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Handheld Operating System

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An operating system is a program whose job is to manage a computer’s hardware. Its other use is
that it also provides a basis for application programs and acts as an intermediary between the
computer user and the computer hardware. An amazing feature of operating systems is how they
vary in accomplishing these tasks. Operating systems for mobile computers provide us with an
environment in which we can easily interface with the computer so that we can execute the
programs. Thus, some of the operating systems are made to be convenient, others to be well-
organized, and the rest to be some combination of the two.

Handheld Operating System:

Handheld operating systems are available in all handheld devices like Smartphones and tablets. It
is sometimes also known as a Personal Digital Assistant. The popular handheld device in today’s
world is Android and iOS. These operating systems need a high-processing processor and are also
embedded with various types of sensors.

Some points related to Handheld operating systems are as follows:

1. Since the development of handheld computers in the 1990s, the demand for software to
operate and run on these devices has increased.
2. Three major competitors have emerged in the handheld PC world with three different
operating systems for these handheld PCs.
3. Out of the three companies, the first was the Palm Corporation with their PalmOS.
4. Microsoft also released what was originally called Windows CE. Microsoft’s recently released
operating system for the handheld PC comes under the name of Pocket PC.
5. More recently, some companies producing handheld PCs have also started offering a handheld
version of the Linux operating system on their machines.

Features of Handheld Operating System:

1. Its work is to provide real-time operations.
2. There is direct usage of interrupts.
3.
WeInput/Output device
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4. Configurability.

Types of Handheld Operating Systems:

Types of Handheld Operating Systems are as follows:

1. Palm OS
2. Symbian OS
3. Linux OS
4. Windows
5. Android

Palm OS: 

Since the Palm Pilot was introduced in 1996, the Palm OS platform has provided various
mobile devices with essential business tools, as well as the capability that they can access the
internet via a wireless connection.
These devices have mainly concentrated on providing basic personal-information-management
applications. The latest Palm products have progressed a lot, packing in more storage, wireless
internet, etc.

Symbian OS:

It has been the most widely-used smartphone operating system because of its ARM
architecture before it was discontinued in 2014. It was developed by Symbian Ltd.
This operating system consists of two subsystems where the first one is the microkernel-based
operating system which has its associated libraries and the second one is the interface of the
operating system with which a user can interact.
Since this operating system consumes very less power, it was developed for smartphones and
handheld devices.
It has good connectivity as well as stability.
It can run applications that are written in Python, Ruby, .NET, etc.

Linux OS:

Linux OS is an open-source operating system project which is a cross-platform system that

was developed based on UNIX.
It was developed by Linus Torvalds. It is a system software that basically allows the apps and
users to perform some tasks on the PC.  
Linux is free and can be easily downloaded from the internet and it is considered that it has the
Webest community
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Linux is portable which means it can be installed on different types of devices like mobile,
computers, and tablets.
It is a multi-user operating system.
Linux interpreter program which is called BASH is used to execute commands.
It provides user security using authentication features.

Windows OS:

Windows is an operating system developed by Microsoft. Its interface which is called

Graphical User Interface eliminates the need to memorize commands for the command line by
using a mouse to navigate through menus, dialog boxes, and buttons.
It is named Windows because its programs are displayed in the form of a square. It has been
designed for both a beginner as well professional.
It comes preloaded with many tools which help the users to complete all types of tasks on
their computer, mobiles, etc.
It has a large user base so there is a much larger selection of available software programs.
One great feature of Windows is that it is backward compatible which means that its old
programs can run on newer versions as well.

Android OS:

It is a Google Linux-based operating system that is mainly designed for touchscreen devices
such as phones, tablets, etc. 
There are three architectures which are ARM, Intel, and MIPS which are used by the hardware
for supporting Android. These lets users manipulate the devices intuitively, with movements of
our fingers that mirror some common motions such as swiping, tapping, etc.
Android operating system can be used by anyone because it is an open-source operating
system and it is also free.
It offers 2D and 3D graphics, GSM connectivity, etc.
There is a huge list of applications for users since Play Store offers over one million apps.
Professionals who want to develop applications for the Android OS can download the Android
Development Kit. By downloading it they can easily develop apps for android.

Advantages of Handheld Operating System:

Some advantages of a Handheld Operating System are as follows:

1. Less Cost.
2. Less weight and size.
3. Less heat generation.
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Disadvantages of Handheld Operating System:

Some disadvantages of Handheld Operating Systems are as follows:

1. Less Speed.
2. Small Size.
3. Input / Output System (memory issue or less memory is available).

 How Handheld operating systems are different from Desktop operating systems?

Since the handheld operating systems are mainly designed to run on machines that have lower
speed resources as well as less memory, they were designed in a way that they use less
memory and require fewer resources.
They are also designed to work with different types of hardware as compared to standard
desktop operating systems.
It happens because the power requirements for standard CPUs far exceed the power of
handheld devices.
Handheld devices aren’t able to dissipate large amounts of heat generated by CPUs. To deal
with such kind of problem, big companies like Intel and Motorola have designed smaller CPUs
with lower power requirements and also lower heat generation. Many handheld devices fully
depend on flash memory cards for their internal memory because large hard drives do not fit
into handheld devices.

Last Updated :
09 Dec, 2022 135

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