Operating Systems: Crash Course 18 Flashcards

Operating System (OS)

• System software that acts as an intermediary between users or application programs and computer hardware.

Batch Processing

• Automates the execution of a series of programs by loading them in batches instead of manual intervention between each.

Peripherals

• Devices not part of the central processing unit (CPU) including input devices, output devices, and secondary storage devices.

Device Driver

• A software program that provides critical instructions enabling communication between the computer and external devices like scanners.

I/O

• Represents input and output operations essential for data processing within an operating system.

Atlas Supervisor

• Program that managed resource allocation for Manchester University's Super Computer, enabling concurrent processing of multiple tasks and user programs.

Memory Allocation Challenge

• Each program requires its own memory block to maintain data integrity during multitasking, preventing data loss when switching between programs.

Virtual Memory

• Utilizes hard disk space to mimic the functionality of random access memory (RAM), allowing more applications to run concurrently.

Dynamic Memory Allocation

• Memory is allocated during the execution of a program, providing flexibility in resource usage.

Memory Protection

• Mechanism that ensures one process does not compromise the confidentiality, integrity, or availability of another process's data.

Time-Sharing

• System in which multiple users can access a computer simultaneously, each utilizing a small fraction of the resources like processor time and memory.

Unix

• An operating system developed in 1969 by Ken Thompson and Dennis Ritchie at AT&T's Bell Labs, known for its multitasking and multi-user capabilities.

Kernel

• Core component of the Unix operating system responsible for fundamental functions such as memory management, multitasking, and input/output operations.

Kernel Panic

• A critical error in Linux or OS X that prevents the system from recovering, akin to a blue screen of death in Windows systems.

MS-DOS

• Microsoft's Disk Operating System, which was compact at just 160 kilobytes, capable of fitting onto a single disk, but lacked features like multitasking and memory protection.

Blue Screen of Death

• Error state on PCs where the system freezes, historically presented as a blue screen resulting in a mandatory restart to resolve the issue.