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M1

Unit 2: Task 4

Operating Systems


Mac

The Mac operating system was made by 'apple' being the manufacturer and is an interface that allows a user to access and interact with a computer system and run various programs and accessibles. The Mac organises folders and files by allowing the user to create, name, rename folders and also colour folders - to colour code folders into organisation. The Mac also allows you to see thumbnails for files such as word documents and images, etc... (The colour code feature is something that the Windows operating system doesn't have). On the Mac, folder icons show up as folders which inside them can consist of certain document types. The Icons on a Mac are also a guide to organising because certain file types (provided you have the right software to run them) have icons that are the same and can be grouped together or distinguished from other files. Names of files can also be organised. Name types like exe, doc, xps, JPEG, Bitmap, etc.. can be sorted apart from each other from the different names. On a mac, the main window that has all your documents in it will have a column on the left-hand side of it showing you different folders and documents in different areas of your Mac. This is a quick access feature and you can also drag and drop folders into this column to organise work into selected or custom folders and to get to work quickly. You can flick through the files in these folders and see the contents in the space above the files. This feature is the cover flow which allows you to see the contents of you file without having to open it up.

The 'Dock' on a Mac is the shortcut to applications installed on it. It can be adjusted so that it shows up all the time, is hidden so that it only appears when your mouse scrolls over it and the size of the dock can be adjusted too along with the number of applications you have in the dock. This makes the space on the Mac very clean looking and not like everything is scattered about in different places. The System Preferences window is the key to changing settings on a Mac.

Systempreferences
System_preferences
(The 'dock' above)

The Mac is very basic in using peripherals. The keyboard itself is a peripheral and as one, it connects easily through the USB ports, same with the mouse. These peripherals still need device drivers in order to alow them to function properly. The mouse can also be wireless but it is an easy setup - a simple matter of plugging one in or setting one up for bluetooth connection. By turning bluetooth on, on a Mac with buit in bluetooth or having a wireless bluetooth adapter, a wireless device may connect providing that the Mac system is up to date. Some hardware when plugged into a Mac has to go through iTunes to move files,

 

Syncing Bluetooth devices with your Mac (From http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1153)

  1. Make sure that your computer has Bluetooth
    Make sure that your computer has Bluetooth built-in or that a compatible Bluetooth adapter is connected. Open System Preferences (from the Apple menu, choose System Preferences), then choose Bluetooth from theView menu.
  2. Turn on Bluetooth
    In Bluetooth preferences, select the "On" checkbox (for earlier Mac OS X versions, click the Settings tab, then click Bluetooth Power: On). Make sure that you also enable Bluetooth on your device, too; refer to your device's documentation for instructions. If you want your Mac to be discoverable, select that option as well.
  3. Set up a new device
    To set up a Bluetooth device, click “Set Up New Device” (in earlier Mac OS X versions, click the Devices tab in Bluetooth, then click "Set Up New Device"). Follow the onscreen instructions to set up your device. 

    To set up an Apple Wireless Keyboard and Mouse in earlier Mac OS X versions, open System Preferences, click Keyboard & Mouse, click the Bluetooth tab, and then click “Set Up New Device” to open the Bluetooth Setup Assistant. Follow the onscreen instructions to set up your keyboard and mouse.

The security on the Mac operating system has no need for antivirus software because there are no known viruses for the Mac. The security centre and constant scanning are out of the question because it is such a tight operating system and ultimatley beats Microsoft windows in that area. A Mac may also have passwords set for user accounts, applications and files so that no-one other than those who know the password can use.

The energy saving settings on a Mac can be maually set to go to a screen saver, and sleep mode to a certain set time in order to preserve battery. The screen brightness also effects the battery-life settings. By having the brightness at a low setting, less battery life is used.

Spaces

Spaces on a Mac is quite a nifty featuer for when you have many windows open and are trying to keep everything from being messy and having to minimise windows constantly. What spaces does is: Its allows the user to have multiple desktops open at a time to work on. this can be variable from two seperate desktops to sixteen different desktops.

Accounts

On a Mac, you may set up various accounts with or without passwords and restrictions to certain applications and settings. Doing this is very easy and is about the same as the Windows operating system's run of processes to do so.

Accounts

Time Machine

Timemachine

Microsoft Windows

The Microsoft Windows operating system was made by 'Microsoft' and is an interface which too, allows you to use a computer and interact with it's features, accessories, programs, etc... Windows has ways of managing files by allowing the user to create, name and even choose a thumbnail for a file. You may also change the 'Icon' of a file to make it more distinguishable than other files. One last feature is the 'Briefcase' which allows you to organise and update data when the user wants to. (diagram below is self explanitory).

Posterous1

 

The 'start' menu on a Windows PC consists of the most recently used programs, My Documents, My Recent Documents, My Pictures, My Music, My Computer, Control Panel, Set Program access and defaults, Connect To, Printers a Faxes, Help and Support, Search and Run.There is also a tab which says 'All Programs' on it which is a list to all applications and programs that are installed on your computer. It is a large layout which can become very messy-looking and complex which is why when programs are installed, optional shortcuts on the Desktop are made. All the folders like 'My Documents' and/or 'My Pictures' on the start menu make it easier to organise files and access file types of the user's choice quickly. The start menu is essentially the key to getting around the whole computer from Disk drives and Hardware to Pictures and Music.

 

 

 

 

P3/D1

Unit 2: Task 3/Task 5


Antivirus software & Firewalls

Antivirus software’s purpose is to protect your computer from viruses and malware while firewalls protect you from harmful websites that can potentially damage/harm your computer which can either permanently damage your computer or lead to a number of different things depending on how the computer is damaged. Firewalls can have settings to how high the protection is and which websites and what kind of websites would be banned or protected against to minimise computer damage. An Antivirus software like ‘Avast Antivirus’ is free for the coverage of your own computer and protection from potential risks, viruses and malware. By paying, you can have all computers in your house protected against not only against viruses, malware and potential risks that can damage your computer but also it filter’s internet files and e-mail to narrow it down from spam to e-mails you can trust. The Avast Antivirus also has a sandbox feature which allows you to open a program under the surveillance of Avast which then checks if the program is safe or if it has any viruses or malware attached to it. By having an Antivirus software scan your computer daily, it can find corrupted and damaged files which can potentially slow your computer down. What some antiviruses can do is delete or try to fix the damaged files to stop your computer from slowing down.  This can also help speed up your computer and increase the performance.

 

 

Clean up tools for removal of cookies, Internet history and defragmentation

Clean up tools are on the Control Panel in Internet Options on a Windows computer.


Internet-option

In temporary internet files, you can clean your computer up by deleting cookies that are saved from websites, passwords saved on the computer, internet webpage history and form data which is saved data that is typed into forms e.g. surveys online like an auto-fill feature. By deleting these stored files, you can improve your computer's performance because less space is being used up for saved passwords, history, etc...

 

On Internet explorer there is ‘InPrivate’ Browsing which allows you to use the internet without your computer saving any history, cookies, form data or temporary internet files. This enables the user to have no saved excess memory on their computer and thus having nothing to clean up. Defragmenting is a process of which that your computer’s fragmented files are defragmented. Fragmented files can slow your computer processes and can leave your computer running very slow. Defragmentation and optimizing your computer’s disk drives makes it so that your computer takes less time to load programs and enables your computer to run smoother with the best settings.

 

Drive Formatting

By formatting your drive, you can clear all data on your computer and return it to factory condition so that the computer is in a brand new condition where the files are all default. You can also format your computer to save certain parts of your computer  to keep while clearing sections you don't need or want. By cleaning up your disk drives, you end up with more space in the drives that have been formatted which allows your computer to run faster and smoother.