ENIAC - Revision history

Jnc: typo

2024-12-06T01:34:39Z

typo

← Older revision		Revision as of 01:34, 6 December 2024
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	* Raul Rojas, Ulf Hashagen, ''The First Computers: History and Architectures'', MIT Press, Cambridge, 2002		* Raul Rojas, Ulf Hashagen, ''The First Computers: History and Architectures'', MIT Press, Cambridge, 2002
	* Kathy Kleiman, ''Proving Ground: The Untold Story of the Six Women who Programmed the World's First Modern Computer'', Grand Central Publishing, Bew York, 2022		* Kathy Kleiman, ''Proving Ground: The Untold Story of the Six Women who Programmed the World's First Modern Computer'', Grand Central Publishing, Bew York, 2022
	* Maurice Wilkes, ''J. G. Brainerd on the ENIAC'', [[Annals of the History of Computing]], ~~Volume~~ 4, ~~Number~~ 1, January 1982, pp. 53-55 - interesting background on how the ENIAC project got started		* Maurice Wilkes, ''J. G. Brainerd on the ENIAC'', [[Annals of the History of Computing]], Vol. 4, No. 1, January 1982, pp. 53-55 - interesting background on how the ENIAC project got started
	* ''Documenting ENIAC's 50th Anniversary'', Annals of the History of Computing, ~~Volume~~ 18, ~~Number~~ 1, Spring 1996		* ''Documenting ENIAC's 50th Anniversary'', Annals of the History of Computing, Vol. 18, N0. 1, Spring 1996

	==External links==		==External links==
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	* Nicholas Metropolis, J. Worlton, [https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/4628499 ''A Trilogy On Errors in the History of Computing''], Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, 1972 - contains a section describing the conversion of the ENIAC to a stored-program machine <!-- https://www.osti.gov/biblio/4628499 -->		* Nicholas Metropolis, J. Worlton, [https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/4628499 ''A Trilogy On Errors in the History of Computing''], Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, 1972 - contains a section describing the conversion of the ENIAC to a stored-program machine <!-- https://www.osti.gov/biblio/4628499 -->
	* [http://www.columbia.edu/cu/computinghistory/eniac.html Programming the ENIAC], Frank Cruz, Columbia University, 2013		* [http://www.columbia.edu/cu/computinghistory/eniac.html Programming the ENIAC], Frank Cruz, Columbia University, 2013
	* [http://the-eniac.com/ The ENIAC] - interesting site by an ~~ENIACC~~ fan; take claims here with a grain of salt		* [http://the-eniac.com/ The ENIAC] - interesting site by an ENIAC fan; take claims here with a grain of salt

	[[Category: Early Computing Devices]]		[[Category: Early Computing Devices]]
	[[Category: Early Computers]]		[[Category: Early Computers]]
	[[Category: Unique Computers]]		[[Category: Unique Computers]]

Jnc: /* Further reading */ +'J. G. Brainerd on the ENIAC'

2024-12-03T23:46:11Z

Further reading: +'J. G. Brainerd on the ENIAC'

← Older revision		Revision as of 23:46, 3 December 2024
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	* Raul Rojas, Ulf Hashagen, ''The First Computers: History and Architectures'', MIT Press, Cambridge, 2002		* Raul Rojas, Ulf Hashagen, ''The First Computers: History and Architectures'', MIT Press, Cambridge, 2002
	* Kathy Kleiman, ''Proving Ground: The Untold Story of the Six Women who Programmed the World's First Modern Computer'', Grand Central Publishing, Bew York, 2022		* Kathy Kleiman, ''Proving Ground: The Untold Story of the Six Women who Programmed the World's First Modern Computer'', Grand Central Publishing, Bew York, 2022
	* ''Documenting ENIAC's 50th Anniversary'', [[Annals of the History of Computing]], Volume 18, Number 1, Spring 1996		* Maurice Wilkes, ''J. G. Brainerd on the ENIAC'', [[Annals of the History of Computing]], Volume 4, Number 1, January 1982, pp. 53-55 - interesting background on how the ENIAC project got started
			* ''Documenting ENIAC's 50th Anniversary'', Annals of the History of Computing, Volume 18, Number 1, Spring 1996

	==External links==		==External links==

Jnc: /* Further reading */ +Documenting ENIAC's 50th Anniversary

2024-12-01T15:54:00Z

Further reading: +Documenting ENIAC's 50th Anniversary

← Older revision		Revision as of 15:54, 1 December 2024
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	* Raul Rojas, Ulf Hashagen, ''The First Computers: History and Architectures'', MIT Press, Cambridge, 2002		* Raul Rojas, Ulf Hashagen, ''The First Computers: History and Architectures'', MIT Press, Cambridge, 2002
	* Kathy Kleiman, ''Proving Ground: The Untold Story of the Six Women who Programmed the World's First Modern Computer'', Grand Central Publishing, Bew York, 2022		* Kathy Kleiman, ''Proving Ground: The Untold Story of the Six Women who Programmed the World's First Modern Computer'', Grand Central Publishing, Bew York, 2022
			* ''Documenting ENIAC's 50th Anniversary'', [[Annals of the History of Computing]], Volume 18, Number 1, Spring 1996

	==External links==		==External links==

Jnc: /* External links */ Link online 'Computing Before Computers'

2024-09-13T13:04:49Z

External links: Link online 'Computing Before Computers'

← Older revision		Revision as of 13:04, 13 September 2024
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	* [https://ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/Reckoners-ch-5.html ''Chapter 5: Faster, Faster: The ENIAC''], in Paul E. Ceruzzi, [https://www.ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/Reckoners.html ''Reckoners: The Prehistory of The Digital Computer, From Relays to the Stored Program Concept, 1935-1945''], Greenwood, Westport, 1983		* [https://ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/Reckoners-ch-5.html ''Chapter 5: Faster, Faster: The ENIAC''], in Paul E. Ceruzzi, [https://www.ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/Reckoners.html ''Reckoners: The Prehistory of The Digital Computer, From Relays to the Stored Program Concept, 1935-1945''], Greenwood, Westport, 1983
	* Paul E. Ceruzzi, [https://ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/CBC-Ch-07.pdf ''Chapter Seven: Electronic Calculators''], in William Aspray (editor), ''Computing Before Computers'', Iowa State University Press, Ames, 1990		* Paul E. Ceruzzi, [https://ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/CBC-Ch-07.pdf ''Chapter Seven: Electronic Calculators''], in William Aspray (editor), [https://ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/CBC.html ''Computing Before Computers''], Iowa State University Press, Ames, 1990
	* Nicholas Metropolis, J. Worlton, [https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/4628499 ''A Trilogy On Errors in the History of Computing''], Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, 1972 - contains a section describing the conversion of the ENIAC to a stored-program machine <!-- https://www.osti.gov/biblio/4628499 -->		* Nicholas Metropolis, J. Worlton, [https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/4628499 ''A Trilogy On Errors in the History of Computing''], Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, 1972 - contains a section describing the conversion of the ENIAC to a stored-program machine <!-- https://www.osti.gov/biblio/4628499 -->
	* [http://www.columbia.edu/cu/computinghistory/eniac.html Programming the ENIAC], Frank Cruz, Columbia University, 2013		* [http://www.columbia.edu/cu/computinghistory/eniac.html Programming the ENIAC], Frank Cruz, Columbia University, 2013

Jnc: /* External links */ Link online 'Reckoners'

2024-09-13T12:51:31Z

External links: Link online 'Reckoners'

← Older revision		Revision as of 12:51, 13 September 2024
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	==External links==		==External links==

	* [https://ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/Reckoners-ch-5.html ''Chapter 5: Faster, Faster: The ENIAC''], in Paul E. Ceruzzi, ''Reckoners: The Prehistory of The Digital Computer, From Relays to the Stored Program Concept, 1935-1945'', Greenwood, Westport, 1983		* [https://ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/Reckoners-ch-5.html ''Chapter 5: Faster, Faster: The ENIAC''], in Paul E. Ceruzzi, [https://www.ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/Reckoners.html ''Reckoners: The Prehistory of The Digital Computer, From Relays to the Stored Program Concept, 1935-1945''], Greenwood, Westport, 1983
	* Paul E. Ceruzzi, [https://ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/CBC-Ch-07.pdf ''Chapter Seven: Electronic Calculators''], in William Aspray (editor), ''Computing Before Computers'', Iowa State University Press, Ames, 1990		* Paul E. Ceruzzi, [https://ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/CBC-Ch-07.pdf ''Chapter Seven: Electronic Calculators''], in William Aspray (editor), ''Computing Before Computers'', Iowa State University Press, Ames, 1990
	* Nicholas Metropolis, J. Worlton, [https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/4628499 ''A Trilogy On Errors in the History of Computing''], Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, 1972 - contains a section describing the conversion of the ENIAC to a stored-program machine <!-- https://www.osti.gov/biblio/4628499 -->		* Nicholas Metropolis, J. Worlton, [https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/4628499 ''A Trilogy On Errors in the History of Computing''], Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, 1972 - contains a section describing the conversion of the ENIAC to a stored-program machine <!-- https://www.osti.gov/biblio/4628499 -->

Jnc: Clarify role of EDVAC work

2024-08-29T13:31:49Z

Clarify role of EDVAC work

← Older revision		Revision as of 13:31, 29 August 2024
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	In 1947, on a suggestion from [[John von Neumann]], an effort was started to re-configure it in a way that added a certain amount of programmability; it started to operate in that mode in 1948. It used a program stored in the 'function-table switches' (originally intended, effectively, as an [[read-only memory\|EPROM]] data source). This allowed the machine to be switched to a different problem far more quickly and easily, albeit at a certain loss in performance. Later, minor hardware modifications improved ENIAC's efficiency when configured as a stored-program machine.		In 1947, on a suggestion from [[John von Neumann]], an effort was started to re-configure it in a way that added a certain amount of programmability; it started to operate in that mode in 1948. It used a program stored in the 'function-table switches' (originally intended, effectively, as an [[read-only memory\|EPROM]] data source). This allowed the machine to be switched to a different problem far more quickly and easily, albeit at a certain loss in performance. Later, minor hardware modifications improved ENIAC's efficiency when configured as a stored-program machine.

	The difficulty of quickly re-configuring the ENIAC to work on another problem led to the creation of the [[EDVAC]], a true stored-program [[computer]]. The contemporaneous re-configuration of the ENIAC into a primitive (due to its very minimal [[main memory]] - data only) stored-program computer was still held to be worthwhile, as it was for some years the fastest machine available in the US for computationally intensive problems (even though it was internally a [[serial computer]], not a [[parallel computer]]).		The difficulty of quickly re-configuring the ENIAC to work on another problem led to the design (and creation, after the team that designed it had scattered, because of conflicting organizational goals) of the [[EDVAC]], a true stored-program [[computer]]. The contemporaneous re-configuration of the ENIAC into a primitive (due to its very minimal [[main memory]] - data only) stored-program computer was still held to be worthwhile, as it was for some years the fastest machine available in the US for computationally intensive problems (even though it was internally a [[serial computer]], not a [[parallel computer]]).

	==Technical details==		==Technical details==
Line 32:		Line 32:
	==Controversy over the ENIAC's derivation==		==Controversy over the ENIAC's derivation==

	John Mauchly, one of the two people most responsible for the ENIAC, had gone to see the [[Atanasoff-Berry Computer]] several years before he started on the ENIAC, spent several days studying it in detail, in person, and discussed it, and possible future evolution, with the ABC's inventor, [[John Atanasoff]].		John Mauchly, one of the two people most responsible for the ENIAC, had gone to see the [[Atanasoff-Berry Computer]] several years before he started on the ENIAC, and spent several days studying it in detail, in person, and discussed it, and possible future evolution, with the ABC's inventor, [[John Atanasoff]].

	Unfortunately, when the time came, much later, to patent the ENIAC's contributions, the patent attempted to also claim many of the ABC's innovations - including its use of digital electronics to do computing. This fact still later led to the overturning of the over-broad ENIAC patent, in a celebrated trial in 1973. Had the patent only claimed Mauchly and Eckert's many valuable, real, contributions, it would have been fine.		Unfortunately, when the time came, much later, to patent the ENIAC's contributions, the patent attempted to also claim many of the ABC's innovations - including its use of digital electronics to do computing. This fact still later led to the overturning of the over-broad ENIAC patent, in a celebrated trial in 1973. Had the patent only claimed Mauchly and Eckert's many valuable, real, contributions, it would have been fine.

	Unfortunately, the whole controversy led to a great deal of division and ill-will, which is most unfortunate, as the machines of Atanasoff ''and'' Mauchly and Eckert ''both'' were major steps along the path from [[Charles Babbage\|Babbage]] to modern computers; the struggle over credit has led to both sides not getting the recognition they really do deserve.		Unfortunately, the [[Atanasoff-Mauchly controversy\|whole controversy]] led to a great deal of division and ill-will, which is most unfortunate, as the machines of Atanasoff ''and'' Mauchly and Eckert ''both'' were major steps along the path from [[Charles Babbage\|Babbage]] to modern computers; the struggle over credit has led to both sides not getting the recognition they really do deserve.

	==Further reading==		==Further reading==
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	* Thomas Haigh, Mark Priestley, Crispin Rope, ''ENIAC in Action: Making and Remaking the Modern Computer'', MIT Press, Cambridge, 2016 - covers the conversion into a program-driven device		* Thomas Haigh, Mark Priestley, Crispin Rope, ''ENIAC in Action: Making and Remaking the Modern Computer'', MIT Press, Cambridge, 2016 - covers the conversion into a program-driven device
	* Raul Rojas, Ulf Hashagen, ''The First Computers: History and Architectures'', MIT Press, Cambridge, 2002		* Raul Rojas, Ulf Hashagen, ''The First Computers: History and Architectures'', MIT Press, Cambridge, 2002
	* [https://ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/Reckoners-ch-5.html ''Chapter 5: Faster, Faster: The ENIAC''], in Paul E. Ceruzzi, ''Reckoners: The Prehistory of The Digital Computer, From Relays to the Stored Program Concept, 1935-1945'', Greenwood, Westport, 1983
	* Paul E. Ceruzzi, [https://ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/CBC-Ch-07.pdf ''Chapter Seven: Electronic Calculators''], in William Aspray (editor), ''Computing Before Computers'', Iowa State University Press, Ames, 1990
	* Kathy Kleiman, ''Proving Ground: The Untold Story of the Six Women who Programmed the World's First Modern Computer'', Grand Central Publishing, Bew York, 2022		* Kathy Kleiman, ''Proving Ground: The Untold Story of the Six Women who Programmed the World's First Modern Computer'', Grand Central Publishing, Bew York, 2022
	* Nicholas Metropolis, J. Worlton, [https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/4628499 ''A Trilogy On Errors in the History of Computing''], Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, 1972 - contains a section describing the conversion of the ENIAC to a stored-program machine <!-- https://www.osti.gov/biblio/4628499 -->

	==External links==		==External links==

			* [https://ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/Reckoners-ch-5.html ''Chapter 5: Faster, Faster: The ENIAC''], in Paul E. Ceruzzi, ''Reckoners: The Prehistory of The Digital Computer, From Relays to the Stored Program Concept, 1935-1945'', Greenwood, Westport, 1983
			* Paul E. Ceruzzi, [https://ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/CBC-Ch-07.pdf ''Chapter Seven: Electronic Calculators''], in William Aspray (editor), ''Computing Before Computers'', Iowa State University Press, Ames, 1990
			* Nicholas Metropolis, J. Worlton, [https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/4628499 ''A Trilogy On Errors in the History of Computing''], Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, 1972 - contains a section describing the conversion of the ENIAC to a stored-program machine <!-- https://www.osti.gov/biblio/4628499 -->
	* [http://www.columbia.edu/cu/computinghistory/eniac.html Programming the ENIAC], Frank Cruz, Columbia University, 2013		* [http://www.columbia.edu/cu/computinghistory/eniac.html Programming the ENIAC], Frank Cruz, Columbia University, 2013
	* [http://the-eniac.com/ The ENIAC] - interesting site by an ENIACC fan; take claims here with a grain of salt		* [http://the-eniac.com/ The ENIAC] - interesting site by an ENIACC fan; take claims here with a grain of salt

Jnc: /* External links */ +The ENIAC

2024-08-04T17:07:37Z

External links: +The ENIAC

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:07, 4 August 2024
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	* [http://www.columbia.edu/cu/computinghistory/eniac.html Programming the ENIAC], Frank Cruz, Columbia University, 2013		* [http://www.columbia.edu/cu/computinghistory/eniac.html Programming the ENIAC], Frank Cruz, Columbia University, 2013
			* [http://the-eniac.com/ The ENIAC] - interesting site by an ENIACC fan; take claims here with a grain of salt

	[[Category: Early Computing Devices]]		[[Category: Early Computing Devices]]
	[[Category: Early Computers]]		[[Category: Early Computers]]
	[[Category: Unique Computers]]		[[Category: Unique Computers]]

Jnc: Internally a serial computer, not parallel

2024-05-12T09:50:19Z

Internally a serial computer, not parallel

Jnc: /* Further reading */ Add an old paper touching on the conversion of the ENIAC to a stored-program machine

2024-05-10T13:07:40Z

Further reading: Add an old paper touching on the conversion of the ENIAC to a stored-program machine

← Older revision		Revision as of 13:07, 10 May 2024
Line 48:		Line 48:
	* Paul E. Ceruzzi, [https://ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/CBC-Ch-07.pdf ''Chapter Seven: Electronic Calculators''], in William Aspray (editor), ''Computing Before Computers'', Iowa State University Press, Ames, 1990		* Paul E. Ceruzzi, [https://ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/CBC-Ch-07.pdf ''Chapter Seven: Electronic Calculators''], in William Aspray (editor), ''Computing Before Computers'', Iowa State University Press, Ames, 1990
	* Kathy Kleiman, ''Proving Ground: The Untold Story of the Six Women who Programmed the World's First Modern Computer'', Grand Central Publishing, Bew York, 2022		* Kathy Kleiman, ''Proving Ground: The Untold Story of the Six Women who Programmed the World's First Modern Computer'', Grand Central Publishing, Bew York, 2022
			* Nicholas Metropolis, J. Worlton, [https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/4628499 ''A Trilogy On Errors in the History of Computing''], Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, 1972 - contains a section describing the conversion of the ENIAC to a stored-program machine <!-- https://www.osti.gov/biblio/4628499 -->

	==External links==		==External links==

Jnc: Re-organize a bit to give better coverage of its re-configuration into a primitive computer; mention Baby

2024-02-29T09:02:16Z

Re-organize a bit to give better coverage of its re-configuration into a primitive computer; mention Baby

← Older revision		Revision as of 09:02, 29 February 2024
Line 1:		Line 1:
	The '''ENIAC''' ~~—~~ ''Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer'' ~~—~~ was the first general-purpose [[digital]] [[electronic]] [[computing device]]. It was not [[program]]mable, in the modern sense~~; as originally~~ designed, it was only configurable - by setting up functional units via [[patch-cord]]s, as needed for the desired computation; requiring considerable work to re-configure it to perform a different computation. It first ran in 1945; its main architect was Professor [[John Mauchly]], with [[J. Presper Eckert]] being the person most responsible for its engineering (with assistance from Arthur Burks, Kite Sharpless, John Davis, Robert Shaw, and others).		The '''ENIAC''' (the acronym of its full formal name, the '''Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer''' - the popularity of the short form apparently inspired the later craze for [[backronym]]s common in the computer field) was the first general-purpose [[digital]] [[electronic]] [[computing device]]. It was not originally [[program]]mable, in the modern sense. As designed, it was only configurable - by setting up functional units via [[patch-cord]]s, as needed for the desired computation; requiring considerable work to re-configure it to perform a different computation.

			It first ran in 1945; its main architect was Professor [[John Mauchly]], with [[J. Presper Eckert]] being the person most responsible for its engineering (with assistance from Arthur Burks, Kite Sharpless, John Davis, Robert Shaw, and others).

			In 1947, on a suggestion from [[John von Neumann]], an effort was started to re-configure it in a way that added a certain amount of programmability; it started to operate in that mode in 1948. It used a program stored in the 'function-table switches' (originally intended, effectively, as an [[EPROM]] data source). This allowed the machine to be switched to a different problem far more quickly and easily, albeit at a certain loss in performance. Later, minor hardware modifications improved ENIAC's efficiency when configured as a stored-program machine.

			The difficulty of quickly re-configuring the ENIAC to work on another problem led to the creation of the [[EDVAC]], a true stored-program [[computer]]. The contemporaneous re-configuration of the ENIAC into a primitive (due to its very minimal [[main memory]] - data only) stored-program computer was still held to be worthwhile, as it was for some years the fastest machine available in the US for computationally intensive problems.

			==Technical details==

	It contained:		It contained:
Line 12:		Line 20:
	All units were interconnectable through configurable 'digit trunks' (which carried data) and 'program trunks'; it operated [[synchronous]]ly, controlled by the cycling unit. It was able to perform operations in disparate parts of the machine in parallel, if the units in question would otherwise be idle. Unlike the [[Atanasoff–Berry Computer]], which was an inspiration for the ENIAC, which was [[binary]] internally, the ENIAC was decimal inside (which was partially responsible for its enormous size - over 18,000 tubes, in total).		All units were interconnectable through configurable 'digit trunks' (which carried data) and 'program trunks'; it operated [[synchronous]]ly, controlled by the cycling unit. It was able to perform operations in disparate parts of the machine in parallel, if the units in question would otherwise be idle. Unlike the [[Atanasoff–Berry Computer]], which was an inspiration for the ENIAC, which was [[binary]] internally, the ENIAC was decimal inside (which was partially responsible for its enormous size - over 18,000 tubes, in total).

	Each digit was a pluggable module, which minimized down-time for ~~rpair~~ on failure - a spare module could be swapped in.		Each digit was a pluggable module, which minimized down-time for repair on failure - a spare module could be swapped in.

	In 1947 an effort was started to re-configure it in a way that added a certain amount of programmability, via a program stored in the 'function-table switches' (originally intended as a ROM data source). This allowed the machine to be switched to a different problem far more quickly and easily, albeit at a certain loss in performance. Later, minor hardware modifications improved ENIACs efficiency when configured as a stored-program machine; it started to operate in that mode in 1948.		==First computer==

	~~The difficulty of re~~-~~configuring the ENIAC,~~ to ~~work~~ on ~~another~~ problem, ~~quickly led~~ to the ~~creation of the [[EDVAC]],~~ a ~~true~~ stored-program [[computer]].		It was thought for many years that the [[Manchester Baby]] had been the first stored-program computer to ever run (on a problem of finding the largest factor of a given integer); on 21st June, 1948. It has recently been brought to wider attention that the ENIAC was re-configured fairly early in its life into a stored-program computer - albeit one of very limited capability.

	~~==Controversy==~~		It can be argued that this does not make the ENIAC, so configured, a [[Turing machine]], as it cannot modify its own program. However, contemporary [[embedded system]]s often have a [[microprocessor]] with all their [[object code\|code]] contained in [[read-only memory\|ROM]], but no-one argues that those machines are not Turing machines.

	John Mauchly, one of the two people most responsible for the ENIAC, had gone to see the ~~ABC~~ several years before he started on the ENIAC, spent several days studying it in detail, in person, and discussed it, and possible future evolution, with the ABC's inventor, [[John Atanasoff]].		Planning for that conversion started in the Fall of 1947; several different [[instruction set]]s were proposed. The re-configuration actually started at the end of March, 1948; the first run (on a problem related to atomic bomb work) happened at the end of April, 1948, finishing in May - effectively contemporaneous with the first run of the Baby.

			==Controversy over the ENIAC's derivation==

			John Mauchly, one of the two people most responsible for the ENIAC, had gone to see the [[Atanasoff-Berry Computer]] several years before he started on the ENIAC, spent several days studying it in detail, in person, and discussed it, and possible future evolution, with the ABC's inventor, [[John Atanasoff]].

	Unfortunately, when the time came, much later, to patent the ENIAC's contributions, the patent attempted to also claim many of the ABC's innovations - including its use of digital electronics to do computing. This fact still later led to the overturning of the over-broad ENIAC patent, in a celebrated trial in 1973. Had the patent only claimed Mauchly and Eckert's many valuable contributions, it would have been fine.		Unfortunately, when the time came, much later, to patent the ENIAC's contributions, the patent attempted to also claim many of the ABC's innovations - including its use of digital electronics to do computing. This fact still later led to the overturning of the over-broad ENIAC patent, in a celebrated trial in 1973. Had the patent only claimed Mauchly and Eckert's many valuable contributions, it would have been fine.

	Unfortunately, the whole controversy led to a great deal of division and ill-will, which is most unfortunate, as the machines of Atanasoff ''and'' Mauchly and Eckert ''both'' were major steps along the path from [[Charles Babbage\|Babbage]] to modern computers; the struggle over credit has led to both sides not getting the recognition they really do deserve.		Unfortunately, the whole controversy led to a great deal of division and ill-will, which is most unfortunate, as the machines of Atanasoff ''and'' Mauchly and Eckert ''both'' were major steps along the path from [[Charles Babbage\|Babbage]] to modern computers; the struggle over credit has led to both sides not getting the recognition they really do deserve.

	~~{{semi-stub}}~~

	==Further reading==		==Further reading==
Line 44:		Line 54:

	[[Category: Early Computing Devices]]		[[Category: Early Computing Devices]]
			[[Category: Early Computers]]
			[[Category: Unique Computers]]

← Older revision		Revision as of 09:50, 12 May 2024
Line 1:		Line 1:
	The '''ENIAC''' (the acronym of its full formal name, the '''Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer''' - the popularity of the short form apparently inspired the later craze for [[backronym]]s common in the computer field) was the first general-purpose [[digital]] [[electronic]] [[computing device]]. It was not originally [[program]]mable, in the modern sense. As designed, it was only configurable - by ~~setting~~ up functional units via [[patch-cord]]s, as needed for the desired computation; requiring considerable work to re-configure it to perform a different computation.		The '''ENIAC''' (the acronym of its full formal name, the '''Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer''' - the popularity of the short form apparently inspired the later craze for [[backronym]]s common in the computer field) was the first general-purpose [[digital]] [[electronic]] [[computing device]]. It was not originally [[program]]mable, in the modern sense. As designed, it was only configurable - by connecting up functional units via [[patch-cord]]s, as needed for the desired computation; requiring considerable work to re-configure it to perform a different computation.

	It first ran in 1945; its main architect was Professor [[John Mauchly]], with [[J. Presper Eckert]] being the person most responsible for its engineering (with assistance from Arthur Burks, Kite Sharpless, John Davis, Robert Shaw, and others).		It first ran in 1945; its main architect was Professor [[John Mauchly]], with [[J. Presper Eckert]] being the person most responsible for its engineering (with assistance from Arthur Burks, Kite Sharpless, John Davis, Robert Shaw, and others).

	In 1947, on a suggestion from [[John von Neumann]], an effort was started to re-configure it in a way that added a certain amount of programmability; it started to operate in that mode in 1948. It used a program stored in the 'function-table switches' (originally intended, effectively, as an [[EPROM]] data source). This allowed the machine to be switched to a different problem far more quickly and easily, albeit at a certain loss in performance. Later, minor hardware modifications improved ENIAC's efficiency when configured as a stored-program machine.		In 1947, on a suggestion from [[John von Neumann]], an effort was started to re-configure it in a way that added a certain amount of programmability; it started to operate in that mode in 1948. It used a program stored in the 'function-table switches' (originally intended, effectively, as an [[read-only memory\|EPROM]] data source). This allowed the machine to be switched to a different problem far more quickly and easily, albeit at a certain loss in performance. Later, minor hardware modifications improved ENIAC's efficiency when configured as a stored-program machine.

	The difficulty of quickly re-configuring the ENIAC to work on another problem led to the creation of the [[EDVAC]], a true stored-program [[computer]]. The contemporaneous re-configuration of the ENIAC into a primitive (due to its very minimal [[main memory]] - data only) stored-program computer was still held to be worthwhile, as it was for some years the fastest machine available in the US for computationally intensive problems.		The difficulty of quickly re-configuring the ENIAC to work on another problem led to the creation of the [[EDVAC]], a true stored-program [[computer]]. The contemporaneous re-configuration of the ENIAC into a primitive (due to its very minimal [[main memory]] - data only) stored-program computer was still held to be worthwhile, as it was for some years the fastest machine available in the US for computationally intensive problems (even though it was internally a [[serial computer]], not a [[parallel computer]]).

	==Technical details==		==Technical details==
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	It contained:		It contained:

	* 20 'accumulators' (ten-digit [[register]]s which could add and subtract~~, requiring~~ 550 [[vacuum tube]]s per accumulator - one per [[flip-flop]], and ten flip-flops per digit);		* 20 'accumulators', ten-digit [[register]]s which could also add and subtract (they required 550 [[vacuum tube]]s per accumulator - one per [[flip-flop]], and ten flip-flops per digit);
	* a separate unit which could perform multiplication, division, and square roots;		* a separate unit which could perform multiplication, division, and square roots;
	* constant transmitters (effectively tables stored in ~~[[read-only memory\|ROM]]~~ - using [[switch]]es);		* constant transmitters (effectively tables stored in EPROM - using [[switch]]es);
	* programming units (which could direct a sequence of elementary arithmetic operations, and also storage and retrieval of intermediate results, and the reading of constants from the constant tables);		* programming units (which could direct a sequence of elementary arithmetic operations, and also storage and retrieval of intermediate results, and the reading of constants from the constant tables);
	* a cycling unit (the basic clock used by all parts of the machine; it also produced the pulse sequences used to transmit numbers);		* a cycling unit (the basic clock used by all parts of the machine; it also produced the pulse sequences used to transmit numbers);
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	John Mauchly, one of the two people most responsible for the ENIAC, had gone to see the [[Atanasoff-Berry Computer]] several years before he started on the ENIAC, spent several days studying it in detail, in person, and discussed it, and possible future evolution, with the ABC's inventor, [[John Atanasoff]].		John Mauchly, one of the two people most responsible for the ENIAC, had gone to see the [[Atanasoff-Berry Computer]] several years before he started on the ENIAC, spent several days studying it in detail, in person, and discussed it, and possible future evolution, with the ABC's inventor, [[John Atanasoff]].

	Unfortunately, when the time came, much later, to patent the ENIAC's contributions, the patent attempted to also claim many of the ABC's innovations - including its use of digital electronics to do computing. This fact still later led to the overturning of the over-broad ENIAC patent, in a celebrated trial in 1973. Had the patent only claimed Mauchly and Eckert's many valuable contributions, it would have been fine.		Unfortunately, when the time came, much later, to patent the ENIAC's contributions, the patent attempted to also claim many of the ABC's innovations - including its use of digital electronics to do computing. This fact still later led to the overturning of the over-broad ENIAC patent, in a celebrated trial in 1973. Had the patent only claimed Mauchly and Eckert's many valuable, real, contributions, it would have been fine.

	Unfortunately, the whole controversy led to a great deal of division and ill-will, which is most unfortunate, as the machines of Atanasoff ''and'' Mauchly and Eckert ''both'' were major steps along the path from [[Charles Babbage\|Babbage]] to modern computers; the struggle over credit has led to both sides not getting the recognition they really do deserve.		Unfortunately, the whole controversy led to a great deal of division and ill-will, which is most unfortunate, as the machines of Atanasoff ''and'' Mauchly and Eckert ''both'' were major steps along the path from [[Charles Babbage\|Babbage]] to modern computers; the struggle over credit has led to both sides not getting the recognition they really do deserve.