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Computer AwarenessHard

The technique of placing output in a queue on the disk so that a slow device such as a printer does not hold up the processor is called

  1. A.Paging
  2. B.Spooling
  3. C.Caching
  4. D.Swapping

Correct answer

B. Spooling

Explanation

The correct answer is B, spooling. Spooling stands for simultaneous peripheral operations on line. The operating system writes the data meant for a slow device into a queue on the disk and lets the processor go on with other work, while the device picks jobs out of that queue at its own pace. The print queue of a shared office printer is the everyday example.

Option A, paging, is a memory management method that moves fixed size blocks between disk and main memory to support virtual memory. Option C, caching, keeps recently used data in a small fast memory so that later requests are served quickly; it speeds up access but does not queue device output. Option D, swapping, moves a whole process out of main memory to disk and later brings it back, which is again memory management rather than device handling.

Read the full article: Software and Operating Systems: Types, Functions and MCQs

Practice Questions

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Q3.Computer AwarenessMedium

Which scheduling algorithm allots a fixed time slice to every process in rotation and is therefore used in time sharing systems?

  1. A.First Come First Served
  2. B.Shortest Job First
  3. C.Round Robin
  4. D.Priority scheduling
Show answer
Correct answer: C. Round Robin

In Round Robin scheduling every ready process is given the processor for a fixed period called the time quantum, and when that period expires the process is moved to the back of the queue and the next one is served.