ABSTRACT
This chapter looks at developments in computing and emphasis will be on developments and trends which on current showing would seem to be significant for the future. Dramatic advances in hardware have been responsible for the continued expansion of computers into our daily lives and for making many of the software advances practical. Conventional computers are fast, accurate, process only digital data and are poor at recognizing patterns. Neural computers, on the other hand, are slow, not always accurate and can handle analogue information. The interaction of two separate pieces of hardware does not necessarily imply the need for two separate computer systems on a network, one acting as client and the other as server. CD-ROM is used for the distribution of information to micro-computers rather than for storing information. One of the most active Artificial intelligence (AI) research areas is that of understanding how to program computers for learning and discovery.
