Week 8

In this week's lecture we learned one of the most fundamental and imperative computer software entities known as the operating system. The operating system plays an instrumental role in the way that we organize and process information that is stored in our computer. One of the main benefits of operating systems is that it allows files and information on the hard drive to be accessed timely and efficiently. If no operating system existed we would inevitable need to know very technical information such as which sector is the information stored on in the hard drive. In fact, one file may be split multiple sectors of a hard drive and this would provide a headache to a regular individual looking to retrieve that file. This is also a form of protection for the user as the OS ensures that no human action will render the information and the operational capacity of the computer to be compromised. In a sense the OS is a layer of protection. There are 3 different types of OS's in the market, Windows, Mac and Linux. The latter of course being free and open source. The operating system the professor recommended using was the one that the user was most comfortable with. Further, it was also advised that it may be a good idea to get the operating system that your friend are using because if an issue arises close colleagues can be a source of excellent troubleshooting. It's also important choosing an OS that will allow you to run your desired programs. For myself personally, I'm a big proponent of the windows ecosystem. I am at heart a big gamer and unfortunately directx is a standard that only exists on Windows. Most games use directx and a large reason as to why Windows is the OS of choice for those involved in gaming.

In the tutorial for this week we attempted more recursions. The recursions were slightly harder but asking questions in class and attempting it myself first was a good way to wrap the mind around the material. I love recursions and again this allowed me to do quite well on the test.