The early 1970s saw the birth of the microcomputer, or micro for short. The central processor of the micro, called the microprocessor, is built as a single semiconductor device; that is, the thousands of individual circuit elements necessary to perform all the logical and arithmetic functions of a computer are manufactured as a single chip. A complete microcomputer system is composed of a microprocessor, a memory and peripheral equipment. The processor, memory and electronic controls for the peripheral equipment are usually put together on a single or on a few printed circuit boards. Systems using microprocessors can be hooked up together to do the work that until recently only minicomputer systems were capable of doing. Micros generally have somewhat simpler and less flexible instruction sets than minis, and are typically much slower. Different micros are available with 4-, 8-, 12-, 16-bit word lengths, and some new ones use 32-bit chips. Similarly, minis are available with word lengths up to 32 bits. Although minis can be equipped with much larger primary memory sizes, micros are becoming more powerful and converging with minicomputer technology.
The extremely low price of micros has opened up entirely new areas of application for computers. Only 20 years or so ago, a central processing unit of medium capability sold for a few hundred thousand dollars (U.S.), and now some microprocessors sell for as cheaply as $10. Of course, by the time you have a usable microcomputer system, the price will be somewhere between $200 and $5000 depending on the display unit, secondary storage, and whatever other peripherals are needed.
The available range of microcomputer systems is evolving more rapidly than minicomputers. Because of their incredibly low price, it is now possible to use only a small fraction of the computer's capability in a particular system application and still be far ahead financially of any other way of getting the job done. For example, thousands of industrial robots are in use today, and the number is growing very rapidly as this relatively new industry improves the price and performance of its products by using the latest microcomputers.
Microcomputer software is developing rapidly and it now covers a tremendous range of applications. As well as data processing, software can also be written for specialized tasks even as complex as navigating rockets. Some modern micros are even capable of multi-tasking. In addition to their extensive use in control systems of all types, they are destined for many new uses from more complex calculators to automobile engine operation and medical diagnostics. They are already used in automobile emission control systems and are the basis of many TV game attachments. There is also a rapidly growing market for personal computers whose application potential in education is only just beginning to be exploited.
It would seem that the limits for microcomputer applications have by no means been reached. There are those who predict that the home and hobby computer markets, and the education market, will grow into multi-billion dollar enterprises within a decade or so. It would also appear that performance of microprocessors could well increase ten-fold before 1990 while prices for micros could decrease by as much.
The early 1970s saw the birth of the microcomputer, or micro for short. The central processor of the micro, called the microprocessor, is built as a single semiconductor device; that is, the thousands of individual circuit elements necessary to perform all the logical and arithmetic functions of a computer are manufactured as a single chip. A complete microcomputer system is composed of a microprocessor, a memory and peripheral equipment. The processor, memory and electronic controls for the peripheral equipment are usually put together on a single or on a few printed circuit boards. Systems using microprocessors can be hooked up together to do the work that until recently only minicomputer systems were capable of doing. Micros generally have somewhat simpler and less flexible instruction sets than minis, and are typically much slower. Different micros are available with 4-, 8-, 12-, 16-bit word lengths, and some new ones use 32-bit chips. Similarly, minis are available with word lengths up to 32 bits. Although minis can be equipped with much larger primary memory sizes, micros are becoming more powerful and converging with minicomputer technology.بسیار کم قیمت ریز حوزه کاملا جدید نرم افزار برای کامپیوتر باز کرده است. تنها بیست سال و اندی واحد پردازش مرکزی قابلیت متوسط پیش فروخته شده برای چند صد هزار دلار (آمریکا) و در حال حاضر برخی از ریزپردازنده برای ارزان 10 دلار فروش. البته، زمانی که شما یک سیستم میکرو قابل استفاده اند قیمت جایی بین 200 دلار و 5000 دلار بسته به واحد نمایش خواهد ذخیره سازی ثانویه و هر لوازم جانبی مورد نیاز است.در دسترس طیف وسیعی از سیستم های میکرو سریعتر از مینی کامپیوتر در حال تحول است. به دلیل قیمت فوق العاده پایین خود را در حال حاضر تنها بخش کوچکی از توانایی های کامپیوتر در برنامه سیستم های خاص استفاده کنید و هنوز هم می توان مراتب جلوتر مالی از هر راه دیگر گرفتن کار انجام می شود. به عنوان مثال، هزاران ربات های صنعتی هستند در استفاده امروز و تعدادی در حال رشد بسیار سریع این صنعت نسبتا جدید بهبود عملکرد آن و قيمت با استفاده از آخرین microcomputers.نرم افزار میکرو به سرعت در حال توسعه و در حال حاضر را پوشش می دهد طیف فوق العاده ای از برنامه های کاربردی. و همچنین پردازش داده ها، نرم افزار نیز برای کارهای تخصصی به پیچیدگی حتی مرور راکت نوشته می تواند. برخی از ریز مدرن حتی قادر است از چند tasking. علاوه بر خود استفاده گسترده ای در سیستم های کنترل تمام انواع آنها مقصد برای بسیاری از کاربردهای جدید از بعدی پیچیده تر عملیات موتور و تشخیص های پزشکی. آنها در حال حاضر در سیستم های کنترل انتشار خودرو استفاده می شود و بر اساس تعداد تلویزیون بازی پیوست. نیز وجود دارد که بازار به سرعت رو به رشد برای رایانه های شخصی که نرم افزار در آموزش و پرورش فقط فقط آغاز امکان بهره برداری است.به نظر می رسد که محدودیت برای برنامه های میکرو به هیچ وجه رسیده شده است. کسانی هستند که پیش بینی که خانه و سرگرمی رایانه بازار و بازار آموزش به چند میلیارد دلاری شرکت در یک دهه یا بیشتر رشد خواهد کرد. آن هم نظر می رسد عملکرد ریزپردازنده نیز افزایش می ten-fold قبل از سال 1990 در حالی که قیمت برای ریز توسط همان اندازه کاهش می تواند.
ترجمه، لطفا صبر کنید ..