What are the characteristics of micro, mini and super computer?  

well
Microcomputer/Network Specialists administer networks for an agency and provide support services for its users. Positions in this series work under technical supervision or general administrative direction to provide network planning, design, modification, implementation, security and administration.
Distinguishin g Characteristics:
Microcompute r/Network Specialist II represents the advanced proficiency network administrator.
Microcomputer/ Network Specialists' duties emphasize administration of microcomputer networks and are oriented toward providing microcomputer hardware and software support services to end-users.

Mini Computer :
When the term "minicomputer" initially was coined it denoted a physically small, low-cost computer using available technology and designed to perform a specific function. Usage of these devices was limited mainly to the laboratory, certain process-dependent industrial tasks, and special-purpose computational problems. Today, the minicomputer is no longer limited to such systems. However, not all computing specialists, library systems analysts, and librarians realize that the situation is rapidly changing and will continue to do so. Sometimes the feelings one experiences when discussing mini- computers, particularly as independent processors, may be conveyed by the following verse : Automation Is Vexation, Quarternions are bad; Analysis Situs Is only detritus I wonder: Have I been had? 1 The misconceptions which were based on the qualities of minicomputers until the last few years were: 1. slow instruction execution time and cycle time, 2. small memory with lack of expansion, 3. lack of peripheral equipment, 4. lack of peripheral device interfaces, 5. low reliability and unsatisfactory maintenance services, 6. poor programming instruction sets, 7. lack of vendor-supplied software, 8. greater programming difficulty, 9. lack of character addressability, 10. lack of hardware multiply and divide, and 1 1 . image as front-end processors requiring large host computers for file updating and output processing. This paper seeks to dispel these misconceptions in the broad sense, although one can see that individual minicomputers have specific strengths and weaknesses dependent upon the end application use. The minicomputers considered here are machines available currently and developed in the last two to three years.
Super Computer:
The largest computers are supercomputers. They are the most powerful, the most expensive, and the fastest. They are capable of processing trillions of instructions per second. Examples of users of these computers are governmental agencies, such as the IRS, the National Weather Service, and the National Defense Agency. Also, they are used in the making of movies, space exploration, and the design of many other machines. The Cray supercomputer is nicknamed "Bubbles", because of its bubbling coolant liquids. Cray supercomputers, the first of which was invented by Seymour Cray, now maintain 75 percent of the supercomputer market. Supercomputers are used for tasks that require mammoth data manipulation.

Microcomputer s can be divided into two groups -- personal computers and workstations. Workstations are specialized computers that approach the speed of mainframes. Often microcomputers are connected to networks of other computers. The price of a microcomputer varies greatly from less than $1000 to several thousand dollars, depending on the capacity and features of the computer. Microcomputers make up the vast majority of computers.

Answered by jaivir , an ibibo Master, at 12:44 PM on June 11, 2008

Hi;
Most of those terms are irrelavent nowdays but basically, the distinguishing features are as follows:

The term originated during the early years of computing and referred to the large mechanical assembly that held the central processor and input/output complex. Later the term was used to distinguish high-end commercial machines from less powerful units which were often contained in smaller packages. Today, this term almost exclusively refers to IBM System z9 mainframes, the lineal descendants of the System/360.

Minicomputer is a largely obsolete term for a class of multi-user computers which make up the middle range of the computing spectrum, in between the largest multi-user systems (traditionally, mainframe computers) and the smallest single-user systems (microcomputers or personal computers). More modern terms for such machines include midrange systems (common in IBM parlance), workstations (common in Sun Microsystems and general UNIX/Linux parlance), and servers.

Although there is no rigid definition, a microcomputer (sometimes shortened to micro) is most often taken to mean a computer with a microprocessor as its CPU. Another general characteristic of these computers is that they occupy physically small amounts of space. Although the terms are not synonymous, many microcomputers are also personal computers (in the generic sense) and vice versa.

A supercomputer is a computer that leads the world in terms of processing capacity, particularly speed of calculation, at the time of its introduction. The term "Super Computing" was first used by New York World newspaper in 1920 to refer to large custom-built tabulators IBM made for Columbia University.

Answered by kishore , an ibibo Master, at 1:44 PM on June 11, 2008

well
Microcomputer/Network Specialists administer networks for an agency and provide support services for its users. Positions in this series work under technical supervision or general administrative direction to provide network planning, design, modification, implementation, security and administration.
Distinguishin g Characteristics:
Microcompute r/Network Specialist II represents the advanced proficiency network administrator.
Microcomputer/ Network Specialists' duties emphasize administration of microcomputer networks and are oriented toward providing microcomputer hardware and software support services to end-users.

Mini Computer :
When the term "minicomputer" initially was coined it denoted a physically small, low-cost computer using available technology and designed to perform a specific function. Usage of these devices was limited mainly to the laboratory, certain process-dependent industrial tasks, and special-purpose computational problems. Today, the minicomputer is no longer limited to such systems. However, not all computing specialists, library systems analysts, and librarians realize that the situation is rapidly changing and will continue to do so. Sometimes the feelings one experiences when discussing mini- computers, particularly as independent processors, may be conveyed by the following verse : Automation Is Vexation, Quarternions are bad; Analysis Situs Is only detritus I wonder: Have I been had? 1 The misconceptions which were based on the qualities of minicomputers until the last few years were: 1. slow instruction execution time and cycle time, 2. small memory with lack of expansion, 3. lack of peripheral equipment, 4. lack of peripheral device interfaces, 5. low reliability and unsatisfactory maintenance services, 6. poor programming instruction sets, 7. lack of vendor-supplied software, 8. greater programming difficulty, 9. lack of character addressability, 10. lack of hardware multiply and divide, and 1 1 . image as front-end processors requiring large host computers for file updating and output processing. This paper seeks to dispel these misconceptions in the broad sense, although one can see that individual minicomputers have specific strengths and weaknesses dependent upon the end application use. The minicomputers considered here are machines available currently and developed in the last two to three years.
Super Computer:
The largest computers are supercomputers. They are the most powerful, the most expensive, and the fastest. They are capable of processing trillions of instructions per second. Examples of users of these computers are governmental agencies, such as the IRS, the National Weather Service, and the National Defense Agency. Also, they are used in the making of movies, space exploration, and the design of many other machines. The Cray supercomputer is nicknamed "Bubbles", because of its bubbling coolant liquids. Cray supercomputers, the first of which was invented by Seymour Cray, now maintain 75 percent of the supercomputer market. Supercomputers are used for tasks that require mammoth data manipulation.

Microcomputer s can be divided into two groups -- personal computers and workstations. Workstations are specialized computers that approach the speed of mainframes. Often microcomputers are connected to networks of other computers. The price of a microcomputer varies greatly from less than $1000 to several thousand dollars, depending on the capacity and features of the computer. Microcomputers make up the vast majority of computers.

Answered by Uttam , an ibibo Master, at 2:07 PM on June 11, 2008

well
Microcomputer/Network Specialists administer networks for an agency and provide support services for its users. Positions in this series work under technical supervision or general administrative direction to provide network planning, design, modification, implementation, security and administration.
Distinguishin g Characteristics:
Microcompute r/Network Specialist II represents the advanced proficiency network administrator.
Microcomputer/ Network Specialists' duties emphasize administration of microcomputer networks and are oriented toward providing microcomputer hardware and software support services to end-users.

Mini Computer :
When the term "minicomputer" initially was coined it denoted a physically small, low-cost computer using available technology and designed to perform a specific function. Usage of these devices was limited mainly to the laboratory, certain process-dependent industrial tasks, and special-purpose computational problems. Today, the minicomputer is no longer limited to such systems. However, not all computing specialists, library systems analysts, and librarians realize that the situation is rapidly changing and will continue to do so. Sometimes the feelings one experiences when discussing mini- computers, particularly as independent processors, may be conveyed by the following verse : Automation Is Vexation, Quarternions are bad; Analysis Situs Is only detritus I wonder: Have I been had? 1 The misconceptions which were based on the qualities of minicomputers until the last few years were: 1. slow instruction execution time and cycle time, 2. small memory with lack of expansion, 3. lack of peripheral equipment, 4. lack of peripheral device interfaces, 5. low reliability and unsatisfactory maintenance services, 6. poor programming instruction sets, 7. lack of vendor-supplied software, 8. greater programming difficulty, 9. lack of character addressability, 10. lack of hardware multiply and divide, and 1 1 . image as front-end processors requiring large host computers for file updating and output processing. This paper seeks to dispel these misconceptions in the broad sense, although one can see that individual minicomputers have specific strengths and weaknesses dependent upon the end application use. The minicomputers considered here are machines available currently and developed in the last two to three years.
Super Computer:
The largest computers are supercomputers. They are the most powerful, the most expensive, and the fastest. They are capable of processing trillions of instructions per second. Examples of users of these computers are governmental agencies, such as the IRS, the National Weather Service, and the National Defense Agency. Also, they are used in the making of movies, space exploration, and the design of many other machines. The Cray supercomputer is nicknamed "Bubbles", because of its bubbling coolant liquids. Cray supercomputers, the first of which was invented by Seymour Cray, now maintain 75 percent of the supercomputer market. Supercomputers are used for tasks that require mammoth data manipulation.

Microcomputer s can be divided into two groups -- personal computers and workstations. Workstations are specialized computers that approach the speed of mainframes. Often microcomputers are connected to networks of other computers. The price of a microcomputer varies greatly from less than $1000 to several thousand dollars, depending on the capacity and features of the computer. Microcomputers make up the vast majority of computers

Answered by Arti singh , an ibibo Specialist, at 2:13 PM on June 11, 2008

A microcomputer is a computer with a microprocessor as its central processing unit. Another general characteristic of these computers is that they occupy physically small amounts of space when compared to mainframe and minicomputers. Many microcomputers (when equipped with a keyboard and screen for input and output) are also personal computers.

Minicomputer (colloquially, mini) is a largely obsolete term for a class of multi-user computers that lies in the middle range of the computing spectrum, in between the largest multi-user systems (mainframe computers) and the smallest single-user systems (microcomputers or personal computers). Formerly this class formed a distinct group with its own hardware and operating systems notably having smaller address space (notice the cited numbers of bits in a data word, ranging from 8 to 24 bits commonly around 16-bits). While the distinction between mainframe computers and smaller computers remains fairly clear, contemporary middle-range computers are not well differentiated from personal computers, being typically just a more powerful but still compatible version of a personal computer. More modern terms for minicomputer-type machines include midrange systems (IBM parlance), workstations (Sun Microsystems and general UNIX/Linux parlance), and servers.

A supercomputer is a computer that is considered at the time of its introduction to be at the frontline in terms of processing capacity, particularly speed of calculation. The term "Super Computing" was first used by New York World newspaper in 1929[1] to refer to large custom-built tabulators that IBM had made for Columbia University.

Supercomputers introduced in the 1960s were designed primarily by Seymour Cray at Control Data Corporation (CDC), and led the market into the 1970s until Cray left to form his own company, Cray Research. He then took over the supercomputer market with his new designs, holding the top spot in supercomputing for five years (1985–1990). Cray, himself, never used the word "supercomputer"; a little-remembered fact is that he only recognized the word "computer". In the 1980s a large number of smaller competitors entered the market, in a parallel to the creation of the minicomputer market a decade earlier, but many of these disappeared in the mid-1990s "supercomputer market crash". Today, supercomputers are typically one-of-a-kind custom designs produced by "traditional" companies such as IBM and HP, who had purchased many of the 1980s companies to gain their experience.

Supercomputers are used for highly calculation-intensive tasks such as problems involving quantum mechanical physics, weather forecasting, climate research (including research into global warming), molecular modeling (computing the structures and properties of chemical compounds, biological macromolecules, polymers, and crystals), physical simulations (such as simulation of airplanes in wind tunnels, simulation of the detonation of nuclear weapons, and research into nuclear fusion), cryptanalysis, and the like. Major universities, military agencies and scientific research laboratories are heavy users.

A particular class of problems, known as Grand Challenge problems, are problems whose full solution requires semi-infinite computing resources.

Relevant here is the distinction between capability computing and capacity computing, as defined by Graham et al. Capability computing is typically thought of as using the maximum computing power to solve a large problem in the shortest amount of time. Often a capability system is able to solve a problem of a size or complexity that no other computer can. Capacity computing in contrast is typically thought of as using efficient cost-effective computing power to solve somewhat large problems or many small problems or to prepare for a run on a capability system.

Answered by Hem@nt , an ibibo Master, at 2:28 PM on June 11, 2008

minicomputer - a midsize, multiuser computer capable of handling more input and output than a PC but with less processing power and storage than a mainframe. also called a midrange computer.
Personal computer (micro computer) is the most common type of computer found in an office, classroom, or home. the PC is designed to fit on a desk and be used by one person at a time; also called a microcomputer.
supercomputer - the largest, fastest and most powerful type of computer. supercomputers are often used for scientific and engineering applications and for processing complex models that use very large data sets

Answered by Nishu's , an ibibo Master, at 4:51 PM on June 11, 2008

well cancer, The term originated during the early years of computing and referred to the large mechanical assembly that held the central processor and input/output complex. Later the term was used to distinguish high-end commercial machines from less powerful units which were often contained in smaller packages. Today, this term almost exclusively refers to IBM System z9 mainframes, the lineal descendants of the System/360.

Minicomputer is a largely obsolete term for a class of multi-user computers which make up the middle range of the computing spectrum, in between the largest multi-user systems (traditionally, mainframe computers) and the smallest single-user systems (microcomputers or personal computers). More modern terms for such machines include midrange systems (common in IBM parlance), workstations (common in Sun Microsystems and general UNIX/Linux parlance), and servers.

Although there is no rigid definition, a microcomputer (sometimes shortened to micro) is most often taken to mean a computer with a microprocessor as its CPU. Another general characteristic of these computers is that they occupy physically small amounts of space. Although the terms are not synonymous, many microcomputers are also personal computers (in the generic sense) and vice versa.

A supercomputer is a computer that leads the world in terms of processing capacity, particularly speed of calculation, at the time of its introduction. The term "Super Computing" was first used by New York World newspaper in 1920 to refer to large custom-built tabulators IBM made for Columbia University.

Answered by Romi , an ibibo Master, at 4:57 PM on June 11, 2008

Most of those terms are irrelavent nowdays but basically, the distinguishing features are as follows:

Mainframes are computers used mainly by large organizations for critical applications, typically bulk data processing such as census, industry/consumer statistics, ERP, and financial transaction processing.

The term originated during the early years of computing and referred to the large mechanical assembly that held the central processor and input/output complex. Later the term was used to distinguish high-end commercial machines from less powerful units which were often contained in smaller packages. Today, this term almost exclusively refers to IBM System z9 mainframes, the lineal descendants of the System/360.

Minicomputer is a largely obsolete term for a class of multi-user computers which make up the middle range of the computing spectrum, in between the largest multi-user systems (traditionally, mainframe computers) and the smallest single-user systems (microcomputers or personal computers). More modern terms for such machines include midrange systems (common in IBM parlance), workstations (common in Sun Microsystems and general UNIX/Linux parlance), and servers.

Although there is no rigid definition, a microcomputer (sometimes shortened to micro) is most often taken to mean a computer with a microprocessor as its CPU. Another general characteristic of these computers is that they occupy physically small amounts of space. Although the terms are not synonymous, many microcomputers are also personal computers (in the generic sense) and vice versa.

A supercomputer is a computer that leads the world in terms of processing capacity, particularly speed of calculation, at the time of its introduction. The term "Super Computing" was first used by New York World newspaper in 1920 to refer to large custom-built tabulators IBM made for Columbia University.



Source(s):
http://en.wikipedia .org/wiki/Mainframe_c...
http://en .wikipedia.org/wiki/Mini-comput...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Micro -compu...
http://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/Super_compu...

Answered by Mohd Farooq , an ibibo Master, at 6:14 PM on June 11, 2008

A microcomputer is a complete computer on a smaller scale and is generally a synonym for the more common term, personal computer or PC , a computer designed for an individual. A microcomputer contains a microprocessor (a central processing unit on a microchip ), memory in the form of read-only memory and random access memory , I/O ports and a bus or system of interconnecting wires, housed in a unit that is usually called a motherboard .

In an ascending hierarchy of general computer sizes, we find:

* An embedded systems programming computer, which is embedded in something and doesn't support direct human interaction but nevertheless meets all the other criteria of a microcomputer
* Microcomputer
* workstation , as used to mean a more powerful personal computer for special applications
* minicomputer , now restyled a "mid-range server"
* mainframe or mainframe computer, which is now usually referred to by its manufacturers as a "large server"
* Supercomputer, formerly almost a synonym for "Cray supercomputer" but now meaning a very large server and sometimes including a system of computers using parallel processing
* A parallel processing system is a system of interconnected computers that work on the same application together, sharing tasks that can be performed concurrently

A minicomputer, a term no longer much used, is a computer of a size intermediate between a microcomputer and a mainframe. Typically, minicomputers have been stand-alone computers (computer systems with attached terminals and other devices) sold to small and mid-size businesses for general business applications and to large enterprises for department-level operations. In recent years, the minicomputer has evolved into the "mid-range server" and is part of a network. IBM's AS/400e is a good example.

In an ascending hierarchy of general computer sizes, we find:

* The embedded systems programming computer, which is embedded in something and doesn't support direct human interaction but nevertheless meets all the other criteria of a microcomputer
* The microcomputer
* The workstation, as used to mean a more powerful personal computer for special applications
* The minicomputer
* The cluster, which is often several microcomputers or larger computers that share a workload and back each other up
* The mainframe or mainframe computer, which is now usually referred to by its manufacturers as a "large server"
* The supercomputer, formerly almost a synonym for "Cray supercomputer" but now meaning a very large server and sometimes including a system of computers using parallel processing
* The parallel processing system, which is a system of interconnected computers that work on the same application together, sharing tasks that can be performed concurrently

A supercomputer is a computer that performs at or near the currently highest operational rate for computers. A supercomputer is typically used for scientific and engineering applications that must handle very large databases or do a great amount of computation (or both). At any given time, there are usually a few well-publicized supercomputers that operate at the very latest and always incredible speeds. The term is also sometimes applied to far slower (but still impressively fast) computers. Most supercomputers are really multiple computers that perform parallel processing. In general, there are two parallel processing approaches: symmetric multiprocessing (SMP) and massively parallel processing (MPP).

Perhaps the best-known builder of supercomputers has been Cray Research, now a part of Silicon Graphics. Some supercomputers are at "supercomputer center," usually university research centers, some of which, in the United States, are interconnected on an Internet backbone known as vBNS or NSFNet. This network is the found

Answered by Nagendra , an ibibo Master, at 7:14 PM on June 11, 2008

well, Microcomputer/Network Specialists administer networks for an agency and provide support services for its users. Positions in this series work under technical supervision or general administrative direction to provide network planning, design, modification, implementation, security and administration.
Distinguishin g Characteristics:
Microcompute r/Network Specialist II represents the advanced proficiency network administrator.
Microcomputer/ Network Specialists' duties emphasize administration of microcomputer networks and are oriented toward providing microcomputer hardware and software support services to end-users.

Mini Computer :
When the term "minicomputer" initially was coined it denoted a physically small, low-cost computer using available technology and designed to perform a specific function. Usage of these devices was limited mainly to the laboratory, certain process-dependent industrial tasks, and special-purpose computational problems. Today, the minicomputer is no longer limited to such systems. However, not all computing specialists, library systems analysts, and librarians realize that the situation is rapidly changing and will continue to do so. Sometimes the feelings one experiences when discussing mini- computers, particularly as independent processors, may be conveyed by the following verse : Automation Is Vexation, Quarternions are bad; Analysis Situs Is only detritus I wonder: Have I been had? 1 The misconceptions which were based on the qualities of minicomputers until the last few years were: 1. slow instruction execution time and cycle time, 2. small memory with lack of expansion, 3. lack of peripheral equipment, 4. lack of peripheral device interfaces, 5. low reliability and unsatisfactory maintenance services, 6. poor programming instruction sets, 7. lack of vendor-supplied software, 8. greater programming difficulty, 9. lack of character addressability, 10. lack of hardware multiply and divide, and 1 1 . image as front-end processors requiring large host computers for file updating and output processing. This paper seeks to dispel these misconceptions in the broad sense, although one can see that individual minicomputers have specific strengths and weaknesses dependent upon the end application use. The minicomputers considered here are machines available currently and developed in the last two to three years.
Super Computer:
The largest computers are supercomputers. They are the most powerful, the most expensive, and the fastest. They are capable of processing trillions of instructions per second. Examples of users of these computers are governmental agencies, such as the IRS, the National Weather Service, and the National Defense Agency. Also, they are used in the making of movies, space exploration, and the design of many other machines. The Cray supercomputer is nicknamed "Bubbles", because of its bubbling coolant liquids. Cray supercomputers, the first of which was invented by Seymour Cray, now maintain 75 percent of the supercomputer market. Supercomputers are used for tasks that require mammoth data manipulation.

Answered by Saurabh , an ibibo Master, at 5:57 AM on June 12, 2008