The Mainframe Computer

The computer most commonly used in business is the mainframe computer. A mainframe is a large, general-purpose computer capable of performing many tasks simultaneously, while permitting hundreds, even thousands, of people to use it at the same time. It is made up of many cabinets filled with electronic gear and connected to the main computer cabinet, which led to its being called a mainframe.

In 1964, after spending four years and $5 billion on research and development, International Business Machines (IBM) introduced the System/360 mainframe computer. Bob Evans, the project manager, called it the “you-bet-your-company computer”. Thomas J. Watson, Jr., IBM’s chief executive, introduced it himself on April 7, 1964; he called it the most important product in the company’s history. It became the most popular mainframe in computer history and set an early standard for the industry.

Mainframes dominated the corporate and government computing market for many years. However, in the 1980s people found many uses for the personal computer in business, and it became obvious that the mainframe needn’t be used for all computing tasks. In fact, many tasks have been shifted off the mainframe and onto minis and personal computers. The mainframe is still an essential component; however, it is commonly a storehouse for vast amounts of data that organizations need to operate properly.

Yet this change has led to a dramatic shift in how computers are viewed and used. In the past, computers of all sizes were viewed as discrete machines, each separate and unable to connect with others. Today, it is more common to think of the computer system as an electronic infrastructure for the business, not unlike the human nervous system. Today, we think far less about the type of computer we’re using, and far more about the resources and the information we need to do our work.

The Supercomputer

The supercomputer is a special type of computer that is commonly used to perform a single, very complex task that requires massive processing power. For example, a supercomputer may be given the task of analyzing how a chemical carcinogen attaches itself to a DNA molecule, a task that might take hours, days, or even weeks to compute. Supercomputers are the most powerful computers on earth. They are most often used in experimental government and scientific research facilities such as the Lawrence Livermore Labs in California and Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. They are also used in military weapons research, atmospheric and earth science research, and natural resource exploration.

A supercomputer must have its own installation platform, plus thousands of dollars worth of air-conditioning plumbing. It must be tested for months before it can be used. Once ready, the entire setup is put in a semi trailer truck and moved to the site.

In 1957, William Norris and some other engineers formed a new company, Control Data Corporation in Minneapolis, to build supercomputers. In 1963, CDC introduced what was then the most powerful computer on earth, the CDC 6600. It was designed by a man named Seymour Cray.

Seymour Cray is probably the most brilliant supercomputer architect of our times. He left CDC in 1972 to start Cray Research, Inc., and built his own supercomputer, the Cray-1. Today, Cray Research, Inc., is the leading supercomputer maker and CDC is no longer in the supercomputer business. IBM has entered the market, and Japan's Fujitsu is a major competitor. Seymour Cray has gone on to form Cray Computer Corporation, where he and a team of engineers are building the next-generation supercomputer, the Cray-3. The market for supercomputers has grown beyond the research laboratory, as many businesses have found uses for supercomputers as well.

To get an idea how fast a supercomputer is, compare how long it took each of the following computers to perform a particular calculation:

■ IBM PC: 35 hours.

■ VAX mini: 7 seconds.

■ Cray supercomputer: less than 2 seconds.