Development of Popular Operating Systems

Technology of a computer fully relies on its operating System. I believe that the operating system pushes the companies to develop better hardware to catch up to the advances in the Kernel itself. According to Merriam-Webster's Dictionary Online, an Operating System is "Software that controls the operation of a computer and directs the processing of programs (as by assigning storage space in memory and controlling input and output functions)" In other words an Operating System is a program that acts between the person using the computer and the computer's hardware. It is required in order for a computer user to be able to utilize the hardware in an efficient manner. Every time you start your computer, the operating system checks to see what video card you have installed which is useful when you need to see the screen! Of course the Os cannot do anything useful by itself, it needs other programs and the User itself to help it. There have been different OS developed in the history of mankind, some have been successful and others have not.

Operating systems started with the famous Unix, they where used for some time by business people for very technical stuff. Unix was a real operating system for real people. Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie and other people who worked in the Bell System, made the Unix OS in the early 1970's after separating from General Electrics with an un-successful attempt of trying to achieve that same goal. With Unix, more than one person can run multiple applications at the same time. The system has a Username and Password login, which makes each user save his or her work without worrying of someone messing with it. UNIX will run on just about every platform made, and it requires very little advanced hardware to run smoothly. Like today's windows, Unix has had developments which where made available in stores. After having very good advances from 1971 to 1991 with the First Edition, second Edition, fourth edition, seventh edition, and other advances, AT&T decides to buy Unix. With a bigger income to develop on the Kernel itself, UNIX 95 comes out in 1995 then UNIX 98 followed in 1998. They where mostly used by scientists and workgroups which needed a multi-user environment. I believe that it will still have future developments, but now it is just a shadow of the past.

Most of today's computers are using a Windows based operating systems. There have been different flavors of windows throughout history and it has not been an easy task to develop the one that we use in the present. The first Windows OS started to be developed in September 1981 and it was sold in stores on November 1985 under the name Windows 1.0. This New Operating System had primitive tools such as MS-DOS Executive, Calendar, Notepad, Terminal, Calculator, Clock, Control Panel, Print Spooler, Clipboard, Windows Write, and Windows Paint. That was not was very impressive since there where other contenders in the market that had much more easier to use interference. There where other versions of Windows released after that, Windows 2.0 was introduced in the fall of 1987, and then Windows 3.0 was released in May of 1990, later came Windows 3.1, which was released in April 1992(it sold 3 million copies). Windows 3.1 was the turning point for Windows because it provided users with a good graphical user interface.

Later, Windows 95 came out in the market in August of 1995. Windows 95 was a major upgrade to Windows 3.1. This operating system is a true operating system and not an operating environment like the other versions of Windows. The advantages of Windows 95 are that it does not require a separate version of DOS, even though some DOS features are included for compatibility. One advantage of Windows 95 is, it's improved graphical user interface, which makes working with files and programs easier than earlier versions. Another advantage of Windows 95 is most programs run faster under it because it is written to take advantage of newer 32-bit processors and supports cooperative multitasking. Window 95 includes support for peer-to-peer networking and real e-mail (not web-based). Windows 95 does not include the tools for making Internet Web pages and operating Web page servers.

After Windows 95, Windows 98 came out in the market. This new upgrade provides faster system startup and shutdown, better file management, support for a small amount of multimedia technologies like DVD and Web TV. Window 98 comes with Internet integration, which allows a computer to got online easily and navigate your desktop like a web page itself. This version of windows can also run 16 and 32 bit software, which means it can run older along with newer software. This windows system became widely used by home users because of its capability of performing task well and