OPERATING SYSTEMS

Operating systems control and manage the use of hardware devices such as the printer or mouse. They also provide disk management by letting you store information in files. The operating system also lets you run programs such as the basic word processor. Lastly, the operating system provides several of its own commands that help you to use the computer.

DOS is the most commonly used PC operating system. DOS is an abbreviation for disk operating system. DOS was developed by a company named Microsoft. MS-DOS is an abbreviation for «Microsoft DOS». When IBM first released the IBM PC in 1981, IBM licensed DOS from Microsoft for use on the PC and called it PC-DOS. From the users’ perspective, PC-DOS and MS-DOS are the same, each providing the same capabilities and commands.

Windows NT (new technology) is an operating system developed by Microsoft. NT is an enhanced version of the popular Windows 3.0, 3.1 programmes. NT requires a 386 processor or greater and 8 Mb of RAM. For the best NT performance, you have to use a 486 processor with about 16 Mb or higher. Unlike the Windows, which runs on top of DOS, Windows NT is an operating system itself. However, NT is DOS compatible. The advantage of using NT over Windows is that NT makes better use of the PC’s memory management capabilities.

OS/2 is a PC operating system created by IBM. Like NT, OS/2 is DOS compatible and provides a graphical user interface that lets you run programs with a click of a mouse. Also like NT, OS/2 performs best when you are using a powerful system. Many IBM-based PCs are shipped with OS/2 preinstalled.

UNIX is a multi-user operating system that allows multiple users to access the system. Traditionally, UNIX was used on larger mini computers to which users accessed the systems using terminals and not PC’s. Unlike NT and OS/2, UNIX is not DOS compatible. Most users would not purchase UNIX for their own use.

Windows 95&98 (Windows 2000, Window 2008) are the most popular user-oriented operating system with a friendly interface and multitasking capabilities. The usage of this operating system is so simple that even little kids learn how to use it very quickly.

TASKS

1. Give Russian equivalents of the following words and transcribe them:

1. abbreviation (n.)

2. release (v.)

3. license (v.)

4. version (n.)

5. compatible (adj.)

6. preinstall (v.)

7. purchase (v.)

2. Give Russian equivalents of the following word combinations:

1. operating system

2. a multi-user operating system

3. a user-oriented operating system

4. disk operating system

5. PC operating system

6. disk management

8. word processor

9. memory management capabilities

10. IBM-based PCs

11. a friendly interface

12. multitasking capabilities

3. Give English equivalents of:

4. Formulate the definition of the term “operating systems”

5. Read and translate the text.

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Date: 2015-01-02; view: 1675