Third Generation

Third Generation of mordern computer (1965 - 1974)

The period of third generation was 1965-1974.In this generation silicon transistors replaced germanium transistors
. Integrated circuits were developed by interconnecting transistors, resistors and capacitors grown on a single chip of silicon.
Integrated Circuit (IC) chips were used in computers. ICs were small in size, less power consuming and less expensive than the previous switching technology.
Advances in storage technologies resulted in creating large capacity magnetic ,disks and tapes and large magnetic core based random access memory.
On software front, high level languages were improved. Fortran IV and optimising Fortran compilers were developed.
Standardisation of COBOL (COBOL 68) was another major development during this period


The third generation of computers used integrated circuits instead of transistors technology that was used in computers of second-generation.
Its time period was around 1964 to 1970. An integrated circuit is a small chip that was the trademark of the computers of third generation. The integrated circuit used in 3rd generation computers can work as computer memory, microprocessor or even an amplifier.
The first to develop the idea of the integrated circuit was Robert Noyce of Fairchild Semiconductor and Jack Kilby (American electrical engineer) of Texas Instruments in 1959.
The landscape of computing had completely changed by the integrated circuit in the 1960s, which is a single that have multiple transistors.
The integrated circuit looks like as shown in the below image:

As compared to first and second generations of computers, the technology used in the 3rd generation computers made them more reliable, efficient and smaller in size.
Also, comparing to the previous two generations of computers, the computers made in the third generation used integrated circuit came with features; such as faster speed, reliability, generated less heat, lesser maintenance.
They consumed lesser electricity; still costly, and were needed air condition.

Arguably the most important machine of the third generation was the IBM-360 series, which was more powerful, fastest in use at that time. Some say the third generation of computers was introduced by this machine, IBM System/360 introduced in 1966.
The developing cost of this machine was approximately $5 billion, which was spent by IBM. Especially, this machine was designed by IBM to manage high-speed data processing for scientific uses like global weather forecasting, theoretical astronomy, space exploration and subatomic physics.
Over a family of devices, it proposed a single computer architecture that was not an innovative perspective to computer design.

Characteristics of Third Generation Computers


As third generation computers were made by using an integrated circuit that led to various features, which are as follows: