Final answer:
Personal computers are single-user devices known for their user-friendly interfaces, evolving from less accessible minicomputers to the widely used, graphics-based PCs of today.
Step-by-step explanation:
The personal computers are generally single-user PCs or workstations that provide a highly user-friendly interface to the end user. Unlike minicomputers, which support many users and have less computing capacity than mainframes, personal computers are designed for individual use.
These computers have evolved significantly over the years, from large, expensive machines used by the military and universities to the more accessible devices we know today. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, companies like Apple, Commodore, and Tandy began to market fully assembled personal computers, which soon flourished in businesses and private homes.
By 1984, with the introduction of the Apple Macintosh, personal computers started using graphic interfaces instead of standard code-based interfaces, which greatly enhanced their user-friendliness.
This design choice, which popularized graphic and icon-based user interfaces, became the standard for personal computing. As such, today's personal computers are equipped with powerful capabilities wrapped in a highly accessible, user-friendly package, facilitating a vast array of tasks from communication to complex calculations and entertainment.