logic Unit, performs arithmetic operations and logical 
  	    operations (add, multiply, <=, etc...)

  coprocessor chip - assists the CPU, e.g. graphics processor in your graphics
  			  	     card
  
  CISC - Complex Instruction Set Computer - complex, expensive, lot of power
  RISC - Reduced Instructional Set Computer - simple, inexpensive, low power,
  	   	 fast. Found in Macs and workstations.
		 RISC and CISC are becoming more alike
  MPP -  massively parallel processing
  
  Main Memory - RAM
  SRAM - Static
  DRAM - Dynamc, used in most PCs
  SDRAM - Synchronous DRAM - a new type of DRAM that can run at higher clock
  		  speeds.
		  
  Machine Cycle - a series of operations required to execute and single 
                 instruction.  Consists of an instruction cycle and an
				 execution cycle
  Instruction cycle - fetches and decodes instruction
  
  Execution cycle - the ALU executes the instruction
  
  Word Size - number of bits a computer can process at once (32-bit, 64-bit)
  
  System Clock - controls speed of operations
  
  Mhz - unit for measuring speed of System clock
 
  
  
2.4) Focus on the microcomputer

  RAM - Random Access Memory
  ROM - Read Only Memory
  PROM - Programmable
  EPROM - Erasable Programmable
  EEPROM - Electronically Erasable Programmable
  
  SIMMs and DIMMs - increase the RAM.  Simms are becoming obsolete.
  
  Ports
  
  Parallel Ports - faster, 8 bits simultaneous, but limited distance. printers.
  Serial - 1 bit at a time, slower, keyboards, mice, scanners, modems.
  SCSI - Small Computer System Interface, provides a system for transferring 
         data at high speeds.
  PCMCIA - PC Memory Card International Association, primarily in laptops,
  		 allows the use of external devices.

  USB - Universal Serial Bus, a new universal standard that will probably 
        replace these 3 types of ports and PCMCIA cards as well.
		
  
2.5) Future...

  Silicon - semiconductor- has resistance

  Gallium Arsenide - allows electrical impulses to travel faster than on Silicon
  
  Superconductors - no resistance to electricity
  
  Opto-electronic processing - light travels faster than electricity
  
  Nano technology - assembled one molecule at a time
  
  Biotechnology - direct interfaces with biological organisms (pacer)
	 

	

Homework 2:
in Interactive computing book
WD 2.2, 2.8, 2.10, 2.12, 2.16 
WD 2.22 #1 will be turned in via e-mail.
   e-mail your resume as an attached Word doc to Mike Kolta.
   Due date: 1/30 at midnight.