Computing - Definition and Overview

Originally, the word computing was synonymous with counting and calculating, and a computer was a person who computes. Since the advent of the electronic computer, it has come to also mean the operation and usage of these machines, the electrical processes carried out within the computer hardware itself, and the theoretical concepts governing them (computer science).

Science and theory

• Computer science
• Theory of computation
• Computational models
• DBLP May 2004: over 500 000 bibliographic entries on computer science

Hardware

See information processor for a high-level block diagram.

• Computer hardware
• Computer network
• Computer system
• History of computing hardware

Instruction-level taxonomies

After the commoditization of memory, attention turned to optimizing CPU performance at the instruction level. Various methods of speeding up the fetch-execute cycle include:

• CISC
• RISC
• Superscalar
• VLIW

Software

• Software engineering
• Computer programming
• Software patent

History of computing

• History of computing hardware
• Punch Card
• Unit record equipment
• IBM 700/7000 series
• IBM 1400 series
• System/360
• Early IBM disk storage

Business computing

• Accounting software
• Computer-aided design
• Computer-aided manufacturing
• Computer-assisted dispatch
• Customer relationship management
• Data warehouse
• Decision support system
• Electronic data processing
• Enterprise resource planning
• Geographic information system
• Management information system
• Material resource planning
• Strategic enterprise management
• Supply chain management

Human factors

• Accessible computing
• Human-computer interaction

Computer security

• Cryptology - cryptography - information theory
• Cracking - demon dialing - Hacking - war dialing - war driving
• Social engineering - Dumpster diving
• Physical security - Black bag job
• Computer insecurity
• Computer surveillance
• defensive programming
• malware
• security engineering

Data

Numeric data

• integral data types - bit, byte, etc.
• real data types:
  • Floating point (Single precision, Double precision, etc.)
  • Fixed point
  • Rational number
• Decimal
  • Binary-coded decimal (BCD)
  • Excess-3 BCD (XS-3)
  • Biquinary-coded decimal
• representation: Binary - Octal - Decimal - Hexadecimal (hex)
• Computer mathematics - Computer numbering formats -

Character data

• storage: Character - String - Text - Plain text
  • representation: ASCII - Unicode - Multibyte - EBCDIC (Widecharacter, Multicharacter) - Fieldata - Baudot

Other data topics

• Data compression
• Digital signal processing
• Image processing
• Indexed
• Data management

Mechatronics

• Punch card
• Key punch
• Unit record equipment

Classes of computers

• Analog computer
• Calculator
• Desktop computer
• Desknote
• Digital computer
• Embedded computer
• Home computer
• Laptop
• Mainframe
• Minicomputer
• Microcomputer
• Personal computer
• Personal digital assistant (aka PDA, or Handheld computer)
• Server
• Supercomputer
• Tablet PC
• Video game console
• Workstation

Companies - current

• Apple Computer
• Dell
• Fujitsu
• Gateway Computers
• Hewlett-Packard
• IBM
• Microsoft
• Silicon Graphics
• Sun Microsystems
• Unisys

Companies - historic

• Acorn
• Bendix Corporation
• Bull
• Burroughs
• Compaq
• Control Data
• Cray
• Data General
• DEC
• Digital Research - a software company for the early microprocessor-based computers
• English Electric
• Ferranti
• General Electric
• Honeywell
  • ICL
• Leo
• Marconi
• Osborne
• Packard Bell
• Raytheon
• Royal McBee
• RCA
• Scientific Data Systems
• Sinclair Research
• Univac
• Varian
• Wang

Professional organizations

• Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)
• British Computer Society (BCS)
• Association for Survey Computing (ASC)
• Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), in particular the IEEE Computer Society
• International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC)

Standards organizations and consortia

• International Organization for Standardization (ISO)
• Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
• Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF)
• World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)

Miscellaneous

• List of computer term etymologies
• Load (computing)