The traditional ‘Dutch’ windmill had proliferated to the extent of about 100,000 machines throughout Europe at their peak in the late 19th centur y. These machines preceded electricity supply and were indeed wind-powered mills used for grinding grain. Use of the wind for water pumping also became common. The indmills were always attended, sometimes inhabited and largely manually controlled. They were also characterised by direct use of the mechanical energy generated on the spot. They were integrated within the community, designed for frequent replacement of cer tain components and effi ciency was of little importance.
In contrast, the function of a modern power-generating wind turbine is to generate high-quality, network frequency electricity. Each wind turbine must function as an automatically controlled independent ‘mini-power station’. It is unthinkable for a modern wind turbine to be permanently attended, and uneconomic for it to be frequently maintained. The development of the microprocessor has played a crucial role in enabling cost-effective wind technology. A modern wind turbine is required to work unattended, with low maintenance,
continuously for in excess of 20 years.
http://www.wind-energy-the-facts.org/documents/download/Chapter1.pdf
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