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Computer science OCR GCSE
PAPER 1
System software
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Cards (26)
Operating
systems manage
hardware
and run software
Give
some functions of the OS
Communicate with
internal
and
external
hardware
Provide user
interface
Provide a
platform
for running applications
Allow
multi-tasking
Deal with
file
management and
disk
management
Manage system
security
(user accounts and access levels)
What
do device drivers do?
Allow the
OS
and hardware to
talk
to each other
Device drivers act as
translators
for the signals between
OS
and hardware
When a new hardware is connected, the
matching
device drivers will be
installed
Updates to
device drivers
happen
automatically
What does a user interface do?
Allows the user to
interact
with a
computer system
Give an example of a user interface
GUI
-
graphical user interface
(
for everyday use
)
What is a command line interfaced based as?
text-based
How does the OS allow
multitasking
?
By
managing
resources
and
running multiple applications
at the
same time
What does a memory manager do to assist multitasking?
allocates
certain applications
certain memory locations
, so they are stored
separately
and don't
overwrite
each other.
The OS helps to manage the flow of data by using what?
memory buffers
The OS handles
file
and
disk
management
The OS may include utility software. Give some examples.
File compression software
Encryption software
Defragmentation software
The OS can be
single-user
or
multi-user.
What do defragmentation utilities do?
Put
broken
up files back
together
When does fragmentation occur?
When files are
moved
,
deleted
and
change size.
What does fragmentation cause?
small
gaps
appear on the
disk
How does a fragmented disk affect speed?
Makes
reading
and writing files
slower
Defragmentation software does what to data?
reorganises it
What type of storage isn't affected by fragmentation?
SSDs
Why does fragmentation affect hard disks but not SSDs?
SSDs don't have moving
parts
but hard disk have a head that moves
back
and forth
Compression software does what?
reduces
file size by
permanently
or
temporarily
removing data from them
Encryption software can help protect what?
files
and
data
What does encryption software do?
scrambles
data to stop
third
parties from
accessing
it
What is needed to decrypt data?
a
key