Personal Computer (PC) Facts

You might be surprised to know that the first computer came in the year ’1945′. The early computer history tells us that the first electronic digital computer called “ENIAC” (Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer) was introduced in 1945 in Philadelphia and it consumed so much electricity that lights in the nearby town dimmed every time it was switched on! Can you imagine how huge it was? It weighed 30 tons and it required 1500 square feet of floor space! Initially the computers were so huge that they used to occupy a big room. The size was reduced gradually, but the working and storing capacities were significantly improved. The development of the microprocessor lead to the evolution of personal computers. These days, you can find numerous types of personal or desktop computers, for example, portable PCs, laptops, palmtops, etc. The way a PC works with different gadgets is just incredible. Now that the prices for good personal computers have come down considerably, even the schools in the developing countries can afford PCs. Owing to the increasing demand, they are now commonly available in the market.

Personal Computer

Even though laptops are becoming more popular, there is still a big market for desktop PCs. Kids and adults both love playing PC games. A PC takes care of all your personal things. While buying a PC, you have more choices than ever before. Companies like Dell allow you to design your computers and you can have a PC right like you want it to be! They build a system just for you. You have to decide about computer uses, whether you want to use it for playing games/music, or for business or for photography, and they provide the required things. With the help of computer software, you can use your PC as an intelligent typewriter. By using the Internet, you can send/receive mails and explore the vast treasures of information. Over the years, computers have become smaller but powerful. They have become faster and more user-friendly. Here are some interesting PC facts:

Personal Computer Facts

• According to the available statistics, it took 38 years for radio to reach 50 million users, 13 years for TV, and only 5 years for the Internet.
• One of the most interesting personal computer facts is that early hard drives in PCs held 20 Megabytes (MB), and cost about $800 whereas an $8 flash drive today holds 2 Gigabytes (GB) computer memory. That’s a 100-fold ‘decrease’ in price for a 100-fold ‘increased’ computer performance!
• PC viruses are little files or codes that have been written to ruin your computer. So you need to install an Anti-Virus scanner, no matter you’re connecting to the Internet or not. AVG antivirus is quite popular today. A ‘firewall’ is another way of defense which helps block other computers and programs from connecting to you and playing with your stuff.
• Computers history facts inform us that first commercial computer was introduced in 1951 by John Presper Eckert and John W. Mauchly from UNIVAC Computer. In 1953, International Business Machines (IBM) entered into the field of computers.
• The first computer mouse was introduced in 1968 by Douglas Engelbart at the Fall Joint Computer Expo in San Francisco.
• The first consumer computers were introduced by IBM in 1974/75. In 1981, Microsoft introduced the computer operating system of the century. User-friendly Microsoft Windows was first introduced in November 1985.
• Tim Berners-Lee in 1990 first coined the phrase ‘World Wide Web’ and he is considered as father of Internet. The Internet gained popularity with the release of the first popular web browser Mosaic in 1993.
• Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak built the first Apple computer from parts they got for free from their employers. Their idea of a ‘PC’ was rejected by the employers!
• One of the most amazing PC facts is that the computer mouse, the windowing GUI (graphical user interface, use of icons), laser printing and the network card were all developed at one company, ‘Xerox’ in Palo Alto, California.
• Do you know that the computer in your cell phone has more processing power than all the computers in the Apollo 11 Lunar Lander that helped 2 men to land on the moon?
• I was really surprised (and pleased) when I came to know that the popular programming language COBOL was invented by Admiral Grace Hopper, the first female admiral in the US Navy.
• One of the latest products, pocket PC, has brought the world more closer. Now we can be in touch with the world while we are on the go.
• Tablet PC, ultra mobile PC, laptops, notebooks, home theater PC, workstation, are all different types of personal computers. Microsoft and Intel are the dominant players in the PC market.
• PC WIZARD is amongst the most popular and essential system information programs available in the market. It is designed for detection of hardware and for some more analysis. It can identify a wide range of system components and support the latest technologies and standards.

Edsger Dijkstra’s quote, “Computer science is no more about computers than astronomy is about telescopes”, reflects the process of evolution of technology. Most modern PCs are lightweight and they can perform almost any function. They are so versatile that they can meet almost any need. Moreover, to use a computer, you don’t have to be a computer or electronics expert. The most interesting personal computer fact is that in the life of a computer, time goes fast. You must have noticed that what is hot today will be lukewarm tomorrow! Even modern computer facts will be included in the history tomorrow. Still, you can always enjoy reading the facts. Facts about computers that belonged to the previous decades may seem quite funny; but they make us feel more proud of human intelligence.