1. Operating System Definition
1.1. the software that controls the basic operation of a computer or computer network
1.2. noun Software designed to control the hardware of a specific data-processing system in order to allow users and application programs to make use of it.
2. PC Operating Systems
2.1. Ubuntu
2.1.1. Pros:
2.1.1.1. The installer itself can be very basic, with a “click next” wizard to install it, or gets more advanced with file system selections, partitioning, and adding additional mount points. Adding additional partitions can limit how much space is used for Music, Videos, or by Users home directories. Very good for a resource constrained system. The Installer also allows you to download the latest updates for system software if you are connected to the internet while running the installer. This is a long overdue feature for any operating system, and is a welcome addition.
2.1.1.2. Ubuntu 10.10 Desktop Edition: Booting from the CD/DVD drive works like a charm and presents and attractive selection to either try Ubuntu, or simply Install Ubuntu. The added advantage to “Trying” Ubuntu is that you get to have a useful, operational Operating System while you are installing it to your hard drive.
2.1.2. Cons:
2.1.2.1. Gone are the days of starting an installation and not being able to browse the internet!
2.1.2.2. A Downfall of the Ubuntu Installer is that it presents options for adding the Adobe Flash player and MP3 music playback as installable options, instead of defaulted options. This is a downside for most of us, is if we do not select to install this software at the begining, it can leave us wondering why our Music isn’t playing or Youtube isn’t working.
2.1.3. Ubuntu is a computer operating system based on the Debian GNU/Linux distribution and is distributed as free and open source software with additional proprietary software available. It is named after the Southern African ethical principle Ubuntu ("humanity towards others"). Ubuntu provides an up-to-date, stable operating system for the average user, with a strong focus on usability and ease of installation. Web statistics suggest that Ubuntu's share of Linux desktop usage is about 50%, and upward trending usage as a web server. Ubuntu is sponsored by the UK-based company Canonical Ltd.
2.2. Windows 7
2.2.1. Pros:
2.2.1.1. Windows 7 Home Premium: It looks great, and functions well. The new taskbar in Windows 7 is one of my favorite additions. Pinning applications (like in OSX’s dock) to the bar makes for quick launching, and easy task management. The Aero desktop effects, like the transparancy and shadows, work very well, and looks great!
2.2.2. Cons:
2.2.2.1. Windows 7 Home Premium: Booting from the installation disc works exactly like expected, and loads the Windows 7 installer.
2.2.2.2. Windows 7 is still taking a long time to load. Even after 3 boots, the lack of a decent boot cache slows down startup considerably.
2.2.2.3. The Windows 7 Installer is extermely easy to use for a basic installation, but more advanced options, like partition sizes, are harder to come by. While it is possible to setup a Windows 7 system with different partitions, there seems to be no added benefit in do so, as it will still use the C: for everything, and won’t help you live in your limited computing resources.
2.3. Mac OS X
2.3.1. Pros:
2.3.1.1. The nice thing, is once your done the partitioning, it’s an attractive installer. In just a couple of clicks, the job is done, and you have a working installation. OSX, although touted as easy to use, has more barriers to entry for the bare installation.
2.3.1.2. Mac OSX Snow Leopard: Apple provides a website, like Microsoft, that helps you find lot’s of software to experiment with. With no real installation for most applications, it’s a simple matter of dragging the application icon to your Applications directory in Finder. Easy to add and remove software this way. Just drag the application where you want it, and your good to go!
2.3.2. Cons:
2.3.2.1. Where the Mac OSX Installer fails, is in it’s partitioning. If the hard drive is blank, it will not initialize the drive itself. You need to start Disk Utility to do that, and setup the partitions yourself.
2.3.2.2. Apple’s Software Update application updates all of your Apple software, as well as Mac OSX very cleanly, with notifications telling you of available updates. Overall, the Mac OSX update process is clean and easy to do, if a little to infrequent for my tastes.
3. Sources 2011
3.1. http://bit.ly/anb8Iy
3.2. http://bit.ly/lIZbF4
3.3. http://bit.ly/fV8dtq
3.4. http://bit.ly/estv16
3.5. http://bit.ly/lyfEYN
3.6. http://bit.ly/flNMKJ
4. Definition of open source
4.1. For those of us who novices and lay people are often confused with the term open source itself. It is true we are using Linux as an open source operating system but sometimes we just lack an understanding of open source itself. After becoming a speaker at the seminar "Linux Fundamentals" in one of the Private University-Jogjakarta by bringing the topic "Introduction to Open Source", I came to know that the meaning of open source itself is not widely known by people who wrestle Linux. Here's my explanation for you to get to know about what it is Open Source.
4.2. How important is open source in terms of security? Have you ever imagined when you use software like Coreldraw, Autocad, Photoshop was tucked behind the sophistication of software programming commands evil. Do not we do not know the source of the software proprietary / licensed software as I mentioned earlier? Do not we do not know what the commands that occurs when you click the button the software installation on your computer? If I was the bad guy of course I could insert the command to copy your personal data through a software license that I have created yourself. Of course you would not know evil intent I have not seen the source when I make it? In open source, we can feel relieved. Because all source and programming commands can be clearly seen. We can find out if there is malicious code in the application.
5. Smartphone Operating Systems
5.1. iOS
5.1.1. Pros:
5.1.1.1. In our experience iOS has turned out to be the easiest mobile operating system, where everything was so clear and obvious that anyone who used it for the first time, regardless of age, could figure it out without having to refer to a manual. The reason for this is that it does not assume that the user knows how to use it and because of that you can go around doing basic things without any help. It is incredibly intuitive and makes you wonder why others haven't figured out a way to make their software work this way. It feels as if it was designed with regular human beings in mind, not robots or geeks. We loved the keyboard especially.
5.1.1.2. This is one area where iOS pulls out a massive lead ahead of all the other platforms here. Being around the longest has certainly benefitted it and there are millions of applications available on the App Store right now waiting to be downloaded. Granted that more than half of them are not worth a second look but there are some really brilliant apps here. In fact, the general quality of applications available is the highest among all the smartphone platforms. Some of these apps have truly revolutionized the way we use our smartphones and in a way that not even Apple would have imagined when they made the iPhone. If apps are all you care about more than the device, then iOS is the platform to be on right now.
5.1.2. Cons:
5.1.2.1. Features was never a strong point of iOS, but over the years Apple has added a lot of functionality to the OS, such as the ability to install applications, multitasking, copy-paste, folders, etc. iOS today leaves very little room for complaint. However, there are some things that Apple is yet to take care of such as Bluetooth file transfers, file manager, mass storage, homescreen widgets and FM radio to name a few, but we have a feeling none of these will ever be addressed.
5.1.2.2. When iOS first came out, it wowed the world with its fluid interface that ran perfectly even on the modest hardware of the first generation iPhone. Over the years the OS has become heavier and the proof of this is the way the iPhone 3G struggles with iOS 4.0. But try the same OS on an iPhone 4 and you will notice a world of difference. The UI is silky smooth throughout with no noticeable sluggishness. Even when switching between multiple applications, the UI maintains its smoothness without faltering.
5.2. Android
5.2.1. Pros:
5.2.1.1. Next in line of intuitiveness is Android. It does not have the same level of simplicity as iOS, were you can detach you brain and still manage to work the interface, but it is still very easy nonetheless. Unfortunately, you would rarely get to use stock Android on every phone you use, which means if you are someone who's not a geek and are used to, say, an HTC Android phone, you will be lost when you pick up a Samsung Android phone.
5.2.1.2. Android's biggest advantage over iOS has been the features and with the latest release Android has almost every feature that you could want, whether it is multitasking, widgets, tethering, Wi-Fi hotspot or Adobe Flash support. It feels the most complete out of all the four platforms here in terms of features, and if features are all that you are looking for then you would be happiest with Android.
5.2.2. Cons:
5.2.2.1. Also, Android does not use the GPU to render the on-screen images, which means the CPU is overburdened, causing further slowdowns. Still, with some optimization, Android can be made to work pretty well on slower devices.
5.2.2.2. Something similar has been observed in case of Android. As long as you provide it with fast hardware, it runs fine but tends to choke on slower devices. However, unlike iOS, even when running on faster hardware, Android is never perfectly smooth. At times you will notice unexpected and inexplicable slowdowns while going through the UI, which deters from the overall experience. Google has also added unnecessary eye candy to the UI, which also tends to bog down devices with less than perfect hardware.
5.3. RIM
5.3.1. Pros:
5.3.1.1. Data Compression: Without this feature, the purpose of a blackberry will be defeated in my own opinion. Techies have said that data transmitted via RIM servers to BlackBerry phones are compressed to almost half their size thereby saving you huge costs that could be accrued due to severe bandwidth depletion. The BlackBerry data compression accounts for why you could have tons of apps running on your phone at the same time and at the end of the day, you realize that you haven’t even used up to 2MB for that day Winking smile. This is not the case with regular smartphones that lack the data compression technology. In times when the network is somewhat of bad and data transmission is shaky, you can be rest assured that you’ll be able to get your emails as they’ll be compressed to so tiny a size that makes them easily transmittable Winking smile.
5.3.1.2. Awesome QWERTY keyboard: Blackberry devices have been known for their awesome keyboards which make typing so easy and fluid once you’ve gotten used to the small keys that is Winking smile. I tried typing fast on the Nokia C3 and noticed that the soft feel of the keys didn’t help matters at all. Maybe I was just used to the regular, computer like keyboard of the BlackBerry Winking smile.
5.3.2. Cons:
5.3.2.1. File Download Limit: Depending on the model and OS of your blackberry phone, you could experience difficulty downloading large files of over 2.9MB to 4.8MB. This is quite frustrating especially when you don’t have access to your computer and you really need to download a software or pdf for immediate use
5.3.2.2. No YouTube streaming: Watching YouTube videos on your BlackBerry device is next to impossible as far as I know ’cause BlackBerry doesn’t support streaming of FLV files. What I do is download them in 3GP or MP4 format via Tubezen.
5.4. Symbian
5.4.1. Pros:
5.4.1.1. When it comes to features, Symbian ^3 is no slouch either. You will find almost every feature here that you get on Android, along with some that you don't, such as FM radio and USB On-the-Go connectivity. You even get multiple homescreens (three, to be exact) and widgets for them, which are very handy. Features like multi-tasking and copy paste, something others have just discovered and others are yet to, have always been part of Symbian since the first iteration several years ago and have been executed perfectly. Symbian ^3 has most of the features that you would want and there wasn't anything that we felt it should have that it didn't.
5.4.1.2. Since the OS is so light, it removes the need to unnecessarily jack up the hardware and burn more battery in the process. This is why Symbian phones have the best battery life among smartphones. Nokia has also made good use of the on-board GPU to render all the on-screen images, leaving the CPU free to handle other tasks. When it comes to UI smoothness, Windows Phone 7 is unbeatable. That's mostly because it is always sitting on powerful hardware, but also because the OS is well optimized for it. This is another good example of the kind of performance you get when you know what the weakest device your software would work on and then optimize it accordingly.
5.4.2. Cons:
5.4.2.1. Using the early versions of Symbian S60 5th Edition was as much fun as amputating your arm with a dull blade. The UI was designed for phones with keypads and Nokia had done little to ensure that it was usable, if not a pleasure. That's not the case with Symbian ^3, however, which feels miles ahead in terms of usability.
5.4.2.2. Symbian 3 borrows the basic UI design of its predecessor and improves upon it. Despite that the end result is not something that one would call modern. You can see the roots of the operating systems, such as the soft keys at the bottom of the screen that were necessary for devices with buttons and a scroll bar for when there was no kinetic scrolling. It does not look bad per se, but it is not in the same league as others. Luckily, it is skinnable, so you can give a new look to it with a custom skin, although don't expect to make a swan out of a goose.