Operating System

Assignment # 01 Operating System FA16-BCS-204 FA16-BCS-246 FA16-BCS-258  Operating System What does Operating System (OS) mean? O perating system, in its most general sense, is software that allows a user to run other applications on a computing device. Whilst a software application can interact directly with hardware, but the large number of applications are written for OS, which gives the advantage to make use of common libraries without taking any tension of hardware. The operating system manages a computer's hardware resources, including: I/O devices, i.e. a keyboard and mouse, printers and scanners. Network devices, i.e. modems, routers and network connections. Storage devices, i.e. drivers. Description Operating System (OS) There are operating systems which were developed in the 1950s, when computers were only supposed to execute one program at a time. The OS consists of many components and features. However, following three are the most easily defined components: Kernel: This provides low-level control over all of the computer hardware devices. User Interface: This component allows interaction with the user, this can be graphical or through command line. Application Programming Interfaces: This module allows developers to write modular code. Linux, Android, iOS, Mac OS X and Microsoft Windows are examples for OSs. Linux What is Linux? Linux is the “best-known” and most-used “open source” OS. As an operating system, Linux is software that settles below all of the other programs on a computer, receiving requests from those programs and executing these requests to the computer’s hardware. How does Linux differ from other operating systems? In many ways, it seems that Linux is very much similar to the other operating systems you might have used, such as Windows, OS X, or iOS, but the thing that makes Linux resides in its “heart” some differences are as follows: It is open source Extremely customizable Far more secure than Windows etc Different Linux distro are the coolest thing, we’ll discuss this later How was Linux created? Linux was created in 1991 by Linus Torvalds, a student of University of Helsinki. Torvalds built Linux as a free, open source alternative to Minix, clone of Unix that was used in academic settings. He originally intended to name it “Freax”, but the administrator of the server Torvalds who used to distribute the original code named his directory “Linux” as a combination of “Linus” - “Unix”, and then the name made his way. “If Microsoft ever does application for Linux, It means I have won” - Linus Torvalds Who uses Linux? There are fare chances that you are running Linux, maybe you just don’t know. Almost one-third WebPages are generated by servers running Linux. Organizations and individuals choose Linux for servers-end program due to its security; Moreover, you can get superb support from the large community of brilliant Linux users. Large number of deceives that we own probably, such as Android phones, digital storage devices, personal video recorders, cameras and more, also run Linux. Even your car has Linux working inside it, that’s what the power of Linux is. Who “owns” Linux? Due to its open source licensing, Linux is freely available to anyone. However, the trademark on the name “Linux” is with its creator, Linus Torvalds. Because Linux has such a large number of contributors from across multiple decades of development, contacting each individual author and getting them to agree to a new license is virtually impossible. Thus, anyone who is capable of contributing something better, to this gift given by Linus Torvalds, can contribute. What Is a Linux Distro, Anyway? Linux isn’t like Windows or Mac OS X. Microsoft combines all the pieces of Windows internally to produce each new release and then distributes it as a single package. If you want to run Windows, the only option you got is to choose between what they are offering, whether you like all of its features or not Linux works differently, the Linux operating system isn’t produced by a single company. Different organizations and people work on different parts. There’s the “Linux kernel” - the core of the OS, the GNU shell utilities, the “X server” – responsible for a graphical desktop, “desktop environment” - helps X server to produce a graphical desktop, and more. System services, graphical programs, terminal commands – many are developed independently from another. They’re all open-source software distributed in source code form. Following are different distro of Linux which make it different and best for every type of user, you name your interest and Linux will you the distro Kali Linux: Best Linux for ethical hacking Steam OS: Linux distro for gaming Debian: Linux distro for programming Elementary OS: Most beautiful Linux distro Ubermix: Linux distro for kids Tails: Linux distro for privacy and anonymity CentOS: Linux distro for servers Ubuntu: Linux distro for powerful PC and laptop Why do I use Linux? There are various reasons due to which I prefer Linux as my daily OS, some are given below: High Stability: The Linux system is very steady and is not prone to crashes. The Linux OS runs exactly as fast as it did when first installed, even after several years, but this is not the case with Windows. High Security: The one of the best thing about Linux is that it is not very easy for a virus to infect Linux, thus making your PC more secure. Education: Along with its other benefits, Linux is very good for educating yourself as a student of Computer Science I almost have always a new thing to learn that how it works, helping me to learn the internals of OS and software. Runs on any hardware: Whenever new update of Windows came, a hell of hardware improvements are needed to run the latest version, on the other hand Linux makes very efficient use of the system’s resources. Moreover, it runs very fast with the old systems too. “It’s very hard to imagine a world without Linux” 4 | Page