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What Is Operating System

An operating system (OS) is a program that enables computer hardware and software to communicate and operate. It loads first and allows computers and programs to function. Without an OS, computers and software would be useless. There are different types of OSs including graphical user interface (GUI) OSs like Windows 98 that use icons and mice, multi-user OSs like Linux that allow multiple users, multiprocessing OSs like Windows 2000 that support multiple processors, and multitasking/multithreading OSs like Unix that run processes concurrently. MS-DOS was a early non-graphical OS created by Microsoft that was command-line based and last updated in 1994. The Windows command line still allows users to run commands like dir to

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249 views

What Is Operating System

An operating system (OS) is a program that enables computer hardware and software to communicate and operate. It loads first and allows computers and programs to function. Without an OS, computers and software would be useless. There are different types of OSs including graphical user interface (GUI) OSs like Windows 98 that use icons and mice, multi-user OSs like Linux that allow multiple users, multiprocessing OSs like Windows 2000 that support multiple processors, and multitasking/multithreading OSs like Unix that run processes concurrently. MS-DOS was a early non-graphical OS created by Microsoft that was command-line based and last updated in 1994. The Windows command line still allows users to run commands like dir to

Uploaded by

arvie119
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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What is Operating System?

An operating system or OS, is a software program that enables the computer


hardware to communicate and operate with the computer software. It is the first
program loaded into a computer. Without a computer operating system, a computer
and software programs would be useless.

GUI - Short for Graphical User Interface, a GUI Operating System contains
graphics and icons and is commonly navigated by using a computer mouse. See
the GUI definition for a complete definition. Below are some examples of GUI
Operating Systems.
System 7.x
Windows 98
Windows CE
Multi-user - A multi-user operating system allows for multiple users to use the
same computer at the same time and different times. See the multi-user
definition for a complete definition for a complete definition. Below are some
examples of multi-user operating systems.

Linux
Unix
Windows 2000
Multiprocessing - An operating system capable of supporting and utilizing
more than one computer processor. Below are some examples of
multiprocessing operating systems.
Linux
Unix
Windows 2000
Multitasking - An operating system that is capable of allowing multiple
software processes to run at the same time. Below are some examples of
multitasking operating systems.
Unix
Windows 2000
Multithreading - Operating systems that allow different parts of a software
program to run concurrently. Operating systems that would fall into this
category are:
Linux
Unix
Windows 2000

MS-DOS
Short for Microsoft Disk operating system, MS-DOS is a non-graphical command line
operating system derived from 86-DOS that was created for IBM compatible computers. MSDOS was first introduced by Microsoft in August 1981 and was last updated in 1994 when MSDOS 6.22 was released. Today, MS-DOS is no longer used; however, the command shell, more
commonly known as the Windows command line is still used by many users. In the picture
to the right, is an example of what a MS-DOS window more appropriately referred to as the
Windows command line looks like under Microsoft Windows.

What is a command shell?

A program that interprets commands


Allows a user to execute commands by typing them manually at a
terminal, or automatically in programs called shell scripts.

A shell is not an operating system. It is a way to interface with the


operating system and run commands.

DOS and Windows command line Top 10 commands


Below is a listing of the top 10 MS-DOS commands most commonly used and that you will most
likely be using during a normal DOS session.
1. cd-(Change Directory) is a command used to switch directories in MS-DOS.
2. dir-allows you to see the available files in a directory.
3. copy-Allows the user to copy one or more files to an alternate location.
4. del-used to delete files from the computer.
5. edit-allows a user to view, create, or modify computer files.
6. move-Allows you to move files or directories from one folder to another.
7. ren (rename)- Used to rename files and directories from the original name to a
new name.
8. deltree-used to delete files and directories permanently from the computer.
9. cls-allows a user to clear the complete contents of the screen and leave only a
prompt.
10.format-used to erase information off of a computer diskette or fixed drive.

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