
24 9 Chapter 2: Architecture Overview
recall the consequences of computer crashes" meetings, retri-
butions, memos, and even dismissals. Restarting a mainframe
computer was not taken lightly.
On a personal computer where many programs may be run-
ning, restarting the computer after it crashes or hangs is
equally disturbing. A user may easily not know what was
running, and an unsaved spreadsheet may not be noticed for
weeks, if not months.
More than anything else, modern operating systems address
the issues involved in sharing a computer's resources among
many users and many programs. Almost everything that
makes an operating ...