Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
When starting a computer, the operating system must prepare
for its role of coordination; this process is called
booting
.
Rebooting
involves shutting a computer down and starting it again. Although
rebooting should be needed rarely, if ever, it sometimes provides a
convenient way to recover and move forward when malfunctions
arise in processing.
Because the oversight and administration of computers can
be done in many ways, different operating systems have devel
oped, including Microsoft Windows, Linux, and Macintosh OS
X. For historical reasons, many people and companies use
Microsoft Windows, but various operating systems have their
strengths and proponents. With different mechanisms for han
dling administrative tasks, different operating systems may not
work in compatible ways; activities that work well on one system
may not work on another, and disks may be readable only on
some systems.
■
Terminology from This Chapter
booting a computer
doubledensity disk
doublesided disk
graphical user interface (GUI)
multitasking
operating system
rebooting a computer
singledensity disk
■
Discussion Questions
1.
Could a singletasking machine allow a user to listen to mu
sic, print a document, and read email at the same time?
Explain why or why not.
2.
As noted in the chapter, three operating systems dominate
desktop and laptop computers: Microsoft Windows,
Macintosh OS X, and Unix/Linux. Each of these operating
systems has its own strong advocates, and each has its critics.
a.
Choose one operating system to investigate. Then organize
a class or group debate on whether this operating system
should be the one installed in all labs and classes at your
school. For example, the group in favor of using that oper
ating system would promote its relative strengths and be
able to defend it against possible claims of weakness.
