The nucleus of an operating system. It is the closest part to the machine level and may activate the hardware directly or interface to another software layer that drives the hardware. The kernel orchestrates the entire operation of the computer by slicing time for each system function and each application as well as managing all the computer's resources. It typically resides in memory at all times. See microkernel, monolithic kernel, kernel space and kernel panic.
 | Reproduced with permission from Computer Desktop Encyclopedia. Copyright (c) 1981-2009 The Computer Language Company Inc. All rights reserved. |
Additional Resources
- HP debuts iPAQ Glisten, 3G Windows Mobile 6.5 world phone on AT&T
- FAIL!It's running Windows Mobile....FAIL! A phone is only as good as the OS that is on it. So long Windows Mobile...It has been replaced by Open_Source technologies and Android/Apple phones that work!;)Next up Google Chrome OS will take on Windows.It is going to be interesting.I agreeandroid and Linux is the...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-24
- Chrome OS will rise or fall on the safety dance
- Scare tactics against Chrome OSI can see Microsoft really did the 'safety dance' with Windows it has been so successful...Chrome_OS is an entirely different modular approach plus they are using Open_Source with NO limitation of how high they can reach. I find it amazing anyone with a straight face say...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-24
- DoubleCommand 1.6.9 (Mac)
- DoubleCommand is a Mac OS X kernel extension that lets you rearrange many modifier keys for the layout you want.
- Software downloads 2009-11-24
- Chrome OS: More questions than answers?
- And exactly why....would students be part of the target market or any other particular group for that matter?This is a silly post. Chrome will be lean, cloud based, local caching of data, some and growing off-line capabilities and probably grow in features/capabilities over time. It will NOT be everything to...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-23
- Beware business cloud dangers, says EU agency
- Spoken like someone without a clueBut then again, what can be expected from trolls anymore?Originality?Security & AccessGrant the LEAST amount of access for the end user.DENY then ALLOW, why would you open up Port 80 to the world if you only do business in the United States or local area...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-23
- Chrome OS - The good, the bad and the ugly, and how it fits in with Windows, Mac and Linux
- Chrome OS - The good, the bad and the ugly, and how it fits in with WindowsI gave it some thought too and realized that Chrome OS only has the bad and the ugly. There is nothing good about it. All data stored in the cloud, and on Google's...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-20
- Chrome OS will give Microsoft a run for their money
- SilverLight draws circles around Google's gimmickCompare SL's demo w/ that of ChromeOS and see it for yourself the truth: The former completely owns the latter.RE: Chrome OS will give Microsoft a run for their moneyWhat kool aid are you drinking? NOTHING is secure, and Google wants to take over everything....
- Discussion threads 2009-11-19
- Inside the Google Chrome OS security model
- The proof will be in implementationAll of these lofty goals are one thing. Making it happen in code is quite another. It sounds like they are just giving a laundry list of what people want them to say. I'm in the "believe it when I see it" camp. Good intentions...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-19
- Google makes Chrome OS open source today
- Contrary to rumors, Google did not release a beta version of its much anticipated Chrome operating system today. And nothing is coming anytime soon: the final version is at least a year away, the mega giant web company said. But there was some significant news for the...
- Blog posts 2009-11-19
- Chrome OS: Some Early Preview Videos
- google should move away from linuxI suppose they could easily take away all those messes of the current os by doing that. Haha! Crummy-um "Chromium OS and Open Source" video-- the guy is calling it Crummy-um! Sounds about right.RE: Chrome OS: Some Early Preview VideosAnd ZDNet falls hook, line,...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-19
- FAA hit with network glitch; Flight plans go manual
- Another glitch with a linux network? Its hard to believe people still use it for anything critical like the FAA and flight tracking. Its a toy OS and should not be used when the lives of people are dependent upon it.Cisco supplies the network backboneIt will be interesting to see...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-19
- Users should be smug, and why the Apple iPhone makes you feel smarter
- It works and it is NOT MicrosoftIt is so nice when people have the option to choose what they want than some lethargic aged NT kernel that is a virus/worm magnet.GOOD bye Windows Mobile it was as if you never existed!ha haI am happy!:)Now to get rid of Windows on...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-19
- Do we need a 'beautiful mess' in operating systems? Yup
- To make a good soup, you've got to stir the pot...Ok, sure - it turns cloudy, short-term. Just be sure to filter it or let it settle, before serving.Whereas the classic 'design-by-committee' model so often fails, its always useful to have multiple, talented teams working on similar projects, independently. With...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-19
- IceClean 3.3.2 (Mac)
- IceClean is a powerful Finder and System optimization tool using ONLY built-in Unix system tasks to help your System stay healthy and to keep it running smoothly. IceClean lets you execute the following tasks: System Maintenance Process & Infos Periodic Routine Scripts Verify Preferences .plist files Repair Permissions Update Prebindings...
- Software downloads 2009-11-19
- Mozilla locks out rogue Firefox add-ons
- Firefox has conquered IEIt is evident that Firefox free has conquered IE, plus the fact the majority of sites work regardless of browser.The days of this old bait & switch from MS are over.But I thought the whole point behind "open source"......was to allow ANYONE to put code in their...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-18
- Microsoft Office 2010, SharePoint 2010 public betas now available for download
- Microsoft still firmly planted in the LAST century.NTLinux Kernel speaks?Hmmm, I'd fear for the future of Linux if this is what comes out of it. You'd think the "many eyes" would have caught such silly logic in the kernel years ago...and looking ready to dominate this oneas well.Google is...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-18
- Cray XT5 Jaguar bests IBM Roadrunner as world's fastest supercomputer
- What operating systems are they running on?Just curious. :-)RE: Cray XT5 Jaguar bests IBM Roadrunner as world's fastest supercomputerFrom:http://www.nccs.gov/jaguar/#fragment-1Each node runs Cray's version of the SuSE Linux operating system. Cray has tuned the Linux kernel to remove unnecessary services from the compute nodes. The result is that the operating system...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-16
- 32- or 64-bit Kernel Startup Mode Selector 1.5 (Mac)
- This program is free though donations are welcome. 100% of all donations go to the relief project "India's Street Kids" (for more info on the relief project see http://www.veronikawinter.de/Indien/ MacOS X 10.6 Snow Leopard is 64-bit - or is it? Well, actually MacOS X 10.6 Snow Leopard is...
- Software downloads 2009-11-14
- Your top Windows 7 questions, answered
- If we wanted tech stats on Linux we know the URLNever ceases to amaze me that people search for ways to say a whole lot of absolutely nothing relevant. Must be because they don't have an answer so they change topics. Typical!You beat me to it Ed!!!nt64-bit environment...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-12
- Broadcom goes open source and hell freezes over
- Does this mean...that Broadcom hardware drivers are going to be open source? Great. Just great. If you thought Broadcom network drivers suck bad now, just wait until they get released to the community...Fail to seewhat mechanism would make them "suck more"?If all that changes is that Broadcom...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-12
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