Operating Softwares

What is an operating system? An operating system is the program that manages all the other programs of a computerized electronic device after it has been loaded into the device. The other programs are referred to as application programs.

These programs make use of the operating system by requesting services through a defined application program interface. Usually, users can directly interact with the operating system through an interface referred to as a command language or a graphical user interface.

Operating System performs various services in their applications:

With a multitasking operating system several programs run at the same time. The operating system determines which applications should run, what order and how much time should be allowed for each application.

It manages the sharing of internal memory among multiple applications. It handles input and output to and from attached hardware devices, such as hard disks, printers, and dial-up ports. It sends messages to each application or interactive user (or to a system operator) about the status of operation and any errors that may have occurred.

It can offload the management of what are called batch jobs (for example, printing) so that the initiating application is freed from this work.

On computers that can provide parallel processing, an operating system can manage how to divide the program so that it runs on more than one processor at a time.

All major computer platforms (hardware and software) require and sometimes include an operating system. Linux, Windows 2000, VMS, OS/400, AIX, and z/OS are all examples of operating systems.