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Computer & IT · Topic 2

Operating systems

What an operating system does and the main operating systems.

Explanation 218 MCQs Free timed quizzes
Computer & IT

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Explanation

Learn what an operating system does and who makes the main ones.

Functions

  • An operating system manages memory, processes, files and devices, and gives the user an interface.
  • A GUI (graphical user interface) uses windows and icons; a CLI (command-line interface) uses typed commands, as in MS-DOS.
  • Booting is starting the computer: a cold boot starts it from off; a warm boot restarts it.
  • Multitasking runs several programs at once.

Main operating systems

  • Windows is made by Microsoft; macOS and iOS by Apple.
  • Linux was created by Linus Torvalds in 1991 and is open source.
  • Android, developed by Google, is based on the Linux kernel.
  • Windows file systems include NTFS and FAT32.

Practise

Operating systems MCQs

Try each question, then open the answer. MCQs 51–100 of 218.

51.The file extension ".xlsx" belongs to which program?

  1. A. Microsoft Word
  2. B. Microsoft PowerPoint
  3. C. Microsoft Excel
  4. D. Microsoft Access
Show answer

Answer: C. Microsoft Excel

.xlsx is the Excel workbook format.

52.The file extension ".pptx" belongs to which program?

  1. A. Microsoft Publisher
  2. B. Microsoft Excel
  3. C. Microsoft Word
  4. D. Microsoft PowerPoint
Show answer

Answer: D. Microsoft PowerPoint

.pptx is the PowerPoint presentation format.

53.Which file format is commonly used for documents that look the same on every device?

  1. A. HTML
  2. B. DOCX
  3. C. PDF
  4. D. TXT
Show answer

Answer: C. PDF

Adobe created PDF (Portable Document Format).

54.Which company created the PDF format?

  1. A. Microsoft
  2. B. Google
  3. C. Apple
  4. D. Adobe
Show answer

Answer: D. Adobe

Adobe introduced PDF in 1993.

55.Which of these is a compressed file format?

  1. A. TXT
  2. B. MP3
  3. C. JPG
  4. D. ZIP
Show answer

Answer: D. ZIP

ZIP bundles and compresses files.

56.Which of these is an image file format?

  1. A. MP4
  2. B. DOCX
  3. C. WAV
  4. D. JPEG
Show answer

Answer: D. JPEG

JPEG, PNG and GIF are image formats.

57.Which of these is an audio file format?

  1. A. PDF
  2. B. MP4
  3. C. MP3
  4. D. PNG
Show answer

Answer: C. MP3

MP3 is a compressed audio format.

58.Which of these is a video file format?

  1. A. GIF only
  2. B. CSV
  3. C. MP3
  4. D. MP4
Show answer

Answer: D. MP4

MP4 is a common video format.

59.Running several programs at the same time is called what?

  1. A. Multiprocessing only
  2. B. Time-sharing only
  3. C. Batch processing
  4. D. Multitasking
Show answer

Answer: D. Multitasking

Multitasking lets the OS switch between programs.

60.Using two or more CPUs in one computer is called what?

  1. A. Multiprocessing
  2. B. Multithreading
  3. C. Multitasking
  4. D. Multiprogramming
Show answer

Answer: A. Multiprocessing

Multiprocessing uses several processors.

61.An operating system that responds to inputs immediately, used in aircraft and medical devices, is called what?

  1. A. Real-time operating system
  2. B. Distributed system
  3. C. Batch operating system
  4. D. Time-sharing system
Show answer

Answer: A. Real-time operating system

Real-time OSs guarantee a response within a fixed time.

62.An OS that processes jobs in groups without user interaction is called what?

  1. A. Batch operating system
  2. B. Network operating system
  3. C. Mobile operating system
  4. D. Real-time operating system
Show answer

Answer: A. Batch operating system

Batch systems were common on early mainframes.

63.A program in execution is called what?

  1. A. Kernel
  2. B. Process
  3. C. Thread only
  4. D. File
Show answer

Answer: B. Process

The OS schedules and manages processes.

64.Deciding which process uses the CPU next is called what?

  1. A. Booting
  2. B. Spooling
  3. C. Paging
  4. D. CPU scheduling
Show answer

Answer: D. CPU scheduling

The scheduler picks the next process to run.

65.Sending print jobs to a queue so the computer can keep working is called what?

  1. A. Paging
  2. B. Spooling
  3. C. Caching
  4. D. Buffering only
Show answer

Answer: B. Spooling

SPOOL stands for Simultaneous Peripheral Operations On-Line.

66.A situation where two processes each wait for the other forever is called what?

  1. A. Overflow
  2. B. Deadlock
  3. C. Thrashing
  4. D. Starvation
Show answer

Answer: B. Deadlock

In a deadlock, neither process can continue.

67.Excessive swapping of pages between RAM and disk that slows a computer is called what?

  1. A. Thrashing
  2. B. Booting
  3. C. Deadlock
  4. D. Spooling
Show answer

Answer: A. Thrashing

Thrashing happens when RAM is too small for the running programs.

68.Dividing memory into fixed-size blocks is called what?

  1. A. Formatting
  2. B. Segmentation only
  3. C. Paging
  4. D. Partitioning
Show answer

Answer: C. Paging

Paging lets the OS use virtual memory.

69.Which mode lets Windows start with only basic drivers to fix problems?

  1. A. Tablet Mode
  2. B. Airplane Mode
  3. C. Safe Mode
  4. D. Sleep Mode
Show answer

Answer: C. Safe Mode

Safe Mode loads a minimal set of drivers.

70.Which power-saving mode saves open work to the hard disk and switches the computer off?

  1. A. Lock
  2. B. Hibernate
  3. C. Sleep
  4. D. Log off
Show answer

Answer: B. Hibernate

Hibernate saves memory contents to disk.

71.Which power-saving mode keeps work in RAM and uses very little power?

  1. A. Hibernate
  2. B. Sleep
  3. C. Restart
  4. D. Shut down
Show answer

Answer: B. Sleep

Sleep resumes quickly but needs some power.

72.Which Windows feature keeps the system up to date with security fixes?

  1. A. Task Scheduler
  2. B. System Restore
  3. C. Windows Update
  4. D. Disk Cleanup
Show answer

Answer: C. Windows Update

Windows Update installs patches.

73.Which Windows feature returns the system to an earlier working state?

  1. A. System Restore
  2. B. Windows Update
  3. C. Disk Cleanup
  4. D. Device Manager
Show answer

Answer: A. System Restore

System Restore uses saved restore points.

74.Which Windows tool lists hardware and their drivers?

  1. A. File Explorer
  2. B. Task Manager
  3. C. Device Manager
  4. D. Event Viewer
Show answer

Answer: C. Device Manager

Device Manager shows devices and lets you update drivers.

75.Windows' built-in antivirus is called what?

  1. A. Kaspersky
  2. B. Avast
  3. C. Microsoft Defender
  4. D. Norton
Show answer

Answer: C. Microsoft Defender

Microsoft Defender protects Windows against malware.

76.Which Windows feature encrypts whole drives?

  1. A. OneDrive
  2. B. Defender
  3. C. Firewall
  4. D. BitLocker
Show answer

Answer: D. BitLocker

BitLocker encrypts drives to protect data.

77.Microsoft's cloud storage service built into Windows is called what?

  1. A. Dropbox
  2. B. iCloud
  3. C. OneDrive
  4. D. Google Drive
Show answer

Answer: C. OneDrive

OneDrive syncs files to Microsoft's cloud.

78.Apple's cloud storage service is called what?

  1. A. Dropbox
  2. B. Google Drive
  3. C. OneDrive
  4. D. iCloud
Show answer

Answer: D. iCloud

iCloud syncs Apple devices.

79.Apple's voice assistant is called what?

  1. A. Siri
  2. B. Bixby
  3. C. Cortana
  4. D. Alexa
Show answer

Answer: A. Siri

Siri was introduced on the iPhone 4S in 2011.

80.Amazon's voice assistant is called what?

  1. A. Alexa
  2. B. Siri
  3. C. Cortana
  4. D. Bixby
Show answer

Answer: A. Alexa

Alexa runs on Amazon Echo devices.

81.Samsung's voice assistant is called what?

  1. A. Siri
  2. B. Bixby
  3. C. Alexa
  4. D. Cortana
Show answer

Answer: B. Bixby

Bixby is built into Samsung phones.

82.Which app store is used on Android phones?

  1. A. App Store
  2. B. Google Play Store
  3. C. Galaxy Hub
  4. D. Microsoft Store
Show answer

Answer: B. Google Play Store

Google Play is Android's main app store.

83.Apple's app store for iPhones is called what?

  1. A. App Store
  2. B. Google Play
  3. C. Apple Market
  4. D. iStore
Show answer

Answer: A. App Store

Apple's App Store opened in 2008.

84.An app that runs inside a web browser rather than being installed is called what?

  1. A. Native app
  2. B. Web application
  3. C. Firmware
  4. D. Driver
Show answer

Answer: B. Web application

Web apps run in browsers such as Chrome.

85.Which of these is a web browser?

  1. A. Windows 11
  2. B. Microsoft Word
  3. C. Linux
  4. D. Mozilla Firefox
Show answer

Answer: D. Mozilla Firefox

Firefox, Chrome, Edge and Safari are browsers.

86.Which company makes the Chrome browser?

  1. A. Mozilla
  2. B. Apple
  3. C. Microsoft
  4. D. Google
Show answer

Answer: D. Google

Google released Chrome in 2008.

87.Microsoft's current web browser is called what?

  1. A. Internet Explorer
  2. B. Edge
  3. C. Safari
  4. D. Opera
Show answer

Answer: B. Edge

Edge replaced Internet Explorer, which was retired in 2022.

88.Apple's web browser is called what?

  1. A. Edge
  2. B. Safari
  3. C. Chrome
  4. D. Firefox
Show answer

Answer: B. Safari

Safari is the default browser on Apple devices.

89.Which was the first popular graphical web browser?

  1. A. Opera
  2. B. Mosaic
  3. C. Netscape Navigator
  4. D. Internet Explorer
Show answer

Answer: B. Mosaic

Mosaic (1993) led to Netscape.

90.Which of these is a virtualisation program that runs one OS inside another?

  1. A. WinRAR
  2. B. Photoshop
  3. C. VirtualBox
  4. D. Excel
Show answer

Answer: C. VirtualBox

VirtualBox and VMware create virtual machines.

91.The administrator account in Linux is called what?

  1. A. Root
  2. B. Guest
  3. C. Admin
  4. D. Administrator
Show answer

Answer: A. Root

The root user has full control in Linux.

92.Which Linux command lists the files in a directory?

  1. A. cp
  2. B. cd
  3. C. ls
  4. D. rm
Show answer

Answer: C. ls

ls lists files; cd changes directory.

93.Which Windows command-line command lists files?

  1. A. list
  2. B. ls
  3. C. dir
  4. D. show
Show answer

Answer: C. dir

dir lists the files in the current folder.

94.Which command checks if another computer on a network can be reached?

  1. A. dir
  2. B. format
  3. C. ping
  4. D. copy
Show answer

Answer: C. ping

ping sends test packets and reports replies.

95.Which Windows command shows the computer's IP configuration?

  1. A. ping
  2. B. netstat
  3. C. tracert
  4. D. ipconfig
Show answer

Answer: D. ipconfig

ipconfig shows IP addresses and network settings.

96.An OS that manages a network of computers and shared resources is called what?

  1. A. Embedded OS
  2. B. Single-user OS
  3. C. Batch OS
  4. D. Network operating system
Show answer

Answer: D. Network operating system

Windows Server and Linux servers are network operating systems.

97.An OS built into devices such as washing machines and smart TVs is called what?

  1. A. Batch operating system
  2. B. Desktop operating system
  3. C. Network operating system
  4. D. Embedded operating system
Show answer

Answer: D. Embedded operating system

Embedded OSs run on dedicated devices.

98.Which Windows version was released in 2001 and became one of the most widely used ever?

  1. A. Windows 2000
  2. B. Windows ME
  3. C. Windows XP
  4. D. Windows Vista
Show answer

Answer: C. Windows XP

Windows XP was supported until 2014.

99.Which Windows version was released in 2007 after XP?

  1. A. Windows 8
  2. B. Windows 2000
  3. C. Windows 7
  4. D. Windows Vista
Show answer

Answer: D. Windows Vista

Vista was followed by Windows 7 in 2009.

100.Windows 7 was released in which year?

  1. A. 2015
  2. B. 2007
  3. C. 2009
  4. D. 2012
Show answer

Answer: C. 2009

Windows 7 came out in October 2009.

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