Operating systems and system programming are fundamental skills for computer engineers, but they can also be useful for solving problems in other industries. In this article, you will learn how to apply some of the principles and techniques of operating systems and system programming to different domains, such as finance, health care, and education.
Operating systems are software that manage the resources and processes of a computer system, such as memory, disk, CPU, and network. System programming is the branch of computer engineering that deals with creating, maintaining, and improving operating systems and other low-level software, such as drivers, libraries, and compilers. System programmers use languages like C, C++, and Assembly to write efficient and reliable code that interacts directly with the hardware.
The operating system provides a common set of controls for managing computer hardware, making it easier for users to interact with computers and for programmers to write application software. The first step to implement operating systems for different industries is to understand the specific requirements and constraints of each sector. Accordingly respective systems programming principles may be implemented (Many systems available in the world market)
The question should be stated differently, 'How do operating system specialists and system programmers help a business thrive?' There are many skills that operating system specialists need in order to complete their jobs efficiently. Besides skills in customer service, SQL, system programming, computer hardware, and analytics, they also need strong communication and problem-solving skills. These specialists are key members of most businesses today.
Here are some fundamental principles of how operating systems and system programming work, software engineers can develop more efficient, reliable, and secure applications FOR a wide range of Systems. - Manage Input, Processing, and Output. i.e., creating, scheduling, opening, writing, allocating. - Memory Management - CPU Management - Resource Allocation - I/O Subsystem and Device Management - Process Management - Inter-Process Communication - Process scheduling queues - Threads, Concurrency, and parallelism - Caching - I/O Buffering - Virtualization - Security & Compliance - Monitoring and Improvement
It's a long list of it ("what are operating systems"). Not sure how much of it is STILL taught @ univ/colleges. It requires also a lot of theory (e.g. data structures/algorithms). Nowadays it's just another python module. But to get an idea how much effort/theory/design is behind it, just do a pldd before and after "import pandas" on a python session.
Operating systems principles, like resource allocation and scheduling, can optimize workflows in industries. System programming techniques enhance efficiency and reliability in diverse sectors. Applying these principles to logistics improves routing algorithms. Healthcare benefits from robust data management akin to file systems. Financial services rely on secure transaction handling mirroring OS security measures. Overall, OS and system programming principles streamline processes across industries, enhancing productivity and reliability
One of the challenges in finance is to process large amounts of data quickly and accurately, such as stock prices, transactions, and risk analysis. Operating systems and system programming can help in finance by optimizing the performance and scalability of the data processing systems, such as databases, servers, and cloud platforms. For example, system programmers can use concurrency, parallelism, and synchronization techniques to enable multiple threads or processes to run simultaneously and share data safely. They can also use memory management, caching, and buffering techniques to reduce the latency and overhead of accessing data from different sources.
This question should be the opposite, and we should ask: how do people in the financial sector organize their financial affairs? This principle of divide and conquer, for example, creating different folders for different accounts, selecting the account where the money comes from to pay what and reconciling payments. This has been tried before, and as the operating system can create queues and pipes and share memory between processes, it has helped some specific applications being developed for this purpose. Still, much more could be done if we look at how older people worked when no computer was nearby. We could improve operating systems today rather than trying to dictate how people need to do things and only offering a few options.
Another challenge in health care is to ensure the security and privacy of the sensitive data and devices that are used for diagnosis, treatment, and monitoring of patients, such as medical records, sensors, and implants. Operating systems and system programming can help in health care by enhancing the security and reliability of the data and devices, such as encryption, authentication, and fault tolerance. For example, system programmers can use cryptography and hashing algorithms to encrypt and verify the data that is transmitted or stored. They can also use error detection and correction techniques to recover from failures or attacks.
I would add to the above that the main contribution from system engineering and operating systems in this area was always and still is the case, the extraordinary expansion of digitalization across devices and machinery of all sorts used in the industry, through base/embedded software, up to AI applied to several industry use cases, ranging from diagnosis to surgery and beyond.
A third challenge in education is to provide accessible and engaging learning experiences for students of different backgrounds, abilities, and interests, such as online courses, games, and simulations. Operating systems and system programming can help in education by improving the usability and interactivity of the learning systems, such as user interfaces, graphics, and audio. For example, system programmers can use input/output and event-driven techniques to handle user inputs and outputs, such as keyboard, mouse, touch, and speech. They can also use graphics and audio libraries and frameworks to create realistic and immersive visuals and sounds.
I think How system programing is working very transparent and playing each component own role without any politics and personal profit. IN ALL INDUSTRY manager suppose to work like that in 13 years of career not following same fashion and higher management even do not bother.
If you are interested in learning operating systems and system programming, there are many resources available online and offline, such as books, courses, tutorials, and projects. Some of the recommended books are Operating System Concepts by Silberschatz, Galvin, and Gagne, and The Linux Programming Interface by Kerrisk. Some of the recommended courses are CS 162: Operating Systems and System Programming by UC Berkeley, and CS 107: Programming Paradigms by Stanford. Some of the recommended tutorials are Learn C The Hard Way by Zed Shaw, and Learn Assembly Language by Tutorialspoint. Some of the recommended projects are xv6, a simple Unix-like operating system, and Pintos, a small operating system for the x86 architecture.
From the classics: Th C programming language" by Brian Kernighan and Dennis Ritchie ; A. V. Aho, J. E. Hopcroft, J. D. Ullman, Data Structures and Algorithms; The Art of Computer Programming by D.E. Knuth; The UNIX Time- Sharing System by Dennis M. Ritchie and Ken Thompson @Bell Laboratories I think it's also useful/interesting to read/learn about the evolution of OS,Programming languages, Databases. Today's it workers are VERY specialized - not knowing/understanding what's "beneath". And learning that requires practice/experience (which present managers don't really understand)
The examples we have seen are not exhaustive, and there are many other industries and domains that can benefit from operating systems and system programming, such as entertainment, manufacturing, and transportation. The key is to identify the problems and requirements of each industry and domain, and then apply the appropriate principles and techniques of operating systems and system programming to design and implement solutions that are efficient, reliable, secure, and user-friendly. You can also use your creativity and curiosity to explore new possibilities and innovations that can enhance the existing systems or create new ones.
You can apply operating systems and system programming in your personal and professional lives which can help us in making better and more concise decisions. Here are the points, 1. Art of identifying problems and implementing the best possible solutions 2. Gathering requirements 3. Considering risks and constraints 4. Collaboration 5. Time management Apart from these, there are several learning lessons like, 1. Outcome over output 2. Learning aspect of failing 3. Break work into phases and iterate over time 4. Be multi-dimensional and think diversely from every aspect 5. Be adaptive, and migrate with the paradigm shift
I immediately think of the principle of layering, meaning creating a "layer" of technology, with a stable interface at the top, which protects you from the changes in technologies below. This is the way in which all operating systems and the Internet itself is built. This principle allows applications on top is the layer to be built while the technologies under the layer changes rapidly. I am convinced that the same principle is applied already in other industries (think of car manufacturers), and if not, it could be.
The scope of system engineering valuable insights and contributions applied to any industry, may start with considerations around what kind of operating system is the best suited to deliver the application’s expected performance, availability, fault tolerance, portability and scalability. Any application in which delivering real-time results is critical in response to a high volume of queries/requests and data input and processing from random sources will likely need to make use of real-time or near real-time operating system, virtualization and containerization principles.
Operating Systems are general-purpose artifacts, not aimed at -with some exceptions- solving domain-specific requirements and constraints. System Engineers are the ones that can extend, improve or better exploit the OS capabilities to tailor environments, frameworks and solutions that can improve the hosting of a given application.