1.5.1 operating systems Flashcards
what is an operating system?
its a software that:
tells the computer hardware what to do
allows the computer to run applications
controls the operations of a computer
manages the memory, processes and hardware of a computer
lets the use communicate with the hardware
what is a user interface?
the user interface is how the users interact with the computer and its hardware
what are the two different types of user interface?
Graphical user interface and command line interface
graphical user interface (GUI)
- uses WIMP (windows, icons, menus and pointers)
- user friendly
- colourful
- icons make it very intuitive
- you have less control over it because takes up a lot of memory
- requires more power
- more visual because of the design and colour so its good for beginners
- might be slower because of the memory storage
command line interface (CLI)
- uses commands, codes and text
- you have more control over it
- for advanced users only
- takes up less memory so its faster and very efficient
- requires less power as its very basic with no graphics
- less visual
what is memory management?
memory management is when the operating system allocates memory between the different programs at the same time
what is multitasking?
giving the processor a time slice for each task so it looks like its all happening t the same time, but in reality its not really happening at the same time but we just cant see it
what is a device driver?
a device driver is a piece of software that allows the hardware to interact with the operating system
what is a peripheral?
a peripheral is a piece of hardware that is not directly connected to the CPU
what is file management?
file management is the ability to rename, save, copy, create, move and delete files and folders
what is user management?
user management allows users to log onto a computer and the settings can be changed for that individual user. the network administrator can also set access rights which enables security for the different users.
