Importance of the Operating System

Electronic devices such as computers, mobile phones, music players or Blu-ray players They are a class of products that one gets used to handling with some time, patience and the desire to want to take advantage of them.

In the past, operating devices like a VHS tape player or Super 8 camcorder was more a matter of hardware than software: the owner had to be limited to simply interacting with some mechanical buttons distributed throughout the body of the product, accessing basic and unique functions for each type of device.

Some time later it was necessary to have a system capable of operating with a machine, in a more or less intuitive, to respond to one or the other control needs of some processes and some activities. The birth of the first operating system took place in the second half of the last decade of the 50s, still in the 20th century: in 1956, a team of General Motors designed the GM-NAA I/O operating system to be installed on an IBM computer and thus undertake a very specific function in an activity determined.

The creation, development and evolution of the operating systems have been basic for the approach to the individual consumer of especially sensitive products for large consumption, such as computers and mobile phones. The operating system has made it possible for any ordinary individual to operate an electronic device without the need to have technical knowledge, being relatively easy to gain control of a user interface visual.

The importance of the operating system has been closely linked to the visual presentation of data commands first, and a graphical interface later: the operating system would be the link between the machine and the man.

In the field of personal computers (PCs), the first operating systems best known by the general public were MS-DOS, Linux, IBM OS/2, MS Windows and the first Mac OS X: The operating system that would lead, and continues to lead, in homes around the world is Microsoft Windows, which was born in 1985.

MS Windows is the operating system that has contributed the most to the management, understanding and use of a computer by of a person, either in the development of their professional activity or in a more domestic role aimed at entertainment.

The operating system is the software that governs a machine, the set of processes that determine what a device looks like and what it wants to do with each action the user performs. The operating system is the base on which the programs that will make it possible for a person to retouch an image are installed. with Photoshop, prepare a presentation with Office, listen to music with iTunes, burn a DVD with Nero, or watch a movie with VLC.

The operating system is responsible for the fact that a technologically complex device can be a simple tool in its use, fulfilling an outstanding utility in the daily life of the people. The modern and most common operating systems, such as Windows 8 for PCs or Android on Smartphones, are crucial for for society to communicate and take advantage of the digital world and access to services accessible from Internet.

The constant evolution of these government systems has made possible the use of various technologies integrated into the same device: this is the case of smart mobile phones, which are a combination of music player, camera digital calendar electronics, game console, email manager and video player.

In the field of mobile telephony, the adoption of an advanced operating system has been especially sensitive, since it has allowed using a cell phone with your hands, organizing large amounts of information through the Applications phones or manage and share files. The adoption of Google Android as an operating system has marked and multiplied the advantages of having a mobile phone in your pocket, not only as a tool for communication, but as useful to access information and pure personal entertainment.

In mobile telephony, the operating system has had a critically relevant role in order to use these portables electronic devices for multiple functions: a person can buy a phone only by taking into account the characteristics product techniques. It has gone from proprietary operating systems, unique and designed by each brand; to standardized operating systems, which are installed on various brands of mobile phones (or Smartphones). Google Android is the majority operating system in the second decade of the 21st century, which runs under the user interfaces adapted by brands such as Samsung, HTC, LG or Huawei.

The operating system makes it possible for a person to "communicate" with a machine, either by using a mouse, tapping on a touch screen, pressing a physical button or pressing the keys of a keyboard: and to all the actions of a user, the machine offers visual, tactile or sonorous.

The importance of the modern operating system lies in being able to control a machine through a visual interface, without having to have large technical knowledge, turning complex hardware into a completely user-friendly home or office solution accessible to all the public ones.