Topic: Introduction to operating system: ‘An operating system is a system software which may be viewed as an organized collection of software consisting of procedures for operating a computer and providing an environment for execution of programs. It acts as an interface between users and the hardware of a computer system. ‘An Operating System (OS) is a collection of programs that acts as an interface between a user ofa computer and the computer hardware. The purpose of an operating system is to provide an environment in which a user may execute the programs. Operating Systems are viewed as resource managers. The main resource is the computer hardware in the form of processors, storage, input/output devices, communication devices, and data. Some of the operating system functions are: implementing the uscr interface, sharing hardware among users, allowing users to share data among themselves, preventing users from interfering with one another, scheduling resources among users, facilitating input/output, recovering from errors, accounting for resource usage, facilitating parallel operations, organising data for secure and rapid access, and handling network communications. ‘An operating system is a control program. This program controls the execution of user programs to prevent errors and improper use of the computer. Operating systems exist because: they are a reasonable way to solve the problem of creating a usable computing system. The fundamental goal of a computer system is to execute user programs and solve user problems. ‘A computer’s operating system is a group of programs designed to serve two basic purposes: + To control the allocation and use of the computing system’s resources among the various users and tasks, and * To provide an interface between the computer hardware and the programmer that simplifies and makes feasible the creation, coding, debugging, and maintenance of application programs. An effective operating system should accomplish the following functions: ‘Should act as a command interpreter by providing a user friendly environment. Should facilitate communication with other users. Facilitate the directory/file creation along with the security option. Provide routines that handle the intricate details of /O programming, Provide access to compilers to translate programs from high-level languages to machine language"oT ASSUre that wher mere are Several active processes tn the Computer; each WII get Tar— and non-interfering access to the central processing unit for execution. * Take care of storage and device allocation. * Provide for long term storage of user information in the form of files, * Permit system resources to be shared among users when appropriate and be protected from unauthorised or mischievous intervention as necessary. Though systems programs such as editors and translators and the various utility programs (such as sort and file transfer program) are not usually considered part of the operating system, the operating system is responsible for providing access to these system resources. ‘The abstract view of the components of a computer system and the positioning of OS is shown in the Figure 1 Compiler Assembler Text editor Application programs Operating System Figure 1: Abstract View ofthe Components of Computer System Operating systems have been evolving over the years. We will briefly look at this development of the ‘operating systems with respect to the evolution of the hardware / architecture of the computer systems in this section. Since operating systems have historically been closely tied with the architecture of the ‘computers on which they run, we will look at successive generations of computers to see what their operating systems were like. We may not exactly map the operating systems generations to the generations of the computer, but roughly it provides the idea behind them. We can roughly divide them into five distinct generations that are characterised by hardware component technology, software development, and mode of delivery of computer services.Tople: DOS: DOS (Disk Operating System) was the first widely installed operating system for personal computers. It isa master control program that is automatically run when you start your personal computer (PC). DOS stays in the computer all the time letting you run a program and manage files. It is a single-user operating system from Microsoft for the PC. It was the first OS for the PC and is the underlying control program for Windows 3.1, 95, 98 and ME. Windows NT, 2000 and XP emulate DOS to support existing DOS applications. MS-DOS is an operating system for x86-based personal computers mostly developed by Microsoft Collectively, MS-DOS, its rebranding as IBM PC DOS, and few operating systems attempting to be compatible with MS-DOS, are sometimes referred to as "DOS". MS-DOS (Microsoft disk operating system) DOS Commands are divided into 2 types: 1. Internal Commands in Dos : These are for performing basic operations on files and directories and they do not need any external file support. 2. External Commands in Dos : These external commands are for performing advanced tasks and they do need some extemal file support as they are not stored in COMMAND.COM‘Topic: Windows: ‘Windows is a personal computer operating system from Microsoft that together with some commonly ‘used business aoplications such as Microsoft Word and Excel, has become a de facto “standard” for individual users in most corporations as well as in most homes. Windows contains built-in ‘networking, which allows users to share files and applications with each other if their PC's are ‘connected to a network. In large enterprises, Windows clients are often comnected to a network of ‘UNIX and NetWare servers. The server versions of Windows NT and 2000 are gaining, market share, providing a Windows-only solution for both the client and server. Windows is supported by Microsoft, the largest software company in the world, as well as the Windows industry at large, Which ‘neludes tens of thousands of software developers. This networking support is the reason why Windows became successful inthe first place. However, Windows 95, 98, ME, NT, 2000 and XP are ‘complicated operating environments. Certain combinations of hardware and software running together ‘can cause problems, and troubleshooting ean be daunting. Each new version of Windows has interface changes that constantly confuse users and keep support people busy, and Installing Windows applications is problematic too. Microsoft has worked hard to make Windows 2000 and Windows XP ‘more resilient to installation of problems and erashes in general. Microsoft Windows, also called Windows and Windows OS, computer operating system (OS) developed by Microsoft Corporation to run personal computers (PCs). Featuring the first graphical ‘user interface (GUI) for IBM-compatible PCs, the Windows OS soon dominated the PC market, -osaft Windows Operating Systems for PCs + MS-DOS - Microsoft Disk Operating System (1981) ... * Windows 1.0 — 2.0 (1985-1992) © Windows 3.0 — 3.1 (1990-1994) = Windows 95 (August 1995)... + Windows 98 (June 1998)... + Windows 2000 (February 2000) ... + Windows XP (October 2001) ... + Windows Vista (November 2006) Windows 7 (October 2009) Windows 8 Windows 10 Windows 11