Definitions for operating system
Random House Webster's College Dictionary
op′erating sys`tem(n.)
the software that directs a computer's operations, as by controlling and scheduling the execution of other programs and managing storage and input/output.
Category: Computers
Origin of operating system:
1960–65
Princeton's WordNet
operating system, OS(noun)
(computer science) software that controls the execution of computer programs and may provide various services
Wiktionary
operating system(Noun)
Software that controls the allocation and usage of hardware resources such as memory, CPU time, disk space, and input and output devices.
The New Hacker's Dictionary
operating system
[techspeak] (Often abbreviated ‘OS’) The foundation software of a machine; that which schedules tasks, allocates storage, and presents a default interface to the user between applications. The facilities an operating system provides and its general design philosophy exert an extremely strong influence on programming style and on the technical cultures that grow up around its host machines. Hacker folklore has been shaped primarily by the Unix, ITS, TOPS-10, TOPS-20/TWENEX, WAITS, CP/M, MS-DOS, and Multics operating systems (most importantly by ITS and Unix). See also timesharing.
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