SSC Physics Creative question with answer.pdf

Microcomputers 

Microcomputers are microprocessor based small laptop or desktop systems with varying capability depending on the input/output and secondary storage devices supporting it. The brain of a microcomputer is the microprocessor, a silicon chip containing the necessary circuits to perform arithmetic/logic operations and to control input/output operations. 

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A microprocessor is an integrated circuit consisting of thousands of transistors squeezed onto a tiny chip of silicon. The chip is packaged as a single integrated circuit. A microcomputer system is formed by adding an input/output capability and a memory to the microprocessor. Early microcomputers had a limited processing potential and limited choice of input/output devices. Present day microcomputers have wider processing capabilities and support a wide range of input/output devices. Today microcomputers are available with a selection of input/output devices varying from a cassette recorder to a voice synthesizer. In addition to general-purpose computations, microcomputers are used for special purpose applications in automobiles, airplanes, toys, clocks, appliances etc. High-end supermicros are known as workstations. The workstation represents the bridge between the microcomputers and minicomputers. It is a microcomputer with many of the capabilities of larger minicomputers but costing much less. Initially designed for use by engineers and designers, and today they are popular for general uses. These workstations can run more than one application for a user. This is known as multitasking. A workstation is also a multi-user system that can be shared by several users at the same time.

Minicomputers

A Minicomputer system performs the basic arithmetic and logic functions and supports some of the programming languages used with large computer systems. They are physically smaller, less expensive, and have a small storage capacity than mainframes. Minicomputers are ideally suited for processing tasks that do not require access to huge volumes of stored data . As a result of their low cost, ease of operation, and versatility, minicomputers have gained rapid acceptance from their introduction in the mid-sixties. Some of the larger and expensive minicomputers are capable of supporting a number of terminals in a time-shared mode.