History of operating system

Operating systems (OS) provide a set of functions needed and used by most application

programs on a computer, and the linkages needed to control and synchronize computer hardware.

On the first computers, with no operating system, every program needed the full hardware

specification to run correctly and perform standard tasks, and its own drivers for peripheral

devices like printers and card-readers. The growing complexity of hardware and application

programs eventually made operating systems a necessity.

The earliest computers lacked any form of operating system. Each user had sole use of

the machine and would arrive armed with program and data, often on punched paper cards and

magnetic or paper tape. The program would be loaded into the machine, and the machine would

be set to work until the program completed or crashed. Programs could generally be debugged

via a control panel using toggle switches and panel lights. It is said that Alan Turing was a

master of this on the early Manchester Mark 1 machine, and he was already deriving the

primitive conception of an operating system from the principles of the Universal Turing

machine.

Symbolic languages, assemblers, and compilers were developed for programmers to

translate symbolic program-code into binary code that previously would have been hand-

encoded. Later machines came with libraries of support code, which would be linked to the user's

program to assist in operations such as input and output. This was the genesis of the modern-day

operating system. However, machines still ran a single job at a time. At Cambridge University in

England the job queue was at one time a washing line from which tapes were hung with different

colored clothes-pegs to indicate job-priority.

History of operating system Windows XP 

Windows XP is an operating system produced by Microsoft for use on personal

computers, including home and business desktops, laptops, and media centers. It was first

released in August 2001, and is the most popular version of Windows, based on installed user

base. The name "XP" is short for "eXPerience."

Windows XP is the successor to both Windows 2000 and Windows Me, and is the first

consumer-oriented operating system produced by Microsoft to be built on the Windows NT

kernel and architecture. Windows XP was released for retail sale on October 25, 2001, and over

400 million copies were in use in January 2006, according to an estimate in that month by

an IDC analyst. It was succeeded by Windows Vista, which was released to volume license

customers on November 8, 2006, and worldwide to the general public on January 30, 2007.

Direct OEM and retail sales of Windows XP ceased on June 30, 2008. Microsoft continued to

sell XP through their System Builders (smaller OEMs who sell assembled computers) program

until January 31, 2009. XP may continue to be available as these sources run through their

inventory or by purchasing Windows 7 Ultimate, Windows 7 Pro, Windows Vista Ultimate or

Windows Vista Business, and then downgrading to Windows XP.

The most common editions of the operating system are Windows XP Home Edition,

which is targeted at home users, and Windows XP Professional, which offers additional features

such as support for Windows Server domains and two physical processors, and is targeted

at power users, business and enterprise clients. Windows XP Media Center Edition has

additional multimedia features enhancing the ability to record and watch TV shows, view DVD

movies, and listen to music. Windows XP Tablet PC Edition is designed to run stylus

applications built using the Tablet PC platform.

 Windows XP was eventually released for two additional architectures, Windows XP 64-

bit Edition for IA-64 (Itanium) processors and Windows XP Professional x64 Edition for x86-64.

There is also Windows XP Embedded, a component version of the Windows XP Professional,

and editions for specific markets such as Windows XP Starter Edition. By mid 2009, a

manufacturer revealed the first Windows XP powered cellular telephone.

The NT-based versions of Windows, which are programmed in C, C++,

and assembly, are known for their improved stability and efficiency over the 9x versions

of Microsoft Windows. Windows XP presents a significantly redesigned graphical user interface,

a change Microsoft promoted as more user-friendly than previous versions of Windows. A new

software management facility called Side-by-Side Assembly was introduced to ameliorate the

"DLL hell" that plagues 9x versions of Windows. It is also the first version of Windows to

use product activation to combat illegal copying, a restriction that did not sit well with some

users and privacy advocates.

Windows XP has also been criticized by some users for security vulnerabilities, tight

integration of applications such as Internet Explorer 6 and Windows Media Player, and for

aspects of its default user interface. Later versions with Service Pack 2, Service Pack 3,

and Internet Explorer 8 addressed some of these concerns.

During development, the project was codenamed "Whistler", after Whistler, British

Columbia, as many Microsoft employees skied at the Whistler-Blackcomb ski resort.

As of the end of September 2010, Windows XP is the most widely used operating system in the

world with a 51.7% market share, having peaked at 76.1% in January 2007.
Motivation,objectives and the key features

The most common editions of the operating system are Windows XP Home Edition,

which is targeted at home users, and Windows XP Professional, which offers additional features

such as support for Windows Server domains and two physical processors, and is targeted at

power users, business and enterprise clients. Windows XP Media Center Edition has additional

multimedia features enhancing the ability to record and watch TV shows, view DVD movies,

and listen to music. Windows XP Tablet PC Edition is designed to run stylus applications built

using the Tablet PC platform.

Microsoft Windows is the operating system of your personal computer. It is usually referred

to as MS-Windows, or even “Windows”. Without an operating system, you would not be able to

use your personal computer. It performs the following functions.

 It is the interface between your hardware and your application software: e.g. it directs

output for the printer, checks the various storage devices, interfaces with the

monitor or sound card etc.

 It manages the various applications which you are running: e.g. it allocates the central

memory and central processing time between the active applications, ensures the

integrity of data which is used by more than one application or user at a time, prevents

“misbehaving” programs from damaging your other applications, enables the

transfer and linking of data between applications etc.

 It manages the storage of data (and program) files on disk. It keeps track of where

and how your data and programs are stored on your floppy or hard disk.

 It is responsible for the common look, feel and operation of the shared functions of

all applications e.g. keyboard and mouse input, functionality of the windows, on-line
help, opening and closing documents, printing and font handling. The “look-and-feel”

of the operating system is also referred to as the user interface.

 It comes with a number of frequently-used tools built-in such as a calculator, a notepad,

screen saver, multimedia player, graphics editor, system utilities and even some

games.

Every few years, Microsoft – the company that develops and markets MS-Windows –

creates an updated, more powerful version of Windows. It is a very powerful operating system

supporting many advanced features such as networking, security, multimedia and powerful

accessories.. So if you are using a computer that is being used by other people, chances are that

some user interface elements have been changed.

A Graphical User Interface

Windows XP is an operating system with a graphical user interface (“GUI”). This means

that it represents commands and options graphically on the screen using icons (small pictures

on which you can click) or menus (lists of commands from which you can select).

The Desktop Metaphor

Windows XP uses the metaphor of a desktop from which all your information processing

tools and information is accessible. On your monitor, you will see a stylised image of your

electronic desk, this might include a clock, a calendar, an address book, a calculator, incoming

mail but also a spreadsheet and a word processor.

Windows

Each of the tasks or jobs that you are busy with has its own window and you can freely

switch between the various tasks or windows as you wish. Windows are typically partially on
top of each other, so you can have several windows visible on your desktop at once. (Hence

the name of the operating system: Windows) When you want to devote all your attention to

one specific task, you may wish to expand the size of its window so to take up the entire

screen (called maximizing the window), thus obscuring everything else on the desktop that is

now under neath it.

Windows XP Key Features

Microsoft Windows XP offers you many new features. And its excellent overall performance—

which includes dramatically faster boot and resume times, along with highly responsive

applications—creates the conditions for a very satisfying user experience.

For most computers that meet Microsoft's minimum recommended hardware requirements,

Windows XP is the best-performing Windows operating system ever created. This paper

addresses some of the key performance improvements in Windows XP, and highlights some of

the issues you should keep in mind when evaluating a system configuration.

Because Windows XP is still in development, Microsoft is not able to provide you with hard

performance numbers at this time—though benchmarks from an objective, third-party reviewer

will be provided in the not-too-distant future. Until then, the information presented here will help

you understand more about Windows XP and about its resource requirements.

 Memory and Performance

 Performance Evaluation

 Startup Performance

 Runtime Performance
  RAM Options

 Evaluation Issues

Current status : technical and commercial

 The Starter Edition includes some special features for certain markets where consumers

may not be computer literate. Not found in the Home Edition, these include localised help

features for those who may not speak English, a country-specific computer wallpaper

and screensavers, and other default settings designed for easier use than typical Windows XP

installations. The Malaysian version, for example, contains a desktop background of the Kuala

Lumpur skyline.

In addition, the Starter Edition also has some unique limitations to prevent it from

displacing more expensive versions of Windows XP. Only three applications can be run at once

on the Starter Edition, and each application may open a maximum of three windows. The

maximum screen resolution is 1024×768, and there is no support for workgroup networking or

domains. In addition, the Starter Edition is licensed only for low-end processors like

Intel's Celeron or AMD's Duron and Sempron. There is also a 512 MB limit on main memory

and a 120 GB disk size limit. Microsoft has not made it clear, however, if this is for total disk

space, per partition, or per disk. There are also fewer options for customizing the themes,

desktop, and taskbar.

On October 9, 2006, Microsoft announced that they reached a milestone of 1,000,000

units of Windows XP Starter Edition sold. In the mass market, however, the Starter Edition has

not had much success. In many markets where it is available cracked or pirated versions of

higher end versions of Windows are more popular than their legal counterparts. In these markets,

cracked or pirated software such as XP Professional can be obtained at a mall. These stores

typically charge you only for the amount of CDs/DVDs the software takes up, not the actual

retail value. XP Professional typically costs $0.70 USD (only uses 1 CD) compared around $30

USD for a properly licensed copy of XP Starter.

 While maintaining the core of Windows 2000, Windows XP features a fresh new visual

design. Common tasks have been consolidated and simplified, and new visual cues have been

added to help you navigate your computer more easily. This section introduces the innovations in

the user interface that make it easier to use your computer at work or at home.

Main player in this area

 That Gates and XP are exiting simultaneously is fitting. Both are poster children for a

style of computing that is fading, literally, into the clouds. Both also represent a late '90s to mid-

oughts Camelot period that Microsoft may never recapture.

In his various roles at Microsoft -- as CEO, chief software architect, and, lastly, chairman

- Gates championed a PC-centric view of computing in which the desktop was king and the

operating system was the brains of the whole operation.And under Gates, Microsoft utterly

dominated personal computing with its DOS and Windows systems.