Operating Systems

Operating Systems

An operating system (OS) is a set of software that manages computer hardware resources and provides common services for computer programs. The operating system is a vital component of the system software in a computer system. For hardware functions such as input and output and memory allocation, the operating system acts as an intermediary between programs and the computer hardware

Operating systems can be found on almost any device that contains a computer—from cellular phones and video game consoles to supercomputers and web servers. Examples of popular modern operating systems include Android iOS, GNU/Linux, Mac OS X, Microsoft Windows, Windows Phone, and IBM z/OS. All these, except Windows and z/OS, share roots in UNIX.

Android is designed primarily for smart phones and tablets, the open and customizable nature of the operating system allows it to be used on other electronics, including laptops and netbooks, smartbooks, ebook readers, and smart TVs (Google TV). Further, the OS has seen niche applications on wristwatches, headphones,car CD and DVD players, refrigerators, vehicle satellite navigation systems, home automation systems, games consoles, mirrors,cameras, portable media players, landlines, and treadmills.

iOS (previously iPhone OS) is a mobile operating system developed and distributed by Apple Inc. Originally released in 2007 for the iPhone and iPod Touch, it has been extended to support other Apple devices such as the iPad and Apple TV.

Linux is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open source software development and distribution. The defining component of Linux is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released 5 October 1991 by Linus Torvalds.

OS X formerly Mac OS X, is a series of Unix-based graphical interface operating systems developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. OS X runs exclusively on Macintosh computers and has been pre-loaded on all Macs since...