Text A Running the computer program

The operating system is a collection of program provided by the computer's manufacturer that allows us to schedule jobs for the computer, to translate source programs into object programs, to sort data stored on secondary storage devices, and to copy data from any input device to any output device. These programs are called control programs, language programs and utility programs.

The control program (often called the supervisor, monitor, or executive) is a main-storage-resident program. Its functions are to schedule jobs, schedule input and output for our programs, and to monitor the execution of our programs.

The language processors are programs that translate source programs into object programs. There are three types of language processors: assemblers, compilers, and interpreters. Each language has its own language processor.

The service programs are programs that are commonly used in all data processing centers. They have functions that are required by everyone using a computer. Examples of service programs include linkage editors to prepare object programs for execution, a librarian to catalog programs into a library area on magnetic disc, utility programs to transfer data from device to device, and sort-merge programs for sorting data on magnetic tape or disk.