1.5 System software Flashcards
What does the operating system do?
Manages the hardware in a computer and provides and environment for them to run
What are the 5 functions controlled by an OS (operating system)?
User interface
Memory management
Peripheral management
User management
File management
What does the user interface do?
Allows the user to interact with the system
What does memory management do?
Control use of RAM
What does peripheral management do?
Control peripheral devices using driver
What does user management do?
Control who can access the computer and resources available. Access rights
What does file management do?
Allows user to organise their work into folders
Name the different user interfaces?
Graphical user interface
Command Line interface
Menu interface
Natural language
Is the Graphical user interface good for beginners or pros
Beginners
What is the mnemonic for what happens that the GUI?
WIMP
- Windows
- Icons
- Menu
- Pointers
User inerface
What does the GUI provide?
interactive screen, optimised for mouse or touch input. Visual
User inerface
Explain Command line
Text based
Very efficient
For advanced users
User inerface
Explain Menu
Single input at each stage
Menu presented to the user
User inerface
Explain Natural Language
Responds to questions in spoken language. Not always reliable
How does the operating system: multitasking work?
The processor allocates a small amount of time to each process and cycles between them but this happens so quickly it appears as it multiple programs are executing simultaneously
What is a peripheral?
Any hardware components not part of the CPU
What are all peripheral devices called?
Device drivers
Why are device drivers important?
Allow CPU and devices to communicate
Explain memory management?
When programs load, the OP decide where the data is held in memory
What are the 3 types of utility software?
Encryption
Defragmentation
Data compression
How does encryption work?
Use an algorithm to scramble plain text into cipher text. Text can be read but not understood without a key
How does defragmentation work?
Reorganise files. Puts fragments of files back together. Improves performance of computer
How does data compression work?
Reduce size of a file, so it takes up less space.
What does the utility software do?
Helps maintain the computer software?
