The introduction of the Windows 8 operating system in 2012 is a big leap into the future. Into the future where the computing is lot easier and beyond our imaginations. And machines take over labor of people. There were many operating systems prior to the Microsoft Windows series, their first development dates back to 1956.

Actually there is a lot than that meets the eye with the operating systems. They are the unsung heroes in a computer, and are active the entire time your computer is ON.

Nowadays, most of the computers (by computers we refer to all types of computers) are preloaded with Microsoft Windows operating system and the Macintosh computers are preloaded with Mac OS X. Similarly the Linux operating systems are also the famous lot.

Basically, to quote it in one line the operating system (OS) is the heart of the computer. Though you have some prior idea about the operating systems, this article highlights various key points that help you understand the operating systems much better.

If you consider the broader sense of the word computer, any device which is capable of performing tasks based on its binary calculations can be considered a computer. So many of the electronic devices we use can literally be called computers.

If that particular electronic device performs only one particular task, it doesn’t need any operating system (for instance a washing machine).

The operating system is the most important software in your computer which co-ordinates each and every task within the computer. It is the software which manages all the other software and the computer hardware.

For programs it provides an environment to execute and for users it acts as a communication tool (to interact with the computer).

The modern operating systems differ from each other mainly in the user experience perspective. The most commonly used operating systems include the Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X and Linux.