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Essay / A Study of the Background of Windows Operating System and Different Versions
Table of ContentsHistory of Microsoft Windows Operating System and Its VersionsOrigin of Microsoft Windows Operating SystemHistory of Windows Operating SystemsWindows ServersConclusionHistory of the Microsoft Windows operating system and its versionsThe operating system is an essential software component that runs on a computer; it manages other programs and applications on the computer such as hardware and software resources. Its essential tasks involve allocating memory for input data, tracking files and directories on disk, and also serving as an intermediary between programs and computer devices. The size of the operating system increases with the extent of its responsibilities and power (Ritchie et al., 57). The operating system is like a traffic cop ensuring that the execution of tasks and programs are mutually exclusive and that these tasks are also assigned time limits to ensure that they run at the same time without interfering with the with each other. System users interact with the computer through commands and graphical interfaces designed to eliminate base-based interactions. Commands are accepted and executed by the computer system's command line processor (Gookin, 57). The different types of operating systems common on most computers use a graphical user interface and include multi-user operating systems, multi-processing operating systems, multi-tasking and multi-threading operating systems. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”?Get the original essayOrigin of MicrosoftMicrosoft Company was founded by Paul Allen and Bill Gates, said to be childhood friends, where Microsoft is a company based in Redmond Washington and engages in the manufacturing and licensing of computer products. Paul Allen and Bill Gates have a long history together and spend much of their time in a computer lab rather than in the classroom. During this time, they hacked into the school's computers, but they were not kicked out of the school. Instead, they were offered unlimited usage time on the computer in exchange for improved computer performance. In their youth, Paul Allen and Bill Gates ran a small company called Traf-O-Data, which specialized in selling computer programs used to count city traffic. Windows Operating System Microsoft Windows operating systems are a group of operating systems primarily found in Windows operating systems. personal computers (Gookin, 17). It accounts for more than 90% of the operating system designed for personal computers and the remaining percentage of operating systems are produced and provided by Linux and Mac operating systems. History of Windows Operating Systems Microsoft Disk Operating System Microsoft initially developed this operating system only for IBM products. MS-DOS was compatible with IBM computers where it primarily involved the use of command prompts. The introduction of other features in MS-DOS led to the sophistication of this version of the operating system, making it more complicated but with more features, such as an easy-to-use user interface that is different from the first version with few commands. Microsoft Windows 1.0-2.0This version of the operating system was introduced in 1985 and its name comes from thecomputer cases that replaced the look of the operating system. Unlike its predecessor, this version allowed commands to be accessed by pointing and clicking instead of typing the commands. Microsoft introduced Windows 2 two years later, designed with an Intel 286 processor. In addition, the version also had additional features such as graphics support, desktop icons and keyboard shortcuts. Microsoft Windows 3.0-3.1 In 1900, Microsoft released the Windows 3.0 operating system to the market. The version had more improved features compared to its predecessor Microsoft Windows 1.0-2. The new added features were; better icons, more advanced graphics and its performance was better than the previous version of the operating system, so it was able to execute commands and instructions much faster. It came with game, file, print and program managers. Microsoft Windows 3.1 was released two years later. Microsoft Windows 95The Microsoft Windows 95 operating system version was a significant advancement for the Microsoft Windows operating system. It had more advanced features compared to previous versions and a more powerful processor. It also had a completely new user interface as an additional feature that the previous version did not incorporate (Ritchie et al., 36). Its internal composition has huge improvements compared to previous versions. A significant improvement was the introduction of the 32-bit processor application, which meant that the operating system would be much faster than all other previous versions. Windows 95 was compatible with the application from earlier versions as it is capable of running the predecessor application. Another notable feature of Windows 95 was its ability to detect, configure, and install hardware. Microsoft Windows 98 In June 1998, Microsoft Windows 98 was released. This version of the operating system is capable of supporting a large number of new technological advancements such as the use of USB, DVD and ACPI. Its spectacular feature was the desktop application supported interface capable of incorporating Internet Explorer into the operating system. Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition. This version was developed to remove the boot option in DOS, where it was upgraded from the Windows operating system. 98 with some features present in Windows 2000 operating system.Microsoft Windows NT 3.1-3.4The operating system version is a 32-bit processor with multitasking support capable of running multiple tasks at the same time. It had two versions with Windows NT Server to act exclusively as a network and Windows NT Workstation. Microsoft Windows 2000 version was released in February 2000. Microsoft has released four versions of this operating system which is the professional mainly aimed at desktop and business computers. the server responsible for both the web server and the desktop server. The advanced server takes care of business applications and finally the data center server responsible for computer networks. It was released with a completely different look and better user interface (Ritchie et al., 77). The Microsoft Windows XP version was first introduced in October 2001. It was a more stable and reliable version than previous versions of the operating system, developed in two versions: the home version and the professional version. It is one of the best-selling products of the Microsoft company anduses the wireless standard.Microsoft Windows VistaThis version of the operating system was more advanced in terms of reliability, performance, security and management compared to Windows XP (Gookin, 46). It was released in November 2006 and was capable of detecting hardware problems before they occurred and providing protection against threats. It was able to start faster in addition to low power consumption. It was very reliable, for example by centralizing configuration management and minimizing system update costs.Microsoft Windows 7This version of the Microsoft Windows operating system was first introduced in October 2009. It is equipped with many advanced features, including Internet Explorer 8, multi-touch support, improved startup times, virtual hard disk space and improved security. This version of the operating system was user friendly in that it was quite easy to use as everything was graphical so no need to use any commands. Microsoft Windows 8This version of the operating system differs entirely from all other previous versions and is capable of loading and booting in just a few seconds. It has a user Metrointerface consisting of live tiles connected to the computer's functionality and application (Gookin, 78). The version is compatible with ARM processors and PC x86 processors. Besides the operating system versions mentioned above which were exclusively designed for personal computers, Microsoft has designed and developed other operating systems intended for mobile handsets and include the following. .Windows Servers version of the operating system was released in March 2003, primarily designed to work with other series of more powerful versions of operating systems designed to manage networking, databases and more l Internet hosting. This version was released in January 2007. and was designed to allow multiple computer connections. It provides automatic backup services for personal computers and also allows file sharing between connected devices (Ritchie et al., 117). With the use of Windows Media Connect, it allows sharing of any media as long as the devices are compatible. The version of Windows operating systems made its first appearance in November 2006. It is designed and developed for small devices such as personal digital assistant. Its graphical user interface is similar to that of Windows 95, which is an added advantage for anyone familiar with how Windows 95 works. The operating system was designed for smartphones and was released in April 2000. It has also been designed for mobile devices. Microsoft-based devices. This version was initially Microsoft Windows Mobile and released in November 2010 as a successor to Microsoft Windows Mobile with additional features. For example Windows, Mobile 7 came to replace the more traditional operating system; it has metro design interface. It has a multi-tab mobile web browser, a version designed exclusively for mobile devices. With the growing dynamism of information technology, users are always eager to upgrade to new software upgrades, including new versions of Windows operating system. two. There are many reasons why the Windows operating system should be improved, some of which are the following. It is known that most users of Microsoft operating systems will benefit from a one-year free upgrade and.