Operating System

Operating System

1. What is an Operating System?

   • An operating system (OS) is software that manages computer hardware and software resources and provides common services for computer programs.

2. How does it work?

   • The operating system acts as an interface between an application and the hardware. The user interacts with the hardware from "the other side". The operating system is a set of services which simplifies development of applications.

3. Types of Operating Systems

   • -. Real-time operating system (RTOS) : Real-time operating systems are used to control machinery, scientific instruments and industrial systems. An RTOS typically has very little user-interface capability, and no end-user utilities, since the system will be a "sealed box" when delivered for use.
     • -. Single-user, single task : As the name implies, this operating system is designed to manage the computer so that one user can effectively do one thing at a time.
       • -. Single-user, multi-tasking : This is the type of operating system most people use on their desktop and laptop computers today. Microsoft's Windows and Apple's MacOS platforms are both examples of operating systems that will let a single user have several programs in operation at the same time.
         • -. Multi-user : A multi-user operating system allows many different users to take advantage of the computer's resources simultaneously.

4. Operating System functions

   • It manages the hardware and software resources of the system.
     • It provides a stable, consistent way for applications to deal with the hardware without having to know all the details of the hardware. It manages the hardware and software resources of the system.

5. Operating System developments

   • Operating system developers have made the Internet the standard method for delivering crucial operating system updates and bug fixes.
     • Further, a process called NetBooting has streamlined the capability to move the working operating system of a standard consumer desktop computer -- kernel, user interface and all -- off of the machine it controls. NetBooting allows the operating system for one computer to be served over a network connection, by a remote computer connected anywhere in the network.
       • Linux, the operating system created and distributed according to the principles of open source, has had a significant impact on the operating system in general.