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In a thread over the weekend someone asked the question Whats the difference between a console and a computer"
I supposed it may sound a bit silly but with the X-Box coming out with a hard drive and internet acces, and the DC can have a keyboard and mouse plugged in, the answer doesnt seem quite so straightfoward.
I've just got back from a talk about music piracy, and with the whole napster .mp3 thing computers were obviously brought into the conversation.
According to american laws a computer is something that can store more than one program in it. It has to be running one program while having acces to a number of others at the same time.
Im not quite sure what "a number of others" means exactly, im guessing just more than one. So from now on, unless console start running games from their hard drives, it should be relatively easy to distinguish between the two.
Hope that helps whoever it was.
I supposed it may sound a bit silly but with the X-Box coming out with a hard drive and internet acces, and the DC can have a keyboard and mouse plugged in, the answer doesnt seem quite so straightfoward.
I've just got back from a talk about music piracy, and with the whole napster .mp3 thing computers were obviously brought into the conversation.
According to american laws a computer is something that can store more than one program in it. It has to be running one program while having acces to a number of others at the same time.
Im not quite sure what "a number of others" means exactly, im guessing just more than one. So from now on, unless console start running games from their hard drives, it should be relatively easy to distinguish between the two.
Hope that helps whoever it was.
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Most modern hosehold appliances contain microprocessors. Even most washing machines require hardcoded programs to run efficently...
Which is the main reason why Real Times Systems programming is so popular at the moment...
However although they contain computer hardware, they objects themselves are not computers, they are Microwaves, Dishwashers, etc...
Computers originally people whos it was to do manual computations. With Babbidge as the worlds first automated computer designer, and Ada as the worlds first programmer (despite living before Babbidge)...
However... I'm digressing from point here... I was wondering what the difference between a PC (Personal Computer... not IBM) and a console are...
It strikes me that, internally, consoles are, and always have been PC's ...
They have the singular, primary CPU, RAM, a format for accepting data (input) and a format for outputting data (output)...
(whi was that German guy who originally came up with this schematic?)
And now that the newer Consoles are getting Hard Drives, Keyboards and Mice...
Surely they are PC proper? ...
An evolution they made without the help of Microsoft...
(although I say evolution... arnt we just seeing a repeat of the Consoles - Computers movement we saw back in the late 70's early 80's... from Atari, Intellivision to Vic20, Speccy, Dragon, et al.?)
(also does anybody remeber the MSX... Microsofts last games machine effort?)
As such... why the worry that consoles are going to turn all PC because of the XBox when they seem prefectly happy to do this anyway?
I can understand the concern that IBM architecture will be implemented.
However...
The IBM architecture is sound... its the instablility MSWindows that causes the problems...
Also..
Why would an IBM architecture be adoted? ... Despite is familiarity, Games developers have historically ignored the IBM PC as a games machine in favour of Spectrum/C64/Amiga/et al. In fact until recently the PC had generally been considered an ill fitting for games software.
Which is the main reason why Real Times Systems programming is so popular at the moment...
However although they contain computer hardware, they objects themselves are not computers, they are Microwaves, Dishwashers, etc...
Computers originally people whos it was to do manual computations. With Babbidge as the worlds first automated computer designer, and Ada as the worlds first programmer (despite living before Babbidge)...
However... I'm digressing from point here... I was wondering what the difference between a PC (Personal Computer... not IBM) and a console are...
It strikes me that, internally, consoles are, and always have been PC's ...
They have the singular, primary CPU, RAM, a format for accepting data (input) and a format for outputting data (output)...
(whi was that German guy who originally came up with this schematic?)
And now that the newer Consoles are getting Hard Drives, Keyboards and Mice...
Surely they are PC proper? ...
An evolution they made without the help of Microsoft...
(although I say evolution... arnt we just seeing a repeat of the Consoles - Computers movement we saw back in the late 70's early 80's... from Atari, Intellivision to Vic20, Speccy, Dragon, et al.?)
(also does anybody remeber the MSX... Microsofts last games machine effort?)
As such... why the worry that consoles are going to turn all PC because of the XBox when they seem prefectly happy to do this anyway?
I can understand the concern that IBM architecture will be implemented.
However...
The IBM architecture is sound... its the instablility MSWindows that causes the problems...
Also..
Why would an IBM architecture be adoted? ... Despite is familiarity, Games developers have historically ignored the IBM PC as a games machine in favour of Spectrum/C64/Amiga/et al. In fact until recently the PC had generally been considered an ill fitting for games software.
Ok, i just got out of lecture, except it wasnt a lecture.
It was an exam.
Which I failed.
But i managed to find out the difference some stuff. Firstly your microwave isnt a computer but it contains a microcontroller. The difference between a microcontroller and a and a microprocessor is that:
"A microprocessor has all storage and data transfer devices externally of the chip. A microcontroller has them all built into the chip. A microcontroller is generally a lot slower than a microproccessor."
So there you have it.
It was an exam.
Which I failed.
But i managed to find out the difference some stuff. Firstly your microwave isnt a computer but it contains a microcontroller. The difference between a microcontroller and a and a microprocessor is that:
"A microprocessor has all storage and data transfer devices externally of the chip. A microcontroller has them all built into the chip. A microcontroller is generally a lot slower than a microproccessor."
So there you have it.
True, i agree with you completely but the person wanted a way of distinguishing computers from next-gen consoles.
I think most people can tell the difference between their washing machine and an digital watch dont you.
If you want to get technical, none of the things you said are computers, they have inside them Microcontrollers, which is essentially a little computer all on one chip, in other words it has the processer and the RAM and some ROM and a couple of I/O ports all built into it.
It all depends how technical you want to get, and to be honest i cant be @r$sed tonight, i've got Embedded Control at uni tomorrow which deals with all this micro controller crap so i'll find out and let you know tomoorow night if you want?
I think most people can tell the difference between their washing machine and an digital watch dont you.
If you want to get technical, none of the things you said are computers, they have inside them Microcontrollers, which is essentially a little computer all on one chip, in other words it has the processer and the RAM and some ROM and a couple of I/O ports all built into it.
It all depends how technical you want to get, and to be honest i cant be @r$sed tonight, i've got Embedded Control at uni tomorrow which deals with all this micro controller crap so i'll find out and let you know tomoorow night if you want?
Technically a Games console IS a computer!
As is a microwave (computes the amount of time you enter in and cooks food for that length of time)
A radio computes radiowaves!
As is a microwave (computes the amount of time you enter in and cooks food for that length of time)
A radio computes radiowaves!
By that definiton computers are the same as consoles because consoles also compute to create a result.
I was trying to give a definition that would differentiate bewtween computers and consoles as this seems like it will increasingly more difficult to do in the future.
I was trying to give a definition that would differentiate bewtween computers and consoles as this seems like it will increasingly more difficult to do in the future.
Computer: An electronic device designed to compute codes and languages to create a result.
The first British computers were designed in the World Wars to decipher and translate German codes!
The first British computers were designed in the World Wars to decipher and translate German codes!
In a thread over the weekend someone asked the question Whats the difference between a console and a computer"
I supposed it may sound a bit silly but with the X-Box coming out with a hard drive and internet acces, and the DC can have a keyboard and mouse plugged in, the answer doesnt seem quite so straightfoward.
I've just got back from a talk about music piracy, and with the whole napster .mp3 thing computers were obviously brought into the conversation.
According to american laws a computer is something that can store more than one program in it. It has to be running one program while having acces to a number of others at the same time.
Im not quite sure what "a number of others" means exactly, im guessing just more than one. So from now on, unless console start running games from their hard drives, it should be relatively easy to distinguish between the two.
Hope that helps whoever it was.
I supposed it may sound a bit silly but with the X-Box coming out with a hard drive and internet acces, and the DC can have a keyboard and mouse plugged in, the answer doesnt seem quite so straightfoward.
I've just got back from a talk about music piracy, and with the whole napster .mp3 thing computers were obviously brought into the conversation.
According to american laws a computer is something that can store more than one program in it. It has to be running one program while having acces to a number of others at the same time.
Im not quite sure what "a number of others" means exactly, im guessing just more than one. So from now on, unless console start running games from their hard drives, it should be relatively easy to distinguish between the two.
Hope that helps whoever it was.
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