Computer multitasking is the process of more than one program being executed by a computer at the same time.
When computer multitasking was in the early stages of development, it was called time-sharing, a term which referenced the way multiple programs or processes shared the power of the CPU .
Fairly early on, this term was supplanted by the contemporary term multitasking, although in its earliest versions, multitasking was not true multitasking but a rapid switching between applications that seemed simultaneous.
These systems, which have become more common and more advanced during the early 21st century, are capable of true multitasking, although in practice, there is no observable difference, aside from improved performance, in the way these systems work compared to single processor systems.
Computer performance is dictated by processor speed, but the number of programs that a given processor can run at one time is also limited by the amount of system memory these programs occupy.
A technique called memory switching allows for the system memory to be accessed by whatever program is running at the moment on single processor systems or to be delegated as needed on multiple processor systems.
The limitations on human abilities to multitask will ultimately limit the ways in which individuals can utilize the power of modern computers to multitask, however.
When computer multitasking was in the early stages of development, it was called time-sharing, a term which referenced the way multiple programs or processes shared the power of the CPU .
Fairly early on, this term was supplanted by the contemporary term multitasking, although in its earliest versions, multitasking was not true multitasking but a rapid switching between applications that seemed simultaneous.
These systems, which have become more common and more advanced during the early 21st century, are capable of true multitasking, although in practice, there is no observable difference, aside from improved performance, in the way these systems work compared to single processor systems.
Computer performance is dictated by processor speed, but the number of programs that a given processor can run at one time is also limited by the amount of system memory these programs occupy.
A technique called memory switching allows for the system memory to be accessed by whatever program is running at the moment on single processor systems or to be delegated as needed on multiple processor systems.
The limitations on human abilities to multitask will ultimately limit the ways in which individuals can utilize the power of modern computers to multitask, however.
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