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Classification of computers by size.v Super computer

Super computers can process huge amounts of data, The biggest in size, the most expensive in price than any other isclassified and known as super computer. It can process trillions of instructions in seconds. This computer is not used as aPC in a home neither by a student in a college. Governments specially use this type of computer for their differentcalculations and heavy jobs. Different industries also use this huge computer for designing their products. In most of theHollywoods movies it is used for animation purposes. This kind of computer is also helpful for forecasting weather reportsworldwide.

v MainframesAnother giant in computers after the super computer is Mainframe, which can also process millions of instructions persecond and is capable of accessing billions of data. This computer is commonly used in big hospitals, air line reservationcompanies, and many other huge companies prefer mainframe because of its capability of retrieving data on a hugebasis.This is normally to expensive and out of reach from a salary-based person who wants a computer for his home. This kindof computer can cost thousands of dollars.

v MinicomputerThis computer is next in line but offers less than mainframe in work and performance. These are the computers which aremostly preferred by the small type of business personals, colleges, etc.

v Personal computersAlmost all the computer users are familiar with the personal computers. They normally know what the personal computeris and what are its functions. This is the computer mostly preferred by the home users. These computers are lesser incost than the computers given above and also, small in size; they are also called PCs in short for Personal computers.This computer is small in size and you can easily arrange it to fit in your single bedroom with its all accommodation. Today

this is thought to be the most popular computer in all.v Notebook computers

Having a small size and low weight the notebook is easy to carry to anywhere. A student can take it with him/her to his/herschool in his/her bag with his/her book. This is easy to carry around and preferred by students and business people tomeet their assignments and other necessary tasks.The approach of this computer is also the same as the Personal computer. It can store the same amount of data andhaving a memory of the same size as that of a personal computer. One can say that it is the replacement of personaldesktop computer.

Computerscan be classified, or typed, many ways. Some common classifications are summarized below. For others

seeCategory:Classes of computers.

Classes by size

Microcomputers (personal computers)

Microcomputersare the most common type of computers used by people today, whether in a workplace, at school or on

the desk at home. The term microcomputer was introduced with the advent of single chipmicroprocessors. The term

"microcomputer" itself is now practically ananachronism.

These computers include:

Desktop computers A case and a display, put under and on a desk.

In-car computers (carputers) Built into a car, forentertainment,navigation, etc.

Game consoles Fixed computers specialized for entertainment purposes (video games).

A separate class is that ofmobile devices:

Laptops,notebook computersandPalmtop computers Portable and all in one case. Varying sizes, but other

than smartbooks expected to be full computers without limitations.

Tablet computer Like laptops, but with atouch-screen, sometimes entirely replacing the physical keyboard.

Smartphones,smartbooksandPDAs(personal digital assistants) Small handheld computers with limited

hardware.

Programmable calculator Like small handhelds, but specialised on mathematical work.

Handheld game consoles The same as game consoles, but small and portable.

Minicomputers (midrange computers)

Aminicomputer(colloquially, mini) is a class of multi-usercomputersthat lies in the middle range of the computing

spectrum, in between the smallestmulti-user systems(mainframe computers) and the largest single-user systems

(microcomputersorpersonal computers). The contemporary term for this class of system ismidrange computer, such as

the higher-endSPARC,POWERandItanium-based systems fromOracle Corporation,IBMandHewlett-Packard. E.g.-

Laboratory computers

Mainframe computers

The termmainframe computerwas created to distinguish the traditional, large, institutional computer intended to service

multiple users from the smaller, single user machines. These computers are capable of handling and processing verylarge amounts of data quickly. Mainframe computers are used in large institutions such as government, banks and largecorporations. They are measured inMIPS(million instructions per second) and respond to up to 100s of millions of usersat a time.

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Supercomputer

Asupercomputeris focused on performing tasks involving intense numerical calculations such as weather forecasting,fluid dynamics, nuclear simulations, theoretical astrophysics, and complex scientific computations. A supercomputer is acomputer that is at the frontline of current processing capacity, particularly speed of calculation. The term supercomputeritself is rather fluid, and the speed of today's supercomputers tends to become typical of tomorrow's ordinary computer.Supercomputer processing speeds are measured in floating point operations per second orFLOPS. An example of afloating point operation is the calculation of mathematical equations in real numbers. In terms of computational capability,memory size and speed, I/O technology, and topological issues such as bandwidth and latency, supercomputers are themost powerful, are very expensive, and not cost-effective just to perform batch or transaction processing. Transaction

processing is handled by less powerful computers such as server computers or mainframes.

Computer

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Analog Digital Hybrid

1.Super Computers

2.Mainframe Computers

3.Mini Computers

4.Micro Computers

Classes by function

Servers

Serverusually refers to a computer that is dedicated to provide a service. For example, a computer dedicated toadatabasemay be called a "database server". "File servers" manage a large collection ofcomputer files."Web servers"

processweb pagesandweb applications. Many smaller servers are actually personal computers that have been

dedicated to provide services for other computers.

Workstations

Workstationsare computers that are intended to serve one user and may contain special hardware enhancements notfound on a personal computer.

Information appliances

Information appliancesare computers specially designed to perform a specificuser-friendlyfunction such asplaying

music,photography, orediting text. The term is most commonly applied tomobiledevices, though there are also portable

and desktop devices of this class.

Embedded computers

Embedded computersare computers that are a part of a machine or device. Embedded computers generally execute

aprogramthat is stored innon-volatile memoryand is only intended to operate a specific machine or device. Embedded

computers are very common. Embedded computers are typically required to operate continuously without being reset orrebooted, and once employed in their task the software usually cannot be modified. An automobile may contain a numberof embedded computers; however, a washing machine and aDVD playerwould contain only one. Thecentral processing

units(CPUs) used in embedded computers are often sufficient only for the computational requirements of the specificapplication and may be slower and cheaper than CPUs found in a personal computer.

What is the difference between an operating system and a program?Many computer users seem confused as to what exactly their computer is running and why. If you ask some people whatoperating system they use their answers will vary from Windows 2010, Windows 2007, Windows Vista and even tofacebook. The confusion is probably due to the naming of popular microsoft services such as Microsoft Office 2007 andWindows 7. Here we attempt to clear up the confusion by highlighting the differences.

At its most basic, an operating system is the software infrastructure that manages the computers hardware to make itaccessible to the user and to programs. In laymans terms, it is the initial layer of software that makes your computeruseable. Your operating system lets you run the computer, manage users, install programs and edit resourcemanagement. It also gives you access to all the different hardware inside the computer.Microsoft has designed various iterations of an operating system called Windows. There are three popular versions rightnow with one in development. Release dates shown:

Windows XP (2001. Development has ceased for Windows XP)

Windows Vista (2006)

Windows 7 (2009)

Windows 8 (In development)

Programs on the other hand are installed onto compatible operating systems. For example, if you own a Windowsmachine then you will purchase software that works on Microsoft Windows. Or, if you use a Mac, you will need topurchase software that runs on Mac OS. It is easier to imagine the difference between programs and operating systems ifyou consider smart phones. Your smart phone may be running the Android operating system (which is equivalent torunning a Windows or Mac operating system on your computer). Then, you download apps on the market to addfunctionality to your phone. Those are programs.Some popular examples of programs are skype, itunes, Microsoft Office, Norton Antivirus and Adobe Flash.

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