The Mercury was an early commercial computer from the mid-1950s, built by Ferranti as the successor to the Ferranti Mark 1, adding a floating-point unit for improved performance and increasing reliability by replacing Williams tube memory with core memory and using more solid-state components. It used roughly 2,000 vacuum tubes and 2,000 germanium diodes, and nineteen Mercuries were sold before Ferranti moved on to newer designs.
Facts
SignificanceIt was the successor to the Ferranti Mark 1, adding a floating-point unit for improved performance, and increased reliability by replacing the Williams tube memory with core memory and using more solid-state components. 1 FAQs
How many Ferranti Mercury computers were built and when was the first delivered?
Nineteen were built eventually and the first was delivered in August 1957.
The first of an eventual 19 Mercury computers was delivered in August 1957.
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In Field
Source Wikipedia: Ferranti Mercury
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Also in Business Atlas: the developer of this subject.
Sources
1. Wikipedia: Ferranti Mercury
Wikimedia FoundationCommercial version: Mercury section, first-delivery sentence
The first of an eventual 19 Mercury computers was delivered in August 1957.
Lead paragraph, sentence on succeeding the Mark 1 with a floating-point unit and core memory
It was the successor to the Ferranti Mark 1, adding a floating-point unit for improved performance, and increased reliability by replacing the Williams tube memory with core memory and using more solid-state components.
Lead sentence
Mercury was an early commercial computer from the mid-1950s built by Ferranti.
View the Source Wikidata: Ferranti Mercury
- Wikidata Q5445241, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)
- In Group: Ferranti Computers, Wikidata instance-of computer
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