The First Computer

ID:187347
 
Dec 26 2004, 4:42 pm
How was the Information on the first computer programed? How would you tell it what each character ment?
Dec 26 2004, 4:49 pm
IIRC, the first electronic computer used plugs. Lots and lots of plugs. To reprogram the computer, you rewired it.

There may have been an even earlier electronic computer that used something else, but I don't recall one.
Dec 26 2004, 5:07 pm
In response to Crispy
There were computers used on battleships in World War II. They automated the calculations for firing their cannons at on-land targets. It is said to be the veru first computer, which took up one whole room and used over 70 cables. It took about 14 (Not sure) to 15 seconds to calculate the numbers and print them onto a piece of paper.

Now that's real technology.
Dec 26 2004, 5:20 pm
This page has some information on how one of the first computers, the ENIAC, was programmed: http://ei.cs.vt.edu/~history/ENIAC.Richey.HTML

The whole thing is worth a read, but this paragraph directly addresses your question (and confirms what Crispy wrote):

"The ENIAC was programmed by wiring cable connections and setting three thousand switches on the function tables. This had to be done for every problem and made using the machine very tedious. However, the speed of the computation made up for this. Ballistic trajectories can take someone with a hand calculator twenty hours to compute. The Bush differential analyzer reduced this time down to fifteen minutes. The ENIAC could do it in thirty seconds."
Dec 26 2004, 5:28 pm
In response to Gughunter
The FIRST computer was invented by Samuel Babbage, and it was made out of wood.

It helped his Dad collect taxes, and broke if it went further than 99.
Dec 26 2004, 5:44 pm
In response to Elation
impossible....
Dec 26 2004, 9:42 pm
In response to Elation
actually, Babbage's machine was called a 'differencing engine' - little more than a fancy calculator, not a computer. while it historically is the first mechanical 'computing device', ENIAC is still considered the first electronic computer.
Dec 26 2004, 9:54 pm
In response to digitalmouse
digitalmouse wrote:
actually, Babbage's machine was called a 'differencing engine' - little more than a fancy calculator, not a computer. while it historically is the first mechanical 'computing device', ENIAC is still considered the first electronic computer.


If a piece of wood ran Half life 2, I think we should give it respect.
Dec 27 2004, 6:47 pm
In response to Elation
Um... last time I checked, Half-Life 2 hadn't been released around Babbage's time. ;-D

The difference engine was basically a fancy slide rule. Just you try playing an FPS on a slide rule. =P