Von Neumann architecture and the development of early operating systems

¶ … earliest computers were primitive and non-electrical, such as the ancient Greek and Incan mathematics devices and the punch card systems used during the Industrial Revolution. In the 1930s, mathematician John Louis von Neumann revolutionized the computer industry through his stored program concept and his creation of computer architecture. The von Neumann architecture remains the underlying structure of modern computers. Von Neumann noted that computers could be programmed to store code and data separately. Prior to his invention, each computer could only be used for one specific task, whereas von Neumann architecture permitted computers to become more versatile.

However, until the middle of the 20th century, all data and all code stored on computers was hardwired; there was no operating system. Furthermore, computers could only be used by one person at a time, performing one task at a time. To facilitate the use of these early computers, computer operators would enter pre-compiled data into the system. The need for shared functions such as the use of device drivers or complex mathematical string programs increased the need to develop an operating system that could handle multi-tasking and that could also be portable.

The earliest operating systems were developed in the 1950s and included FORTRAN and SAGE, which was a military weapons monitoring system. Batch systems were the next types of operating systems to be created, and batch systems also eliminated the need for professional computer operators because the operating system could schedule tasks and load programs.