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. Many microcomputers are also personal computers (in the generic sense) and vice versa. A microcomputer is the smallest, least expensive of all computers. Originally, it had rather limited capabilities compared to larger computers, but today microcomputers are more powerful than early mainframes. Perhaps the best definition of a micro is "any computer that you can pick up an carry". Don't be misled by the micro prefix - you can pick up and carry some very powerful computers! A micro computer is also called a personal computer or PC. The label PC was associated with microcomputers because they were originally designed for use by one person at a time.
The IBM PC in the early days, this PC exists somewhere around Aug 11, 1981. Looks like this PC is 7-8 years older than all five of us :)
A 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. Until the late 1960s all computers were mainframe computers and they were expensive -too expensive for all but the largest companies. About that time smaller, but slightly "watered down" computers were introduced that were affordable to smaller companies. The industry dubbed these small computers minicomputers or simply minis. The name stuck, even though some of today's minis are many times as powerful as the largest mainframes of the early 1970s.
OKITAC-4300C system, a classic mini computer system from Japan
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. A mainframe computer is generally found in a special computer room where environmental factors such as temperature, humidity, and dust are closely monitored. Because of the computer's cost and the value of information stored there, these rooms usually have a security system allowing only authorized personnel to enter.
The sleek-looking IBM System z10 Mainframe
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. Supercomputers are used for highly calculation-intensive tasks such as problems involving quantum physics, weather forecasting, climate research, 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). A particular class of problems, known as Grand Challenge problems , are problems whose full solution requires semi-infinite computing resources.
IBM Roadrunner Supercomputer, which is currently the world's fastest supercomputer
Source(s):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microcomputer
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