How does the operating system interact with application software?
All software applications need to interact with the CPU. For programs to work with the CPU, they must contain code the CPU recognizes. Rather than having the same blocks of code appear in each software application, the OS includes the blocks of code to which software applications refer. These blocks of code are called application programming interfaces (APIs). 9. How does the operating system help the computer start up? When you start your computer, it runs through a special process, called the boot process. The boot process consists of four basic steps: (1) the basic input/output system (BIOS) is activated by powering on the CPU; (2) in the POST test, the BIOS checks that all attached devices are in place; (3) the operating system is loaded into RAM; and (4) configuration and customization settings are checked. 10. What are the main desktop and windows features? The desktop is the first interaction you have with the OS and the first image you see on your monitor once the system has bo
