If the computer system divided into layers, then the Operating System is the liaison between the layers of hardware and software layers. Further than that, Operating System do all essential tasks in the computer, and ensure that applications can run different simultaneously smoothly. Operating System ensure other software applications can use the memory, perform input and output of other equipment, and have access to the file system. If several applications running simultaneously, then the operating system appropriate arrangements, so far as possible all the processes running to get enough time to use the processor (CPU) and do not interfere with each other.

In many cases, operating system provides a library of standard functions, which other applications can call functions, so that in every creation of new programs, no need to create these functions from scratch.

Operating systems generally consist of several parts:
Boot mechanism, which is putting the kernel into memory
Kernel, which is the core of an Operating System
Command interpreter or shell, which served to read input from the user
Library-library, which provides a collection of basic functions and standards that can be called by other applications
Drivers to interact with external hardware, as well as to control them.

Some operating system only allows one application are running at one time, but most of the new operating system allows several applications running simultaneously at the same time. Operating systems like that is called the Multi-tasking Operating System. Some Operating Systems are very large and complex, and its inputs depending on the user input, while the other Operating Systems is very small and made with the assumption that work without human intervention at all. The first type is often referred to as a Desktop OS, while the second type is the Real-Time OS

For example, the operating system meant that include Windows, Linux, Free BSD, Solaris, Palm, and so on.

Related posts:

1. History of Computer Operating System
2. Common core services and the current operating system
3. The history and development of Microsoft Windows
4. The history and development of Linux
5. The history and development of Linux (MINIX)
6. The function and status in computer processors
7. Historical development, applications and types of UNIX

1 Comment

1.   Henry Anderson   |  Thursday, 20 May 2010 at 5:39 pm

   For me, the best operating system is Linux because it rarely hangs.~-.