How is DOS used on computers do they need it or is it optional?

Question

i sort of know what DOS means but how does it help your computer.

Answer 1

You can write dos commands and put them all in a file that can be run. I have a dos file that reads all the information in a directory and creates a spreadsheet file. That is the only way to print out a music play list. I also have file that will take all files in a folder and concatenate them together.

It is part of the operating system so it is not optional. I have even seem some installers use dos to do their install.

Answer 2

It's an operating system.

An operating system (or OS) is almost at the bottom of the stack as far as computer software goes. It's how your programs (like Word) get your computer hardware to do something - they tell the OS what they want and the OS translates it into something your particular hardware can understand. Every computer needs one.

DOS is just one OS among many and is not often seen anymore. It was originally a Microsoft product (MS-DOS) and has been replace by Windows. It's a command line OS (as opposed to a graphical OS) and in old versions of Windows you could open up a real DOS screen and type real DOS commands into the command line. This was because old versions of Windows were not actually operating systems, they were graphical user interfaces (GUIs) to DOS. Modern Windows (like XP) are now true operating systems and the command line interface is part of Windows rather than DOS.

Answer 3

DOS is Disk Operating System. This is what makes your computer more then just a paperweight. It can be replaced by Unix and I am sure a few other programs. On newer PC's DOS is built into WIndows XP, 2000, NT, etc. so you don't see it as seperate anymore but it does have a 'link' to let you view things in DOS mode which you would not need if you don't know DOS but you want to keep incase you ever need to take your computer for a repair it could help the technician review files.

Answer 4

Dos as of right now is needed and probally always be used. Dos is the subsystem of any o.s. when you click a link, behind the scenes a thread is being run a thread is a single line of scripts that computes in the processor, aka it tells the computer what to do.. when the thread opens a program such as IE, then it starts several threads that is called a process. No.. Dos takes those command lines and runs them through the processor then back to the subsystem of windows. Its alot more complicated to explain but think of windows as just the GUI, Graphical User Interface of Dos although Dos it self is an o/s and a form of GUI, but only the UI User interface. Even with a clean system, with no dos no nothing. When you turn it on, the bios/cmos runs and the command prompt you get there is still a form of dos.
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Answer 5

Disk
Operating
System

An operating system is basically the main means the computer user has to operate the computer.

DOS is pretty much obselete. There was a time when computers ran on DOS. Even all the Windows series up until 98 I believe were dependent on DOS. They were just DOS programs and not true operating systems. Nowadays with windows XP and on, they keep DOS in the form of "Command Prompt" Which basically still allows you to use DOS to navigate through your computer. A lot of tech people use this when working on computers as the commands never change from computer to computer or operating system to operating system. DOS commands stay constant.

Answer 6

DOS predates Windows, and originally, Windows was a program that was run off of the DOS operating system. DOS essentially ran one program at a time, and Windows gave computers the flexibility to multitask, as DOS could not.

Originally, Windows had to be run on computers as a program off of DOS. This meant that many configuration, driver, and networking problems had to be troubleshot through DOS as Windows was just a "shell" called GUI, or graphical user interface, that ran on top of DOS, and could not make changes to the OS. Eventually, Windows replaced DOS as the OS, and DOS still remained an important part of Windows up until Windows XP. Now, with XP and Vista, many control panel functions can be addressed through Windows itself without having to go through DOS.

It is becoming optional. DOS is being pushed out of the Windows software, because it is more cumbersome for non-experienced users who do not know the command line interface or the commands. For experienced users, it is preferable sometimes because it does exactly what it's told, and is not tailored for consumer use with help or warning messages. This makes it easier to complete a task, whereas the Windows software will typically have messages warning users not to delete "important" files and whatnot.

Answer 7

As of Windows XP, DOS is no longer necessary. DOS was the kernel of the operating systems in all OSs leading up to and including Windows 98. Now with the NTFS file system and and new kernel used in Windows XP there is no longer a need for it. DOS stands for Disk Operating System, one of the first mainstream Operating systems ever used. Basically DOS is a 16-bit OS that allows communication between the user (you) and the hardware. With a 16-bit OS the hardware can intercomunicate without going through the CPU (Central Processing Unit), whereas a 32-bit OS like Windows XP controls all comunication including inter-hardware.

Answer 8

NOT TO WORRY. Everything is fine. Disk Operating System (DOS) was the beginning of operating systems for pcs. It is a command line system which the boys in Redmond want you to think is gone. Fact is, everyone got along better with DOS than with Windows, but then that wouldn't sell would it?

Anyway, when real problems arise in Windows, using DOS can sometimes solve the problem.

Answer 9

MS DOS is still used in WinXP, the DOS programs like fdisk and format are used to set up WinXP on your hard drive. Don't delete these files as they are needed and run in the background with the Windows GUI interface. Think of DOS as the foundation of your computer. It was Bill Gates bread and butter at one time lol.

Answer 10

DOS for the most part is only used by techies who may trouble shoot your PC. A striped down DOS comes with windows XP, if you go to START>RUN> then type CMD, you can see what DOS used to look like. DOS is what we used to use over 15 years ago, now we use windows, cause it easy to point and click vs. typing commands on a black screen with white text!