Functions of operating system: 1 goal of an OS is a convenience for the user.

It provides a stable, consistent way for applications to deal with the hardware, without knowing the details of the hardware. Another goal is the efficient operation of a computer system. It manages the hardware & software. In a PC, these resources include things like processor, memory, disk space, & more. On a cell phone, they include the keypad, the screen, the address book, the phone dialer, the battery & the network connection. An effective operating system should accomplish all of the foll.: Implementing the user interface Sharing hardware among users Allowing users to share data among themselves Preventing users from interfering with one another Scheduling resources among users Facilitating input/output Recovering from errors Accounting for resource usage Facilitating parallel operations Organizing data for secure and rapid access Handling network communications

Through system programs such as editor and translators and the various utility programs (file transfer program) are not considered part of the operating system.