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<p>and the development of new interactive <a href="page.php?w=application_software">application</a>s.</p>

<p><big>History</big></p>
<p><big>Batch processing</big></p>
<p>The earliest computers were extremely expensive devices, and very slow. Machines were typically dedicated to a particular set of tasks and operated by control panels, the operator manually entering small programs via switches one at a time. These programs might take hours to run. As computers increased in speed, <a href="page.php?w=Runtime_%28program_lifecycle_phase%29">run times</a> dropped, and</p><p>
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