MS-DOS : MS-DOS MicroSoft – Disk Operating System
INTRODUCTION : INTRODUCTION MS-DOS, by MicroSoft Corporation, is an operating system which comes under the purview of system software. It is designed to handle the working of the computer, like handling memory, input/output devices, handling files and directories, etc. There are many other operating systems like UNIX, Windows 98, Windows NT, Novell Netware, etc.
COMMAND : COMMAND Command is another name given to an instruction. Every operating system has its own set of commands. MS-DOS has two types of commands: Internal External
INTERNAL COMMANDS : INTERNAL COMMANDS These commands are handled by a file named COMMAND.COM. They don’t have separate files. This file gets loaded in the memory (RAM) when the computer is turned on. So, we can use them anytime and anywhere. E.g.: dir, cls, cd, md, rd, copy, etc.
EXTERNAL COMMANDS : EXTERNAL COMMANDS These commands have separate files for each command. They get loaded in RAM only when needed and they leave the RAM when their job is finished. E.g.: xcopy, format, label, deltree, etc. All these names are actually the names of executable files.
PROMPT : PROMPT Prompt is a place where the computer is ready to accept a command. When you switch on the computer, the following prompt is displayed after a few checkups:
C DRIVE : C DRIVE It is the name give to the hard disk drive. Similarly, all other drives have names too, like A Drive (A:), B Drive (B :), and so on. The names of drives can go up to Z Drive.
CURSOR : CURSOR It is a small blinking line which represents the position where the character type by us from the keyboard will be displayed on the screen. It keeps on moving forward as we type.
DIRECTORIES : DIRECTORIES Directories are just like filing cabinets used in offices to keep files of different departments. Such an arrangement of files in different cabinets avoids mixing up of files and eases the search. We can say that directories in computer are used for the proper management of files.
TYPES OF DIRECTORIES : TYPES OF DIRECTORIES Root Directory: It is the main directory in which all other directories exist. It is denoted by back slash (\). Current Directory: It is the directory in which we are working. It is denoted by single dot(.). Parent Directory: It is the directory in which the current directory exists. It is denoted by double dot(..). Sub Directory: It is the directory which exists under the current directory.
PowerPoint Presentation :
FILES : FILES Electronic files in computer are like ordinary office files. But in computer, we can store any type of data like text, graphics, charts, graphs, sounds, animations, etc. These files are kept in different directories according to our need.