mainframe 1950-1960
Mainframes are large, powerful computers that can carry out many different tasks for many different people at the same time.
They are slower than a supercomputer but they are far less expensive. They may cost around 4 million pounds to purchase.
They are slower than a supercomputer but they are far less expensive. They may cost around 4 million pounds to purchase.
Mainframes can execute billions of instructions per second and can process large amounts of data simultaneously. They are usually connected to a large number of peripherals e.g. printers, terminals, disk drives etc.
They are used by large companies such as:
-utility companies e.g. gas and electricity suppliers to calculate customer bills
-banks for managing thousands of customers accounts each day
-insurance companies for keeping track of policies and claims
-airlines for dealing with bookings, tickets, cancellations etc.
-police for storing and processing all of the data collected each day about crimes