Applications "talk to" the operating system for all user interface and file management operations. Also called an "executive" or "supervisor," an operating system performs the following functions.

The kernel handles all major system tasks and groups hardware features. This makes developing apps or programs within an operating system easier since the core functions are all in one location.

Under Windows, many things are not allowed or only possible to a limited extent. Some bans serve security purposes, but can ...

Trusted operating systems seal up systems vulnerabilities like never before. But the complexity of the systems can lead even experienced administrators to create more problems than they solve. For ...

A priority assigned by the operating system to programs running in a multitasking environment, which is a common mode of operation. The foreground contains the applications the user is working on ...