Computer Science XI

Unit 2: Classification of Computer System

On The Basis of Size

Microcomputer
Microcomputeristhesmallestsize,generalpurposedigitalcomputerbasedonmicroprocessoranditisalsoknownaspersonalcomputer(PC).
Generally,amicrocomputerhasaCentralProcessingUnit(CPU)inasinglechipcalledmicroprocessor.
Microprocessor,PrimaryMemory,BusSystem,PortsandSlots,etc.arecomposedwithinoneboardcalledmainboard(Motherboard).
Itrunssimpleoperatingsystemslike:MSWindows,MacOS,Android,etc
Ithaslowprocessingspeed,lessmemorycapacity,andlessexpansivethenanyotherscomputers.
Especially,itisusedinhome,offices,schoolsandcolleges,andbusiness,etc.,
ItisfurtherclassifiedintoDesktop,Workstation,Laptop(Notebook),UltrabookandTabletPC
Examples:IBM-PC,Lenovo,Compaq,Acer,Dell,Hewlett-Packard(HP),SONY,IMac,MacBooketc.

Minicomputer
Minicomputerismediumsizedigitalcomputerwhichisbiggerthanmicrocomputerandsmallerthanmainframecomputers.
Mostly,itisgeneralpurposecomputerwhichhasfasterprocessingsped,morememorycapacityandmoreexpansivethanmicrocomputer.
Ithashugestoragecapacity,multipleprocessorsanditcanmanagetheresourcesofmorethan100computersinnetwork.
Specially,itisusedinmediumsizeorganizationslikehospitals,college,university,banks,hotels,mediahouse,etc.
Itrunscomplexoperatingsystem:MSWindowsServer,Linux,Unix,etc,
Examples:IBM8000,Vax7500,PDP11,IBMMiniServer,HPMediaSmartServer,etc

Mainframe
Mainframeisthelargestsizegeneralpurposedigitalcomputerwhichuseshighspeedmultipleprocessors,largecapacitymemoryandstoragecapacity.
Itcanmanagetheresourcesofmorethan500computersinnetwork.
Itisveryexpansivecomputersthanothers.
ItrunsmultiprocessingOperatingSystemsuchasLinux,SolarisorUnixandusesverycomplexsoftware.
Itisdesignedforprocessingalargevolumeofdatasuchasonlineprocessing,scientificcalculations,decisionmaking,censusrelateddataprocessing.
Mostly,itisusedintheorganizationslike:NationalorMultinationalBanks,Census,researches,universities,DatacenterandDataBanks,etc.
Examples:VAX8000,IBMES00,CDC6600,IBM4300

Supercomputer
Itisextremelyfastestcomputerspeciallydesignedforprocessingofhugeamountofdata.
Itconsistsofseveralparallelprocessors,highcapacityfastestmemories,hugebackup.
Itconsistsspecialtypeoffastestrealtimeoperatingsystem
Itisveryexpensivemachine.
Itisthespecifictypeofcomputerusedinscientificresearchandcomplexdataanalysissuchasnuclearresearch,bio-medicine,space,weatherforecastingetc.
Examples:Cray-X-MP,Star100,Cyber2005,IBMRoadrunner,PRAM

On The Basis of Work

AnalogComputer
Computerwhichprocessesphysicalquantities(Continuousdata)like:voltage,speed,temperature,presseretciscalledanalogcomputer.
Itismorefasterbutlowaccuracythandigitalcomputer
Ithasnostoragecapabilitiesandonlyprocesstherealtimedata
Adevicewhichprocessescontinuesquantitiescalledanalogdevice:AnalogClock,speedometer,voltmeteretc.
Itisspecificpurposecomputerwhichisspeciallyusedinmedicalfieldandengineering.
Itisinexpensivethandigitalcomputers
Examples: AKAT, Plesley, ELWAT, ECG(Electronic Cardio Graph) etc.

DigitalComputer
Computerwhichprocessesdiscretequantities(0or1)iscalleddigitalcomputer.
Mostly,allgeneralpurposecomputersaredigitalcomputers:mini,micro,mainframe,etc.
Ithaslowerprocessingspeedandhigheraccuracythananalogcomputers.
Ithascapabilitytostorehugeamountofdata.
Itismoreexpansivecomputerthananalogcomputers.
Examples:IBM-PC,AppleMac,DELL,NEC,etc

HybridComputer
Computerwhichprocessesboththequantitiesiscalledhybridcomputer.
Ithasfasterprocessingcapabilitiesofanalogcomputerandstoragefeatureofdigitalcomputer.
Itisusedinhospitalforanalyzingboththequantities.
Examples:WAT1001,CTScanMachine

On The Basis of Brand

IBMComputer
IBMComputersaremanufacturedbyIBM(InternationalBusinessMachine)company,USA.
IBMistheworld’slargestcompanywhichproduceswiderangeofcomputersfrommainframe,minitomicrocomputers(IBMPC).
IBMcomputersarepopularfordataprocessing.
ItusessoftwareformthecompanieslikeMicrosoft,LINUX,Adobe,Oracle,etc.
ItisconsideredasmorereliableandmoreexpensivethanIBMCompatibles.

IBMCompatiblesComputer
IBMCompatibleComputerhassamefunctionalcharactersandprinciplesofIBMComputer,butitismanufacturedbytheothercompanies.
ItisinexpensiveandlessreliablethanIBMcomputers
Examples:Compaq,Dell,Lenovo,HP(Hewlett-Packard)andallotherassembledcomputer.

AppleMacintoshComputer
AppleMacintosh(Mac)ComputersaremanufacturedbyAppleCompany,USA.
IthastotallydifferentfunctionsandarchitecturethanIBMcomputers.
IthasitsownsetofsoftwarelikeMacOS,I-works,itune,NeoOfficeetc.whichdonotruninanyothercomputers.
ItismoreuserfriendlythanIBMcomputers.
Ithashigherqualitygraphicsthananyothers.
Itispopularfordesigning,animationandaudio/videoprocessing.
ItismoreexpensivethanIBMComputers.

Types of Microcomputers (PC)

Desktop Computer
Adesktopcomputerissmallsizecomputerwhichisdesignedtofitontopofadesk.Itisusedforpersonaluseinhomeorsmalloffice,etc.Examples:HP,Dell,Lenovo,etc.
Workstation
Apowerfuldesktopcomputerwhichisspeciallydesignedfornetworkenvironment(LocalAreaNetwork).Itisusedinbank,mediahouseandbusinessdataprocessing.Examples:HP,Dell,Lenovo,etc.
Notebook
Anotebookcomputerisportablesmallsizecomputerwhichcanbeenoughtoplaceonaperson’slap,so,italsocalledlaptop.Itintegratesdisplayunit,keyboard,trackpad,speakerandbatteryforpowerbackupwithinasingleunit.Example:SONYVaio,HPPavilion,DellInspiron,LenovoThinkPad

Ultrabook
AnultrabookisathinandlightportablenotebookcomputerwhichisdesignedtobridgethegapbetweenTabletPCandNotebook.Ithasgoodpowerbackupandsolidstatedrive(SSD)forfasterdatabackup.Example:HPUltrabook,MacbookAir,etc.
TabletPC
Atabletpcisaverysmallportablecomputerwithtouchsensitiveinterface.Mostofthetabletpchaswirelessnetworkconnectivity(Wi-Fi)andmobilecommunicationfacility.
SmartPhone
Asmartphoneismobilephonewhichhasthefunctionalitiesofmobilephone,multimediamessages,internetfacilityandcanrunapplicationslikecomputer.Examples:I-Phone,NokiaLumia,SamsungGalaxyS5


Mobile Computing

Introduction
•AmodernconceptofaccessingtheresourcesofcomputersystemanywherefromtheworldusingInternet.

Advantages
1.Portable
2.MobileandRemoteAccess
3.SocialInteractivity
4.FasterandCheaperCommunication
5.QuickServices

•Disadvantages
1.LimitationofBandwidth
2.SecurityProblems
3.PowerBackup
4.HumanInterface

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