A Brief History Of Computers: Part I

The Dark Ages

The world today is very reliant on technology as a whole, ranging from the use of computers and technology in medicine and in the military to general office use and entertainment for all ages. Everyone is using computers so it’s hard to imagine a time when we lived without them, but surprisingly computers haven’t been around for long.

Computers, or what we believe to be conceptual computers date back to the industrial revolution, which is when the computer era really took off, but these ‘computers’ were not like the computers we know today.

The Analytical Engine

Charles Babbage conceived the idea of The Analytical Engine in 1834, during the industrial revolution. The Analytical Engine dwarfs the Difference Engine which Babbage designed a few years earlier.  This machine is regarded as an ancestral computer of modern electronic computers as the design on this machine possesses many of the essential features of the modern general purpose computer.

I

Sadly Babbage never completed building the machine, mainly due to Victorian engineering and their lack of development in producing parts with sufficient precision. However in 1985 the Science Museum launched a project to build The Analytical Engine from the original designs.  

Colossus

World War II greatly increased the production and invention of computers.  The need for intelligent computers for code breaking meant that the development of machines was greatly improved. Developed and used by British codebreakers in 1944 Colossus was the world’s first electronic digital computer that was programmable. This huge computer was used to decipher German messages in WWII. 

A massively important and influential machine impressively helped win the war against Hitler by breaking the Enigma code, due to its innovative design and programmable system.

SAGE
After the Second World War, new technology was still being invented and used. In 1954 SAGE (Semi-Automatic Ground Environment)  a computerised air defense system was designed to track radar data in realtime. 

 This huge machine was used by the Air Force weighed 300 tons and took up a whole floor of a concrete blockhouse!

IBM system/360

In 1964 the IBM system/360 was created. A machine that took up a whole office space was part of a family of interchangeable computers was the first to complete a range of applications, small to large, commercial to scientific. Users were able to change features without having to make software updates. 

Higher end models were used in NASA’s Apollo missions aswell as air traffic control systems.

DEC PDP-8

1965 brought the production of the first minicomputer.  A very important invention as the transiston from room sized computers to something that would fit on a desk in an office brings about the development of the modern computer.

 Needless to say this computer was very successful and sold over 50,000 units upon its release. 

References:

Babbage: Analytical Engine

•       http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/onlinestuff/stories/babbage.aspx
•         http://www.computerhistory.org/babbage/history/

Colossus

•       http://www.princeton.edu/~achaney/tmve/wiki100k/docs/Colossus_computer.html
•       http://www.codesandciphers.org.uk/lorenz/colossus.htm

SAGE

•        http://content.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1956593_2029014,00.html

IBM system/360

•       http://content.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1956593_2029016,00.html

DEC PDP-8

•     http://content.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1956593_2029019,00.html

Week 2

It's week 2 and perspective is a lot easier and better in my drawings. 
Drawing the archway this week was more problematic than I thought. From the pavement the horizon line is practically invisible making perspective quite a challenge. 

I went back to the archway today and finished the thumbnails, which turned out alright, although could be better. 

Selection of smaller thumbnails

A larger thumbnail

By using the thumbnails for reference the final drawing should be much better and more detailed with more accurate perspective. 

The Dalek Project

Being set the Dalek project wasn't too nervewrecking at first, however when it came to really trying to get the model to look like one it proved more difficult than I first anticipated. 

This was my god knows what attempt, probably the 5th or 6th at a guess

Not amazing in the slightest but this was the final outcome for the week.

After going to the gurus meeting and seeing how they use the software I will most likely re do this model and make it much better and use a lot of the tips and tricks they showed us. 

Week 1

The first week has rolled around and I don't think I've ever sat outside on the ground for such a long time. 

Down at the canal, it was my first attempt at a decent drawing of any landscape ever, the single point perspective however.. escaped my mind completely until the second week, where I realised I actually need to use it properly. 

These were the first thumbnails for the canal: 

And the first final piece I produced: 

As you can see the single point perspective wasn't really happening, however after the second week I was much more capable of using it and produced some more accurate drawings. 

More thumbnails of the canal

The more detailed final piece

The Beginning

Introductions first. As you can tell from the About Me section my name is Amanda Bruce and I've recently started Game Art Design at De Montfort University.

I come from a fine art background, so from doing Fine Art for A Level to using 3ds Max has been a big step up for me. This has come with its upsides and downsides. Using a new software for pretty much the first time is obviously difficult, but being 3ds max its temperamental  nature makes it even more frustrating. However as I'm getting used to using it and navigating around the interface it's becoming more fun (not sure how long that's going to last)

Going back to fine art, the drawing sessions, outdoors aswell as the life drawing are very interesting and I'm already learning new techniques which I was never taught. Having said this I can see my work improving with each session which is amazing. 

It's going to be a stressful and busy 3 years full of lots of tears over drawings, modelling, unwrapping and texturing not to mention the unbearable heat in the computer labs and life drawing room, but it's all going to be worth it.