History of computing hardware: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 10:36, 16 November 2005

Revision as of 12:15, 20 November 2005

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{{history of computing}}

'''Computing hardware''' has been an essential component of the process of calculation and [[data storage]] since it became useful for numerical values to be processed and shared. The earliest computing hardware was probably some form of [[tally stick]]; later recording devices include the [[Phoenicia]]n [[clay]] shapes which represented counts of items, probably livestock or grains, in containers. These seem to have been used by the [[merchant]]s, [[accountant]]s, and [[government official]]s of the time.

Devices to aid computation have evolved from simple recording and counting devices through the [[abacus]], the [[slide rule]], and more recent electronic [[computers]]. Even today, an experienced [[abacus]] user using a device designed hundreds of years ago can sometimes complete basic calculations more quickly than an unskilled person using an electronic [[calculator]] — though for more complex calculations, computers out-perform even the most skilled human.