Types of Computer
We can categorize computer in two ways: data handling capabilities and size.
On the basis of data handling capabilities, the computer is of three types:
Analogue Computer
Digital Computer
Hybrid Computer
1) Analogue Computer
Analogue computers are designed to process analogue data. Analogue data is continuous data that changes continuously and cannot have discrete values such as speed, temperature, pressure and current. The analogue computers measure the continuous changes in physical quantity and generally render output as a reading on a dial or scale.
Analogue computers directly accept the data from the measuring device without first converting it into numbers and codes.
Speedometer and mercury thermometer are examples of analogue computers.
2) Digital Computer
The digital computer is designed to perform calculations and logical operations at high speed. It accepts the raw data as digits or numbers and processes it with programs stored in its memory to produce output. All modern computers like laptops and desktops that we use at home or office are digital computers.
3) Hybrid Computer
The hybrid computer has features of both analogue and digital computer. It is fast like an analogue computer and has memory and accuracy like digital computers. It can process both continuous and discrete data. So it is widely used in specialized applications where both analogue and digital data is processed. For example, a processor is used in petrol pumps that converts the measurements of fuel flow into quantity and price.
On the basis of size, the computer can be of five types:
1) Supercomputer
Supercomputers are the biggest and fastest computers. They are designed to process huge amount of data. A supercomputer can process trillions of instructions in a second. It has thousands of interconnected processors.
Supercomputers are particularly used in scientific and engineering applications such as weather forecasting, scientific simulations and nuclear energy research. The first supercomputer was developed by Roger Cray in 1976.
2) Mainframe computer
Mainframe computers are designed to support hundreds or thousands of users simultaneously. They can support multiple programs at the same time. It means they can execute different processes simultaneously. These features of mainframe computers make them ideal for big organizations like banking and telecom sectors, which need to manage and process a high volume of data.
3) Miniframe computer
It is a midsize multiprocessing computer. It consists of two or more processors and can support 4 to 200 users at one time. Miniframe computers are used in institutes and departments for tasks such as billing, accounting and inventory management.
4) Workstation
Workstation is a single-user computer that is designed for technical or scientific applications. It has a faster microprocessor, a large amount of RAM and high-speed graphics adapters. It generally performs a specific job with great expertise; accordingly, they are of different types such as graphics workstation, music workstation and engineering design workstation.
5) Microcomputer
The microcomputer is also known as a personal computer. It is a general-purpose computer that is designed for individual use. It has a microprocessor as a central processing unit, memory, storage area, input unit and output unit. Laptops and desktop computers are examples of microcomputers.
For more reference:
Questions:
101. What was the expected feature of fifth generation computers when Japan started FGCS? A) Operating Systems B) Paralled Processing C) ULSI D) None of above
102. Which of the following memory medium is not used as main memory system? A) Magnetic core B) Semiconductor C) Magnetic tape D) Both semiconductor and magnetic tape
103. The storage subsystem in a microcomputer consists mainly of __ or __ media with varying capacities A) Memory or video B) Magnetic or optical C) Optical or memory D) Video or magnetic
104. Programs designed to perform specific tasks is known as A) system software B) application software C) utility programs D) operating system
105. Computer operators A) writes computer programs for specific problems B) operate the device which input and output data from the computer C) normally require a college degree in computer science D) all of the above
106. Which of the following is not anti-viruses software? A) NAV B) F-Prot C) Oracle D) McAfee
107. What is a compiler? A) A compiler does a conversion line by line as the program is run B) A compiler converts the whole of a higher level program code into machine code in one step C) A compiler is a general purpose language providing very efficient execution D) None of the above
108. _______ computers are also called personal computers A) Mainframe Computer B) Mini Computers C) Micro Computers D) Super Computers
109. Which of the following is not input unit device? A) scanner B) camera C) plotter D) digitizer
110. Identify the correct statement A) IBM PCs used RISC CPU designs B) Macintosh used CISC CPU design C) IBM used CISC CPU design D) None of above is true
111. Which of the following statement is false? A) Mechanical analog computers have existed for thousands of years B) There are mechanical analog computers and electronic analog computers. C) All electronic computers are digital computers D) All of above are false
112. Which of the following require large computers memory? A) Imaging B) Graphics C) Voice D) All of Above
113. Which of the following is machine independence program? A) High level language B) Low level language C) Assembly language D) Machine language
114. When was the first electro-mechanical computer developed? A) 1880 B) 1990 C) 1944 D) None of above
115. The first machine to successfully perform a long series of arithmetic and logical operations was: A) ENIAC B) Mark-I C) Analytic Engine D) UNIVAC-1
116. Which one is the largest space? A) kilobyte B) petabyte C) terrabyte D) gigabyte
117. FORTRAN programming language is more suitable for ____ A) Business Applications B) Marketing Applications C) Scientific Applications D) None of the above
118. The brain of any computer system is A) Control Unit B) Arithmetic Logic Unit C) Central Processing Unit D) Storage Unit
119. Analog computer works on the supply of A) Continuous electrical pulses B) Electrical pulses but not continuous C) Magnetic strength D) None of the above
120. An error in software or hardware is called a bug. What is the alternative computer jargon for it? A) Leech B) Squid C) Slug D) Glitch
121. The advantage of COM are its __ and __ A) Compact size; speed readability B) Compact size, speed C) Readability; speed D) Low cost; readability
122. The BIOS is the abbreviation of ________. A) Basic Input Output System B) Best Input Output System C) Basic Input Output Symbol D) Base Input Output System
123. Which printer is very commonly used for desktop publishing? A) Laser printer B) Inkjet printer C) Daisywheel printer D) Dot matrix printer
124. IBM 1401 is A) First Generation Computer B) Second Generation Computer C) Third Generation Computer D) Fourth Generation Computer
125. Most of the first generation computers were A) Special purpose computers B) General purpose computers C) Both of above D) None of above
126. Floppy disks typically in diameter A) 3 B) 5.25 C) 8 D) All of above
127. The output quality of a printer is measured by A) Dot per inch B) Dot per sq. inch C) Dots printed per unit time D) All of above
128. On a PC, how much memory is available to application software? A) 1024 KB B) 760 KB C) 640 KB D) 560 KB
129. In a computer _____ is capable to store single binary bit. A) Capacitor B) Flip flop C) Register D) Inductor
130. What does DMA stand for? A) Distinct Memory Access B) Direct Memory Access C) Direct Module Access D) Direct Memory Allocation
131. Who invented Integrated Circuits? A) Jack Kilby B) Robert Noyce C) Both of above D) None of above
132. Operating system, editors, and debuggers comes under? A) System Software B) Application Software C) Utilities D) None of the above
133. One computer that is not considered a portable is A) Minicomputer B) Laptop computer C) Notebook computer D) All of above
134. Which of the following is not an electronic computer? A) ENIAC B) ABC C) UNIVAC D) EDVAC
135. What is the name of the display feature that highlights are of the screen which requires operator attention? A) Pixel B) Reverse video C) Touch screen D) Cursor
136. Which is the largest computer? A) Mainframe Computer B) Mini Computers C) Micro Computers D) Super Computers
137. Which of the following are the best units of data on an external storage device? A) Bits B) Bytes C) Hertz D) Clock cycles
138. The personal computer industry was started by A) IBM B) Apple C) Compaq D) HCL
139. What is meant by a dedicated computer? A) Which is used by one person only B) Which is assigned one and only one task C) Which uses one kind of software D) Which is meant for application software
140. Which programming languages are classified as low level languages? A) Basic, COBOL, FORTRAN B) Prolog 2, Expert Systems C) Knowledge based Systems D) Assembly Languages
141. What was the main disadvantage of vacuum tubes? A) They were larger in size B) They consumed a lot of electricity C) They produced heat and often burned out D) The operation cost was high
142. Registers, which are partially visible to users and used to hold conditional, are known as A) PC B) Memory address registers C) General purpose register D) Flags
143. Which is not a comptuer of first generation? A) ENIAC B) UNIVAC C) IBM 360 D) IBM 1401
144. Registers which are partially visible to users and used to hold conditional codes (bits set by the CPU hardware as the result of operations), are known as A) PC B) Flags C) Memory Address Registers D) General Purpose Registers
145. Who invented vacuum tubes? A) John Bardeen B) William Shockley C) Lee de Forest D) All of above
146. An approach that permits the computer to work on several programs instead of one is A) On-line thesaurus B) Multiprogramming C) Over lapped processing D) Outline processor
147. Who suggested Stored Program Concept A) John Mauchley B) J.P. Eckert C) John Neumann D) Joseph Jacquard
148. The central processing unit (CPU) consists of A) Input, output and processing B) Control unit, primary storage, and secondary storage C) Control unit, arithmetic-logic unit and primary storage D) Control unit, processing, and primary storage
149. The notable features like keyboards, monitors, GUI were developed in A) First generation B) Second generation C) Third generation D) Fourth generation
150. UNIVAC is A) Universal Automatic Computer B) Universal Array Computer C) Unique Automatic Computer D) Unvalued Automatic Computer
151. Which is the highest form? A) Data B) Information C) Knowledge D) All of above
152. Who is credited with the idea of using punch cards to control patterns in a waving machine? A) Pascal B) Hollerith C) Babbage D) Jacquard
153. What is an interpreter? A) An interpreter does the conversion line by line as the program is run B) An interpreter is the representation of the system being designed C) An interpreter is a general purpose language providing very efficient execution D) None of the above
154. Which is a semi conductor memory? A) Dynamic B) Static C) Bubble D) Both a & b
155. RJ45 UTP cable has ________ Cables. A) 2 pair B) 3 pair C) 4 pair D) 5 pair
156. Which of the following is not a valid size of a Floppy Disk? A) 8? B) 5 ¼? C) 3 ½? D) 5 ½?
157. The earliest calculating devices are A) Abacus B) Clock C) Difference Engine D) None of these
158. Word length of a Personal Computer is ___ A) 4 bits B) 8 bits C) 16 bits D) 64 bits
159. What was the first computer to perform all calculation using electronics rather than wheels, ratchets, or mechanical switches? A) Mark I B) ABC C) Z3 D) None of above
160. A directly accessible appointment calendar is feature of a __ resident package A) CPU B) Memory C) Buffer D) ALU
161. Which unit converts computer data into human readable form? A) Input unit B) Output unit C) ALU D) Control Unit
162. The full form of ALU is A) Arithmetic Logic Unit B) Array Logic Unit C) Application Logic Unit D) None of above
163. What produces useful information out of data? A) Computer B) Processing C) Programming D) none of above
164. Which of the following device was not invented by Babbage? A) Pascaline B) Difference Engine C) Analytical Engine D) None of above
165. A digital computer did not score over an analog computer in terms of A) Speed B) Accuracy C) Reliability D) Cost
166. Which number system is usually followed in a typical 32-bit computer? A) Binary B) Decimal C) Hexadecimal D) Octal
167. A computer has very low failure rate because it uses electronic components. It produces very consistent results. This is highlighted by which of the feature of computer? A) Accuracy B) Reliability C) Versatility D) Automatic
168. A paper printout of a document is known as A) Softcopy output B) Hardcopy output C) Permanent Output D) All of above
169. Which electronic component was made out of semiconductor material? A) Vacuum tubes B) Transistors C) Ics D) All of above
170. The act of retrieving existing data from memory is called A) Read-out B) Read from C) Read D) All of above
171. Which part of the computer is used for calculating and comparing? A) Disk unit B) Control unit C) ALU D) Modem
172. ABC is a A) Special purpose computer B) General purpose computer C) All Purpose Computer D) None of above
173. The computer code for the interchange of information between terminals is A) ASCII B) BCD C) EBCDIC D) All of above
174. When was the X window system born? A) 1984 B) 1989 C) 1988 D) 1990
175. What is the first stage in software development? A) Specification and design B) Testing C) System Analysis D) Maintenance
176. Which of the following is valid statement? A) Data in itself is useless unless it is processed B) The data that is processed is called a program C) The data which is not yet processed is information D) Information is processed by computer to generate data.
177. The Second Generation Computer was based on ________. A) Vacuum Tube B) Silicon Chips C) Transistor D) Bio Chips
178. EBCDIC stands for A) Extended Binary Coded Decimal Interchange Code B) Extended Bit Code Decimal Interchange Code C) Extended Bit Case Decimal Interchange Code D) Extended Binary Case Decimal Interchange Code
179. Personnel who design, program, operates and maintains computer equipment refers to A) Console-operator B) Programmer C) Peopleware D) System Analyst
180. IBM System/360 is A) Mainframe Computer B) Mini Computers C) Micro Computers D) None of above
181. A system is A) an integration of different units so as to achieve an objective B) input unit C) input and output unit D) input, output and storage units
182. Which of the following programming language started from second generation? A) COBOl B) BASIC C) C D) LISP
183. The translator program used in assembly language is called A) Compiler B) Interpreter C) Assembler D) Translator
184. EEPROM stands for A) Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory B) Easily Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory C) Electronic Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory D) None of the above
185. Regarding data, computers are very good at A) store B) Processing C) retrieve D) All of above
186. Bit map terminal A) support display containing multiple window B) require considerable amount of video RAM C) requires tremendous amount of copying and hence low performance D) all of above
187. First generation computers used _________ for memory A) vacuum tubes B) silicon chips C) magnetic drum D) RAM
188. Which of the following memories allows simultaneous read and write operations? A) ROM B) RAM C) EPROM D) None of above
189. EPROM can be used for A) Erasing the contents of ROM B) Reconstructing the contents of ROM C) Erasing and reconstructing the contents of ROM D) Duplicating ROM
190. ENIAC uses A) Decimal Numbering System B) Octal Numbering System C) Binary Numbering System D) Hexadecial Numbering System
191. A term associated with the comparison of processing speeds of different computer system is: A) EFTS B) MPG C) MIPS D) CPS
192. which of the following is problem oriented language? A) High level language B) Machine language C) Assembly language D) Low level language
193. A 32 bit microprocessor has the word length equal to A) 2 byte B) 32 byte C) 4 byte D) 8 byte
194. The term GIGO is related to A) Accuracy B) Reliability C) Versatility D) Automatic
195. Web cam is an A) input unit device B) output unit device C) processing device D) Input and Output device
196. Bit stands for A) Binary digits B) bit of system C) a part of byte D) All of above
197. Access time is A) seek time + latency time B) seek time C) seek time ? latency time D) latency time
198. Which device can understand difference between data & programs? A) Input device B) Output device C) Memory D) Microprocessor
199. Which of the following is a read only memory storage device? A) Floppy Disk B) CD-ROM C) Hard Disk D) None of these
200. Symbolic logic was discovered by A) George Boole B) Herman Hollerith C) Van Neumann D) Basic Pascal
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