The common functions of an operating system - questions and answers
Q1. State the main jobs an operating system performs.
A1. Provides a user interface, manages the memory, manages attaching and detaching peripherals, manages multi-tasking and looks after security issues.
Q2. What is meant by the term ‘user interface’?
A2. The communication and interaction that takes place between people and computer systems.
Q3. State five different types of user interface.
A3. Form, Menu, GUI, Command Line Interface and Natural language.
Q4. Who might use a menu interface and why?
A4. Menu-based systems are ideal for situations where the user's IT skills cannot be guaranteed or in situations which require selections to be made from a very wide range of options or in situations which require very fast selection. E.g. tourist information centers, train information points.
Q5. Who might use a Command Line Interface and why?
A5. Typical users of command line interfaces are technicians and network managers. They need to perform many set-up tasks and system tasks. These tasks can only be done using this type of interface.
Q6. Define ‘peripheral’ and give some examples to illustrate your understanding.
A6. A piece of computer equipment, which can be connected to a CPU (usually via a port). E.g. mouse, keyboard, printer, web cam, microphone, external hard drive, graphics tablet.
Q7. What is meant by ‘multi-tasking’?
A7. Running (apparently) more than one program at the same time.
Q8. What security issues might an operating system take care of?
A8. Firewalls, automatic updates, setting up logins and passwords.
Q9. What is 'memory management'?
A9. Memory management is the phrase used to describe loading files and applications into RAM in an organised way.
Q10. Why is memory management necessary on a computer?
A10. You need to manage the RAM (memory) in a computer to ensure that files and applications don't interfere with each other. If they did, files may be corrupted and you may lose work or applications or the computer may not function properly.