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Windows, Linux, Mac Operating System and Decision Making

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 International Journal of Computer Applications (0975 - 8887)
Volume 177 - No.27, December 2019

Windows, Linux, Mac Operating System and Decision

Making

Sk Golam Muhammad Hasnain Farhan Ar Rafi

Department of Science and Information Technology Department of Computer Science and Engineering
American International University-Bangladesh Jahangirnagar University
Kuratoli, Dhaka - 1229, Bangladesh Savar, Dhaka 1342, Bangladesh

ABSTRACT system. For example, how many people are using Windows operat-
ing system compared to other operating systems? There is no exact
This paper presents a comparative study of choosing footstep of answer to this problem, but statistics can be provided. However,
Windows, Linux and Mac, the three popular operating systems. data for providing statistics are difficult to gather.
This paper provides seven factors which needed to be considered
before choosing an operating system. They are convenience, ca- This type of problem was solved before with low criteria. [18]
pability, security, interface, recovery, booting time and cost. These has proposed a decision-making system for the operating system,
seven factors were generated from background study and analysis. where three criteria are involved. With these three criteria, they use
Some important characteristics such as dependency upon hardware, the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) for decision making. Nu-
user interface, and security are also discussed. Moreover, open- merical calculation needs to be done by this process, which may be
source and closed source paradigm were discussed for user support. difficult for a new user. Usually, AHP shows specialist cognition
Finally, based on user data, it has been shown how these three- but cannot comprehend human mentation [19]. Another approach
operating systems are used by users in the last couple of years. was proposed by [13], where they used five factors to choose an
operating system. In this research, it has been found that these five
factors are not enough, and a new method has been proposed with
General Terms seven criteria for selecting an operating system. Based on some col-
Operating System lected user data, the current situation of these operating systems is
also shown.
Keywords Usually, the basic tasks of operating systems allows software to
Windows, Linux, Mac, Decision Making communicate with hardware, manages system security, handled
system errors and alert users, manages files and folders, shares out
1. INTRODUCTION system memory, recognizes and install peripheral devices, handles
input and output, moves data to and from the hard disk, loads and
Nowadays, there are so many several disparate things are needed run other software applications [2]. One of the limitations is that
to be considered while choosing a new operating system. Several this paper has considered a finite set of factors that might vary for
aspects like disk space, budget, upgradability, and hidden costs are individuals. Some substantial factors like scalability has not been
crucial factors for choosing an operating system. This task is often included in our research. Scalability is a serious factor for people
tedious for average PC users. For example, the task of examining all trying to maintain updated hardware on their machines. Further-
operating systems and to note down the differences or similarities more, some of these factors may be invalidated at any time due to
is a painstaking task for even an experienced tech-savvy user. At technological advancement. Factors such as boot-time, capability,
present, there are many operating systems in this innovative world and cost highly provisional may diminish at any moment. The mar-
and Windows, Linux, and Macintosh (Mac) are exoteric. ket has already experienced a plummet of SSD prices as much as
30% according to the 2018 report [5].
Focusing in-depth into these three operating systems and drawing
comparisons makes this research interesting. Multi-criteria deci- The rest of the paper is organized as follows. Section 2 presents a
sion making offers to reach the best decision from all the possi- brief description of the three operating systems. Section 3 differen-
ble choices [16]. One of the important factors is that the operating tiates between closed source versus open-source operating system.
system used by an individual or organization has a lot to do with Section 4 provides a description of hardware support and user inter-
the applications and systems that they need to run. Often, specific face. Section 5 discussed server-side operating systems and secu-
software is designed for a specific operating system. For example, rity. Section 6 presents the research method to choose a perfect op-
software like ShareX and IDM can only be used in Windows. erating system for users. Section 7 provides a comparison of these
three operating systems based on user data and finally, section 8
However, software like Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox are
concludes the paper.
designed for multiple operating systems. It is hard to gather infor-
mation about an everyday user, who is using what type of operating

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 International Journal of Computer Applications (0975 - 8887)
Volume 177 - No.27, December 2019

2. OVER VIEW OF WINDOWS, LINUX AND MAC play but it is commonly used for desktop systems. It supports HFS
OPERATING SYSTEMS or HFS+, Macintosh file system[18]. It is secure and virus designed
for windows operating system does not work on Macintosh.
2.1 Linux Operating System
Linux is free and open-source software based on kernel software 3. OPEN SOURCE VS CLOSED SOURCE
where the kernel is nothing but the main part of the Linux operat- OPERATING SYSTEM
ing system. The fame of Linux operating system has mainly arisen
because of excellent performance and effectiveness [12]. Anyone 3.1 Full access VS no access
can contribute to development, modification, rearrange and all have The source code of an open-source operating system like Linux
also access to the source code which they are free to audit, cus- is accessible whereas the source code of closed source operating
tomize and analyze in any way what they choose. It has two in- systems like Windows, Macintosh is not accessible. If this matter
terfaces which are named as CLI (Command Line Interface) and is examined, it can be seen that improvement is faster in the open-
GUI (Graphical User Interface). It can be downloaded freely and source operating system as bug arises.
distributed through any medium like magazines, books, etc. This
operating system is also available in PRO versions that are usu- 3.2 Licensing freedom VS licensing restriction
ally cheap. A user is identified by a username, which is given
when the user logs on to the system. Internally, a user is identi- In an open-source operating system source code can be modified to
fied with a User Identification Number (UID), which is a numeric republish and even sold also. Many users can use the same software
value selected by the system administrator at the time the account in different machines. This cannot be done in a closed source op-
is created[26]. Some of the organizations, which develop Linux are erating system. The number of licenses purchased determines how
renowned companies, such as Red Hat, Gentoo, Debian, SuSE, Tur- many machines can the software used.
bolinux, and Ubuntu. Besides being cheap and mostly free, Linux
is also available for most 32-bit and 64-bit CPU architectures. It is 3.3 Online peer support VS paid help desk support
also virus free possibly malware-free, costs no money, makes more
There is a large community support like forums, websites, blogs,
efficient use of resources like CPU and Memory.
etc. for providing solutions to user issues for the open-source oper-
ating system. For closed source operating system peer solutions are
2.2 Windows Operating System available and purchased support is provided.
Windows is available for an amount of money; it is developed and
distributed by Microsoft [17]. It also called a User-Friendly Op- 4. HARDWARE SUPPORT AND USER INTERFACE
erating system which is needed every moment in our life. It sup-
As an open operating system, Linux is a light operating system and
ports the PE file system and its source code is also closed. Thus,
requires a less powerful process [23]. Whereas the Windows oper-
the user does not have access to the human-readable programming
ating system is heavier than Linux [11]. Some global business [21]
code that describes how the operating system works. Keyboard and
manufacture hardware in a way that it acts as an intermediate layer
mouse are very highly used to operate Microsoft windows. It runs
between client and Microsoft Corporation. However, operating sys-
primarily on the Intel architecture. GUI (Graphical User Interface)
tem like MAC bind with their own hardware [13] as a result MAC
is the interface and Graphical is the default user interface for this
operating system cannot be installed in another type of machine.
software. Everything can be controlled through GUI and incompat-
ibility problems are exceptional [17]. Assembly language, C, C++ Graphical User Interface (GUI) is unreplaceable in Windows [27]
can be easily programmed in the Microsoft windows. This software because it is an integral component of Windows. Windows also
is expensive, plugged with viruses and malware, resource-intensive have a command shell (cmd) from where a program can directly
and is based on the idea that proprietary software equals market run. Similarly, Mac operating system has a graphical user interface
control. This family of the operating system has dominated PCs all which is UNIX based [3]. Linux operating system has a default
over the world ever since its inception. Windows is the most pop- shell named BASH. To operate in this shell programming skill is
ular and widely using operating system to date, because of user- required. To compute with GUI type operating system Linux had
friendliness and easy to operate the operating system still use by launched a GUI based operating system [23].
most of the people in the world [18].
5. SERVER-SIDE OPERATING SYSTEM AND
2.3 Mac Operating System SECURITY
Macintosh is a whole computing platform which is a graphical user Nowadays Windows, Linux and MAC all have server-side oper-
interface-based software. It is also proprietary software that was ating systems. Windows latest released server named Windows
developed by Apple INC in 1984 [17]. Transferring files and appli- Server 2019 [10]. According to [13] Windows has a 64% share
cations from old Macintosh to a new one is a more efficient process in the server market. MAC offer server operating system which
compared to migrating from one Windows PC to another. The exact is based on open and closed source component [25]. Their latest
state of older Macintosh can be recreated perfectly on a new com- server released on March 25, 2019 [4]. Many distributed systems
puter in just a few steps. In Macintosh, a software update is less like CentOS, Ubuntu, etc. produced from Red Hat Enterprise Linux
important, and installing operating conformity is easier and unin- (RHEL) for server-side operating systems. Since Linux has a strong
stalling applications is much simpler. Apple Inc’s Macintosh oper- firewall, it also makes the server secured from any virus attack.
ating system has some powerful productivity and multimedia apps
preinstalled. Its a lot easier to organize multimedia content and cre- The aim of all operating system producer is to shield the valuable
ate new content. This software is expensive and can only be used data of a computer [17]. Over the last few decades operating system
with a Macintosh PC. It is simple to operate which is just plug and security is enhancing gradually, and this also become a research

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 International Journal of Computer Applications (0975 - 8887)
Volume 177 - No.27, December 2019

topic [20]. In one instance, after detecting a threat in Windows, Table 1. Percentage of operating system used by user
Microsoft took 2 to 3 months to fix [12]. Apple regularly releases Types of operating system used by the user (%)
updates for Mac operating system [1] to enhance security. Threat Year Windows Linux Mac Others
detection and solution is better in Linux as developer across the 2013 60.4 19.9 18.7 1
world continuously working with Linux. 2014 58.3 20.9 20.3 0.5
2015 54.5 20.5 21.5 3.5
6. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 2016 52.1 21.7 26.2 0
2017 41 32.9 18.4 7.7
This paper proposed methodology will help a user to choose the 2018 49.9 23.2 26.7 0.2
best operating system for their unique needs. LePine [14] suggested
2019 47.5 25.6 26.8 0.1
to analyze data of comprehensive factor to choose the operating
system. In our method, we will combine [18] and [13] method to
find out the optimal choice. Our research methodology is shown Table 2. User participated in the survey
below in Figure 1. Year No of operating system user participated
2017 29114
(1) Convenience: The operating system acts as a resource man- 2018 76179
ager [29]. Users can choose operating system based on their 2019 87851
needs and many of them rely on familiarity and availability.
The users want the facility for troubleshooting and replace-
users is increasing gradually. It is a point to note that, in the year
ment when needed [22]. The client always moves towards con-
2016, no users choose other operating systems.
venience.
(2) Capability: Graphics requirements, CPU utilization and com- Most people choose Windows when they are a novice as they find
piling program requires a lot of Random Access Memory. Windows easy to work with. As people grow adept and want to
The operating system which deals with hardware is better and go deeper and interact with the machine, they choose Linux. Usu-
makes the operating system unparalleled [28]. ally, a programmer feels comfortable with Linux because they can
customize their operating system to fit their needs and run their
(3) Security: Security in the operating system works as an encap-
programs while minimizing the cost. On the other hand, photogra-
sulation. To enhance flexibility and features sometimes secu-
phers, graphic designers, and video editors choose Macintosh OS
rity is hampered. Now a days third-party companies can pro-
because it gives them better graphical processing power due to the
vide solutions for operating system security [30].
power of the Central Processing Unit (CPU) and Graphical Pro-
(4) Interface: Usually maximum user depends on Graphical User cessing Unit (GPU), coupled with complementary applications.
Interface rather than programmer. General consumers always
give a visual metric to the interface and programmer or devel-
oper thinks how deeply they can interact with the machine by 8. CONCLUSION
using the command line [15]. The operating system acts as a layer between user and hardware to
(5) Recovery: Due to the overriding of applications and viruses, reduce human effort. In this paper, the focus of the study is on how
the machine turns slow. Machine format is needed in a way so to choose an operating system within Windows, Linux, and Mac.
that no data is lost. Compact Disc and portable drive are used Some crucial characteristics of these operating systems have been
for operating system recovery. discussed. Seven pivotal criteria have been proposed for choosing
(6) Boot Time: In computing, booting is the first step which con- an operating system. Furthermore, based on user data, some statis-
sists of a set of operation that a computer performs when elec- tics on the current market situation has been presented. The target
tric power turn is on. According [24] Windows, Mac and Linux is to provide a summary to the user, which can help them to choose
have different booting processes. The user chooses the operat- their operating system based on their requirements. The result of
ing system, which has less complexity in the booting process. the analysis shows that there is no unparalleled superior operat-
ing system. Each operating system consists of features in diverse
(7) Cost: According to the users point of view, they build their ma- fields at different levels. Due to the variance of operating systems
chines based on their budget and needs. Macintosh PCs can be and hardware in the market with several distinguishable features on
upgraded but the hardware is very expensive to upgrade. Be- each, there is an opportunity to develop a sophisticated application
sides users should also consider the replaceability of hardware system, where, upon inserting user requirements and affordability
when buying. the system will suggest the best choice of operating systems along
with required hardware and software specifications while consider-
7. COMPARISON OF WINDOWS, LINUX AND ing future scalability. Building this type of system requires a robust
MAC WITH STATISTICS knowledge base with a huge amount of user data. This also reveals
a new opportunity for future research.
Stack overflow conducted survey over the last few years [6], [7],
[8], [9]. Both software developers and normal users who mainly
9. REFERENCES
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 International Journal of Computer Applications (0975 - 8887)
Volume 177 - No.27, December 2019

Factors for choosing operating system

Convinience Capability Security Interface Recovery Boot Time Cost

Fig. 1. Proposed research methodology for choosing an operating system

Fig. 2. Bar chart showing operating systems used by the user in recent year

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