User talk:80.248.105.20

Operating systems vs kernels

While Prof Tannenbaum is, of course, a respected authority in operating system design, the definition of "operating system" he uses in the book you cite is not universally accepted. Many others in the field would consider the "kernel", in the commonly-accepted sense of the word, to be only a component of a full operating system. See, for instance, this paper (Traditionally, the word 'kernel' is used to denote the part of the operating system that is mandatory and common to all other software.) or this book (The kernel is the part of the system that runs in protected mode and mediates access by all user programs to the underlying hardware (e.g., CPU, disks, terminals, network links) and software constructs (e.g., filesystem, network protocols) ... A kernel in traditional operating-system terminology, is a small nucleus of software that provides only the minimal facilities necessary for implementing additional operating-system services. Regards, Letdorf (talk) 13:29, 12 June 2009 (UTC).