SECOND GENERATION OF COMPUTER

The period of second generation was 1952-1964

This generation using the transistor were cheaper, consumed less power, more compact in size, more reliable and faster than the first generation machines made of vaccum tubes.In this generation, magnetic cores were used as primary memory and magnetic tape and magnetic disks as secondary storage devices.

In this generation assembly language and high level programming language like FORTRAN, COBOL were used.

There were Batch processing and Multiprogramming Operating system used\

The main features of Second Generation are:

• Use of transistors
• Reliable as compared to First generation computers
• Smaller size as compared to First generation computers
• Generate less heat as compared to First generation computers
• Consumed less electricity as compared to First generation computers
• Faster than first generation computers
• Still very costly
• A.C. needed
• Support machine and assmebly languages

Some computer of this generation were:

• IBM 1620
• IBM 7094
• CDC 1604
• CDC 3600
• UNIVAC 1108

John Bardeen (1908–1991), William B. Shockley (1910–1989), and Walter H. Brattain (1902–1987) invented the transistor at Bell Telephone Laboratories in the mid-1940s. By 1948 it was obvious to many that the transistor would probably replace the vacuum tube in devices such as radios, television sets, and computers.

One of the first computing machines based on the transistor was the Philco Corporation's Transac S-2000 in 1958. IBM soon followed with the transistor-based IBM 7090. These second generation machines were programmed in languages such as COBOL (Common Business Oriented Language) and FORTRAN (Formula Translator) and were used for a wide variety of business and scientific tasks. Magnetic disks and tape were often used for data storage