CLASSES OF DIGITAL COMPUTER

Super Computers

When we talk about types of computers, the first type that comes to our mind would be Super computers. They are the best in terms of processing capacity and also the most expensive ones. These computers can process billions of instructions per second. Normally, they will be used for applications which require intensive numerical computations such as stock analysis, weather forecasting etc. Other uses of supercomputers are scientific simulations, (animated) graphics, fluid dynamic calculations, nuclear energy research, electronic design, and analysis of geological data (e.g. in petrochemical prospecting). Perhaps the best known super computer manufacturer is Cray Research. Some of the "traditional" companies which produce super computers are Cray, IBM and Hewlett-Packard.

As of July 2009, the IBM Roadrunner, located at Los Alamos National Laboratory, is the fastest super computer in the world.

Mainframe Computers

Mainframe computers can also process data at very high speeds vi.e., hundreds of million instructions per second and they are also quite expensive. Normally, they are used in banking, airlines and railways etc for their applications.

Mini Computers

Mini computers are lower to mainframe computers in terms of speed and storage capacity. They are also less expensive than mainframe computers. Some of the features of mainframes will not be available in mini computers. Hence, their performance also will be less than that of mainframes.

Micro Computers

The invention of microprocessor (single chip CPU) gave birth to the much cheaper micro computers. They are further classified into

• Desktop Computers
• Laptop Computers
• Handheld Computers(PDAs)

CLASSES OF COMPUTER

Analog Computers

Analog Computer is a computing device that works on continuous range of values. The results given by the analog computers will only be approximate since they deal with quantities that vary continuously. It generally deals with physical variables such as voltage, pressure, temperature, speed, etc.

Digital Computers

On the other hand a digital computer operates on digital data such as numbers. It uses binary number system in which there are only two digits 0 and 1. Each one is called a bit.

The digital computer is designed using digital circuits in which there are two levels for an input or output signal. These two levels are known as logic 0 and logic 1. Digital Computers can give more accurate and faster results.

Digital computer is well suited for solving complex problems in engineering and technology. Hence digital computers have an increasing use in the field of design, research and data processing.

Based on the purpose, Digital computers can be further classified as,

• General Purpose Computers
• Special Purpose Computers

Special purpose computer is one that is built for a specific application. General purpose computers are used for any type of applications. They can store different programs and do the jobs as per the instructions specified on those programs. Most of the computers that we see today, are general purpose computers.

Hybrid Computers

A hybrid computer combines the desirable features of analog and digital computers. It is mostly used for automatic operations of complicated physical processes and machines. Now-a-days analog-to-digital and digital-to-analog converters are used for transforming the data into suitable form for either type of computation.

For example, in hospital’s ICU, analog devices might measure the patients temperature, blood pressure and other vital signs. These measurements which are in analog might then be converted into numbers and supplied to digital components in the system. These components are used to monitor the patient’s vital sign and send signals if any abnormal readings are detected. Hybrid computers are mainly used for specialized tasks.

WHAT IS COMPUTER

"Computer is an electronic device that is designed to work with Information.The term computer is derived from the Latin term ‘computer’, this means to calculate.Computer can not do anything without a Program.it represents the decimal numbers through a string of binary digits. The Word 'Computer'usually refers to the Center Processor Unit plus Internal memory."

"A computer is a general purpose device that can be programmed to carry out a finite set of arithmetic or logical operations. Since a sequence of operations can be readily changed, the computer can solve more than one kind of problem."

"A computer is an electronic device that manipulates information, or "data." It has the ability to store, retrieve, and process data. You can use a computer to type documents, send email, and browse the internet. You can also use it to handle spreadsheets, accounting, database management, presentations, games, and more."

The first electronic computer, the Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer (ENIAC), was developed in 1946. It took up 1,800 square feet and weighed 30 tons.

SMPS

SWITCH MODE POWER SUPPLY

A switched-mode power supply or switch-mode power supply or SMPS, is an electronic power supply unit that incorporates a switching regulator that switches power transistors rapidly on and off (typically 40 to 80 thousand times per second) into the primary of a much smaller, more efficient transformer in order to stabilize the output voltage or current. By varying duty cycle, frequency or a relative phase of these transitions average value of output voltage or current is controlled.

 

SMPS converts the input AC voltage to the DC voltages needed by the personal computer. In older computers, AT SMPS were used. Currently ATX 12V SMPS are dominant.

SMPS supplies power to all components of a PC located in the CPU viz. motherboard, hard disk, floppy drive, CD ROM, fans etc. Most computer SMPS's have the appearance of a square metal box. They have a fan installed at one end and a large bundle of wires emerge out from the other end having:

·         One PC Main connector (20 or 24 pins) for power supply to the mother board.

·         4 pin Peripheral connectors for power supply to Hard Disk Drive, CD/DVD Drive etc.

·         One 4 pin floppy connector for power supply to floppy drive.

·         One Serial ATA connector for power supply to SATA devices.

Modern desktop SMPS's produce DC voltages of +/-5V, +3.3V and +/-12V outputs. The DC-DC converters on the motherboard step down SMPS voltage to the CPU core voltage and other low voltages needed for other motherboard components.

Types of SMPS-  SMPS full form is Switching Mode Power Supply. It is a main power supply to power the each and every component of computer or it converts the main power supply 230volts to 12volts, 5volts, 3volts and distribute to all components of computer.

1-AT SMPS:

AT stands for Advanced Technology. These are all old SMPSs. They had 12pin power connector, this is called as AT power connector. They were used in Pentium-I, Pentium-MMX, Pentium-II and Pentium-III CPUs.

2-ATX SMPS:

ATX stands for Advanced Technology eXtended. They had 20pin Power connector, this is called as ATX power connector. They were used in Pentium-III, Pentium-IV and AMD CPUs.

3-BTX SMPS:

BTX stands for Balanced Technology eXtended. They have 24pin Power connector, this is also called as ATX power connector. It has 15pin SATA power connectors. They are used in Dual core, core2duo, Quad core, i3, i5, i7 and latest AMD CPUs.

SMPS Connectors, voltages and functions-

There are three types of SMPSs. They are AT, ATX, BTX. These three types of SMPSs have different connectors and each wire has different voltages. Here the connectors and its voltages.

SWITCH MODE POWER SUPPLY

A switched-mode power supply or switch-mode power supply or SMPS, is an electronic power supply unit that incorporates a switching regulator that switches power transistors rapidly on and off (typically 40 to 80 thousand times per second) into the primary of a much smaller, more efficient transformer in order to stabilize the output voltage or current. By varying duty cycle, frequency or a relative phase of these transitions average value of output voltage or current is controlled.

 

SMPS converts the input AC voltage to the DC voltages needed by the personal computer. In older computers, AT SMPS were used. Currently ATX 12V SMPS are dominant.

SMPS supplies power to all components of a PC located in the CPU viz. motherboard, hard disk, floppy drive, CD ROM, fans etc. Most computer SMPS's have the appearance of a square metal box. They have a fan installed at one end and a large bundle of wires emerge out from the other end having:

·         One PC Main connector (20 or 24 pins) for power supply to the mother board.

·         4 pin Peripheral connectors for power supply to Hard Disk Drive, CD/DVD Drive etc.

·         One 4 pin floppy connector for power supply to floppy drive.

·         One Serial ATA connector for power supply to SATA devices.

Modern desktop SMPS's produce DC voltages of +/-5V, +3.3V and +/-12V outputs. The DC-DC converters on the motherboard step down SMPS voltage to the CPU core voltage and other low voltages needed for other motherboard components.

Types of SMPS-  SMPS full form is Switching Mode Power Supply. It is a main power supply to power the each and every component of computer or it converts the main power supply 230volts to 12volts, 5volts, 3volts and distribute to all components of computer.

1-AT SMPS:

AT stands for Advanced Technology. These are all old SMPSs. They had 12pin power connector, this is called as AT power connector. They were used in Pentium-I, Pentium-MMX, Pentium-II and Pentium-III CPUs.

2-ATX SMPS:

ATX stands for Advanced Technology eXtended. They had 20pin Power connector, this is called as ATX power connector. They were used in Pentium-III, Pentium-IV and AMD CPUs.

3-BTX SMPS:

BTX stands for Balanced Technology eXtended. They have 24pin Power connector, this is also called as ATX power connector. It has 15pin SATA power connectors. They are used in Dual core, core2duo, Quad core, i3, i5, i7 and latest AMD CPUs.

SMPS Connectors, voltages and functions-

There are three types of SMPSs. They are AT, ATX, BTX. These three types of SMPSs have different connectors and each wire has different voltages. Here the connectors and its voltages.