Ответьте на вопросы по тексту:
What does the abbreviation ‘GUI’ stand for? Give the definition of the term.
What was the main reason to create a user-friendly interface?
What does the acronym ‘WIMP’ mean?
Which company was the first to introduce graphic environments?
What features are typical for graphic environments?
What computing environments based on graphics are mentioned in the text?
How do you run a program on a computer with a graphical interface?
Can you give the reason for the importance of an attractive interface
Переведите предложения, содержащие объектный инфинитивный оборот. После каких глаголов употребляется данный оборот? Обратите внимание на употребление или отсутствие частицы to перед инфинитивом.
A GUI lets you point to icon and click a mouse button to execute a task.
A GUI allows you to use a computer without knowing any operating system commands.
The X Windows System enables Unix-based computers to have a graphical look.
Voice recognition software helps disabled users (to) access computers.
Заполните пропуски в предложениях правильной формой глагола в скобках.
The Help facility enables users ______ (get) advice on most problems.
Adding more memory lets you ______ (work) faster.
Windows allows you ______ (display) two different folders at the same time.
The Shift key allows you ______ (type) in upper case.
The MouseKeys feature enables you ______ (use) the numeric keypad to move the mouse pointer.
ALT + TAB allows you ______ (switch) between programs.
The StickyKeys feature helps disabled people ______ (operate) two keys simultaneously.
ALT + PRINT SCREEN lets you ______ (copy) an image of an active window to the Clipboard.
Опишите функции данных средств, используя глаголы to allow, to permit, to enable, to help, to let.
The Find command
The Undo command
Cut and paste
The Print Screen key
Menus
Recycle bin
Outlook Express
Internet Explorer
The taskbar
Изучите версию графического интерфейса пользователя. Ответьте на вопросы.
Which part of the screen would you touch if you want to:
make a phone call?
send an email?
access a keyboard?
record an appointment?
get help?
write new mail?
What do you thing happens if you touch these areas of the screen: g, h, I, j, k, l?
Прочитайте статью о пользовательском интерфейсе ОС Windows 8. Подберите подзаголовки к частям текста.
The lock screen may confuse desktop users
You'll need to use the four corners of Windows 8
Windows 8 apps don't have the standard menus you might expect
Your regular applications still work
It's no longer called Metro
There's no longer a Start menu
Though it's optimized for touch, the Windows 8 UI works great with a keyboard and mouse
Text 5
WINDOWS 8'S NEW UI
Perhaps the biggest change that Microsoft made with its Windows 8 operating system is the integration of a completely new user-interface. Users of previous Windows operating systems may find themselves a bit confused with the lack of a Start menu and new apps that don't have the red "X" button. We've compiled a list of frequently asked questions to help users out with their first foray* into Microsoft's latest offering.
__________________
When Windows 8 was first introduced to the public in 2011, Microsoft branded its new touch-friendly interface "Metro." Due to potential trademark issues with a German partner company, Microsoft has since dropped that name in favor of simply calling the new Windows UI or the Windows 8 UI.
__________________
Rather than using a menu interface to access applications, Windows 8 has switched to a graphical tile display. You can access this new Start screen display by clicking the lower-left corner of your desktop where you'd expect the Start button to be. Windows 8 creates rectangle links to your apps known as tiles. If you have a program installed but don't see a tile for it, you can right-click the background on the Start screen and click "All Apps" to see everything installed on your computer. This all-encompassing view will likely be more comfortable for you if you're jonesing* for a menu.
__________________
While Microsoft is really pushing the exciting new Windows 8 apps, the full version of the operating system will support most programs you could use with Windows 7. You'll want to be wary* though as a Windows 8 version known as Windows RT, which runs exclusively on mobile devices, limits its users to Windows 8 apps only.
__________________
To open a Windows 8 app, you just click or tap its tile on the Start screen. These apps are always full-screen and they don't have the menu buttons you'd use to close a desktop application. To close a Windows 8 app you can switch away from it, you can click the top of the window and drag it to the bottom of the screen, or you can right-click or long-press it in the switcher menu and click close. Of course, you can also kill it from the Task Manager.
__________________
If you've never heard of the four-corners of Windows 8, you'll see it mentioned when you first setup your Windows 8 OS. This simply refers to the fact that in Windows 8, placing your cursor in one of the four corners of your screen will open something.
Bottom or Top-right - Placing your cursor in one of the right corners opens the Charms menu*. This menu provides links to tools and utilities you'll use on a regular basis such as app settings, PC settings and the search charm.
Bottom-left - The bottom-left corner opens a link to the Start screen.
Top-left - The top left corner opens a link to the last app you had in focus. This allows for rapid switching between apps. Swipe down from the top-left corner to open a Switcher menu that displays all open apps. You can then select an app from the list to bring it into focus.
__________________
While the Windows 8 UI is at its best in a touch-enabled environment, it still works great on a desktop or laptop with a mouse or track pad.
__________________
If you find yourself confused when trying to log in to your account because you don't see a place to enter your password or select your user account, don't worry. Windows 8 uses a lock screen that displays a unique background and configurable notifications when your account is locked. Simply press any key on your keyboard and the lock screen will slide up revealing your account password field.
(http://windows.about.com)
* foray = a first attempt or new undertaking
* to jones for = to have need for
* wary = feeling or showing caution about possible dangers or problems; watchful, cautious
*Charms menu – The Charm Bar is a universal toolbar in Windows 8 that can be accessed from anywhere no matter what you are doing or what application you are running.
Выпишите из текста слова / словосочетания, с помощью которых можно было бы охарактеризовать пользовательский интерфейс ОС Windows 8 и описать его отличительные особенности.
СПС 8 KERNEL
Actions
(→kernel)
to boot
to configure
to develop
to introduce
to improve
to update
|
Synonym
|
Actions
(kernel→)
to be based (on/upon)
to control
to operate
to provide
|
Род
part of an operating system
|
Feature
hardware abstraction level
|
Types
Windows kernel
unix-like kernel
exokernel
hybrid kernel
microkernel
monolithic kernel
nanokernel
|
Objects
hardware abstraction
functionality
performance
secure access
system security
system stability
uniform interface
|
Quality
available
original
responsible
specific
|
Function
scheduling
device management
memory management
process management
system call
|
Elements
|
Way of action
|
Location
|
Познакомьтесь с СПС KERNEL. Какие слова Вам уже встречались в СПС OPERATING SYSTEM? Ответьте на вопросы, опираясь на ЛССТ и используя слова из СПС.
Is the kernel an independent piece of software?
What types can the kernels be classified into? Which type have you dealt with?
What are the categories of kernels according to their architecture?
What is the kernel responsible for?
What does the OS kernel provide?
Замените словосочетание с предлогом на беспредложное:
resources of the computer system
capabilities of the computer
display consisting of tiles
allocation of memory
management of the devices
management of the processes
security of the system
stability of the system
level of hardware abstraction
kernel of Windows
kernel similar to Unix
the kernel of the operating system
options of the kernel
update of the kernel
an original design of the kernel
operating systems having graphical user interface
access to the operating system
facilities for work scheduling
easy to use for a user
interface suitable for touch-sensitive control
software installed by the user
Дайте определение термина KERNEL, используя лексику словарной понятийной статьи. Сравните свое определение с определением, данным в глоссарии.
Прочитайте текст 6 и назовите ключевые слова этого текста. Напишите аннотацию к тексту.
Text 6
KERNEL
The kernel is the central part of an operating system that directly controls the computer hardware. Usually, the kernel is the first of the user-installed software on a computer, booting directly after the BIOS. Operating system kernels are specific to the hardware on which they are running, thus most operating systems are distributed with different kernel options that are configured when the system is installed. Changing major hardware components such as the motherboard, processor, or memory, often requires a kernel update. Additionally, often new kernels are offered that improve system security or performance. The two major types of kernels competing in today's computer markets are the Windows kernel and the unix-like kernels.
The Windows kernel is available only with the Microsoft Windows series of operating systems. It is proprietary software, developed and distributed by Microsoft Corporation. Introduced in Windows/386, it's many incarnations have since gone by several different names, and some had no names at all. The latest version of the Windows kernel was introduced in Windows NT, and has had many of it’s functions removed and placed in user-mode software for Windows Vista. This leads to increased system stability and security. In Vista, application-level software exploits have much less access to the core functions of the operating system, and application crashes will not bring down the OS.
Unix-like kernels are a family of operating system kernels that are based upon, or operate similar to, the original Bell Labs UNIX operating system. Common examples of unix-like kernels are the Linux kernel, BSD, Mac OS, and Solaris. While many of these kernels were developed with original Bell Labs code as part of the software, not all of them have direct lineage to Bell. Linux, for instance, was developed as a free alternative to Minix, itself an independently developed variation of UNIX. Although originally running an original kernel design, Mac OS was outfitted* with a unix-like kernel in 1988 with the introduction of A/UX. All subsequent Apple operating systems have unix-like kernels, including the current Mac OS-X's BSD-derived kernel.
(http://classroom.all-science-fair-projects.com)
Notes on the Text
*to outfit = to equip, to supply
Прочитайте текст 6 еще раз и выполните следующие задания:
прочитайте первый абзац текста и определите, какая информация передается с помощью слов, выделенных курсивом. Сформулируйте инвариант данного абзаца с использованием данных слов;
прочитайте второй абзац текста и определите, какая информация передается с помощью слов, выделенных курсивом. Какое значение имеет подчеркнутое слово?
переведите описание ядра Windows с использованием данных слов:
Ядро Windows является проприетарным программным обеспечением, доступным только вместе с операционными системами Windows. Данное ядро разработано и распространяется корпораций "Майкрософт". Впервые оно было внедрено в ОС Windows/386, последняя версия была представлена в ОС Windows NT. Ядро ОС Windows Vista было значительно улучшено, что привело к большей стабильности системы и ее безопасности и меньшей вероятности сбоев.
прочитайте третий абзац текста и выпишите слова /словосочетания, с помощью которых можно охарактеризовать ядра, аналогичные UNIX. Какими словами Вы бы дополнили СПС KERNEL?
используя Ваши записи, опишите данный тип ядер ОС. Какую информацию вы могли бы добавить?
Прочитайте текст 7 и, опираясь на ключевые слова, озаглавьте текст.
Text 7
_ _ _ _ _
The kernel is the core of an operating system. It is a piece of software responsible for providing secure access to the machine’s hardware and to running computer programs. Since there are many programs, and hardware access is limited, the kernel also decides when and how long a program should run. This is called scheduling. Accessing the hardware directly can be very complex, since there are many different hardware designs for the same type of component. Kernels usually implement* some level of hardware abstraction (a set of instructions universal to all devices of a certain type) to hide* the underlying complexity from the operating system and provide a clean and uniform interface. This helps application programmers to develop programs without having to know how to program specific devices. The kernel relies upon* software drivers that translate the generic* command into instructions specific to that device.
An operating system kernel is not strictly needed to run a computer. Programs can be directly loaded and executed on the "bare metal" machine, provided that the authors of those programs are willing to do without any hardware abstraction or operating system support. This was the normal operating method of many early computers, which were reset and reloaded between the running of different programs. Eventually, small ancillary programs such as program loaders and debuggers were typically left in-core between runs, or loaded from read-only memory. As these were developed, they formed the basis of what became early operating system kernels. The "bare metal" approach is still used today on many video game consoles and embedded systems, but in general, newer systems use modern kernels and operating systems.
There are four broad categories of kernels:
Monolithic kernels provide rich and powerful abstractions of the underlying hardware.
Microkernels provide a small set of simple hardware abstractions and use applications called servers to provide more functionality.
Hybrid (modified microkernels) are much like pure microkernels, except that they include some additional code in kernel space to increase performance.
Exokernels provide minimal abstractions, allowing low-level hardware access. In exokernel systems, library operating systems provide the abstractions typically present in monolithic kernels.
(http://classroom.all-science-fair-projects.com)
Notes on the Text
* to implement = to perform, to carry out
* to hide = to keep secret
* to rely = to trust or to depend (on)
* generic = applicable or referring to a whole class or group; general
Прочитайте текст 7 еще раз и выполните следующие задания:
прочитайте первый абзац и определите, какая информация передается с помощью слов, выделенных курсивом. Какие разделы СПС KERNEL можно дополнить?
опираясь на информацию первого абзаца, объясните по-английски понятия scheduling и level of hardware abstraction;
прочитайте второй абзац текста и, опираясь на информацию этого абзаца, объясните выражение “bare metal” approach. Где находит применение данный подход?
прочитайте заключительную часть текста и объясните отличие различных видов ядер.
Опираясь на информацию текстов и Ваши знания, подготовьте сообщение по следующему плану:
What is a kernel?
Functions of the kernel
Level of hardware abstraction and its implementation
Types of OS kernels
Как специалист в сфере программного обеспечения примите участие в обсуждении следующих вопросов:
Выберите вопрос, по которому Вы хотели бы подготовить сообщение. Просмотрите тексты в приложении и найдите тексты по интересующему Вас вопросу. Изучите информацию и зафиксируйте в тезисной форме данные, которые Вы могли бы использовать.
Примите участие в коллективном обсуждении по данным вопросам:
If I were a developer of the next version of Windows
Alternatives to Windows
Evolution of OSs
An operating system of the future.
Вашей группе предложили разработать ОС для компьютера, который будет управлять учебным процессом в Вашем университете. Разработайте и представьте Ваш проект. Продумайте функции ОС и как эти функции будут реализованы (тип ОС, свойства, дополнительное ПО, требования к компьютерной системе).
составьте тезисы Вашего выступления;
выступите с Вашим проектом в группе (Ваше выступление значительно выиграет, если его будет сопровождать презентация).
Как эксперт, которому поручили оценить представленные проекты, продумайте вопросы, которые Вы хотите задать.
ADDITIONAL TEXTS FOR READING
A PODCAST INTERVIEW WITH BILL THOMPSON
Interviewer
There is no doubt that Windows has revolutionized the way we use computers today. Bill, can you explain just why it’s so popular?
Bill
Well, very simple, people find Windows very easy to use because everything is presented in graphic images. It’s also compatible with thousands of programs.
Interviewer
The big news at the moment is, of course, the launch of Windows Vista the successor to Windows XP. I understand that there are several versions of Vista available. Could you give us some advice on which one to get?
Bill
Yes, you’re right – there are four main editions: Home Basic, Home Premium, Business and Ultimate. Home Basic is designed for users with basic needs, such as email and internet access. Home Premium is for more advanced home computing and entertainment. It includes a DVD maker, a movie maker and a Media Centre, which lets you listen to music, watch video and record TV programs on your PC. The Business edition is ideal for business organizations of all sizes. It offers new backup technologies and advanced networking capabilities. Finally, the Ultimate edition combines all the features of the other editions, making it the most complete. It has everything you need to enjoy the latest in music, games, digital photography and high-definition TV. It’s aimed at high-end PC users, gamers and multimedia professionals.
Interviewer
And what other factors make Windows Vista so attractive?
Bill
The user interface has been redesigned with new icons and a new visual style. The system gives you more flexibility when you search and organize your files, and it offers support for the latest technologies, from DVD creation to speech recognition.
Interviewer
What about internet connections? Have they been improved?
Bill
Yes, Internet Explorer is more reliable and secure. The Security Centre includes an anti-spyware program called Windows Defender and a firewall that protects your computer from internet attacks.
Interviewer
And what sort of application software can you use with Windows?
Bill
The most popular is still Microsoft Office, a suite that includes the word processor, Word, an email program, the Excel spreadsheet program, and the presentation graphics program, PowerPoint.
(Infotech: English for Computer Users, 4th edition)
MICROSOFT WINDOWS
Microsoft Windows is a family of proprietary operating systems most commonly used on personal computers. It is the most common family of operating systems for the personal computer, with about 90% of the market share. Currently, the most widely used version of the Windows family is Windows XP, released on October 25, 2001. The newest version is Windows 7 for personal computers and Windows Server 2008 R2 for servers.
It originated in 1981 as an add-on to the older MS-DOS operating system for the IBM PC. Released in 1985, Microsoft came to dominate the business world of personal computers, and went on to set a number of industry standards and commonplace applications. Beginning with Windows XP, all modern versions are based on the Windows NT kernel. Current versions of Windows run on x86 and x86-64 processors, although older versions sometimes supported other architectures.
Windows is also used on servers, supporting applications such as web servers and database servers. In recent years, Microsoft has spent significant marketing and research & development money to demonstrate that Windows is capable of running any enterprise application, which has resulted in consistent price/performance records and significant acceptance in the enterprise market. However, its usage in servers is not as widespread as personal computers, and here Windows actively competes against Linux and BSD for market share, while still capturing a steady majority by some accounts.
(http://en.wikipedia.org)
MAC OS X
Mac OS X is a line of partially proprietary graphical operating systems developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc., the latest of which is pre-loaded on all currently shipping Macintosh computers. Mac OS X is the successor to the original Mac OS, which had been Apple's primary operating system since 1984. Unlike its predecessor, Mac OS X is a UNIX operating system built on technology that had been developed at NeXT through the second half of the 1980s and up until Apple purchased the company in early 1997.
The operating system was first released in 1999 as Mac OS X Server 1.0, with a desktop-oriented version (Mac OS X v10.0) following in March 2001. Since then, six more distinct "client" and "server" editions of Mac OS X have been released, the most recent being Mac OS X v10.6, which was first made available on August 28, 2009. Releases of Mac OS X are named after big cats; the current version of Mac OS X is "Snow Leopard".
The server edition, Mac OS X Server, is architecturally identical to its desktop counterpart* but usually runs on Apple's line of Macintosh server hardware. Mac OS X Server includes work group management and administration software tools that provide simplified access to key network services, including a mail transfer agent, a Samba server, an LDAP server, a domain name server, and others.
(http://en.wikipedia.org)
Notes on the Text
* counterpart = analog
UNIX AND UNIX-LIKE OPERATING SYSTEMS
Ken Thompson wrote B, mainly based on BCPL, which he used to write Unix, based on his experience in the MULTICS project. B was replaced by C, and Unix developed into a large, complex family of inter-related operating systems which have been influential in every modern operating system. The Unix-like family is a diverse group of operating systems, with several major sub-categories including System V, BSD, and GNU/Linux. The name "UNIX" is a trademark of The Open Group which licenses it for use with any operating system that has been shown to conform to their definitions. "Unix-like" is commonly used to refer to the large set of operating systems which resemble the original Unix.
Unix-like systems run on a wide variety of machine architectures. They are used heavily for servers in business, as well as workstations in academic and engineering environments. Free Unix variants, such as GNU/Linux and BSD, are popular in these areas.
Some Unix variants like HP's HP-UX and IBM's AIX are designed to run only on that vendor's hardware. Others, such as Solaris, can run on multiple types of hardware, including x86 servers and PCs. Apple's Mac OS X, a hybrid kernel-based BSD variant derived from NeXTSTEP, Mach, and FreeBSD, has replaced Apple's earlier (non-Unix) Mac OS.
Unix interoperability was sought by establishing the POSIX standard. The POSIX standard can be applied to any operating system, although it was originally created for various Unix variants.
(http://en.wikipedia.org)
BSD AND ITS DESCENDANTS
A subgroup of the Unix family is the Berkeley Software Distribution family, which includes FreeBSD, NetBSD, and OpenBSD. These operating systems are most commonly found on webservers, although they can also function as a personal computer OS. The internet owes much of its existence to BSD, as many of the protocols now commonly used by computers to connect, send and receive data over a network were widely implemented and refined in BSD. The world wide web was also first demonstrated on a number of computers running an OS based on BSD called NextStep.
BSD has its roots in Unix. In 1974, University of California, Berkeley installed its first Unix system. Over time, students and staff in the computer science department there began adding new programs to make things easier, such as text editors. When Berkeley received new VAX computers in 1978 with Unix installed, the school’s undergraduates modified Unix even more in order to take advantage of the computer's hardware possibilities. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency of the US Department of Defense took interest, and decided to fund the project. Many schools, corporations, and government organizations took notice and started to use Berkeley's version of Unix instead of the official one distributed by AT&T. Steve Jobs, upon leaving Apple Inc. in 1985, formed NeXT Inc., a company that manufactured high-end computers running on a variation of BSD called NeXTSTEP. One of these computers was used by Tim Berners-Lee as the first webserver to create the World Wide Web.
Developers like Keith Bostic encouraged the project to replace any non-free code that originated with Bell Labs. Once this was done, however, AT&T sued. Eventually, after two years of legal disputes, the BSD project came out ahead and spawned a number of free derivatives, such as FreeBSD and NetBSD. However, the two year wait had set the stage for two projects that would ultimately eclipse both BSD and Unix: GNU and Linux.
(http://en.wikipedia.org)
HISTORY OF OPERATING SYSTEMS
The earliest of computers didn’t have an operating system. Through the 1960’s, several concepts were developed which drove the development of operating systems.
The IBM System 360 produced a family of mainframe computers that served consumers with differing capacities and prices. A single operating system was planned for these computers rather than developing generic programs for every individual model. This concept of a single OS that will fit an entire product line was crucial for the success of System 360. In fact, IBM’s current mainframe operating systems are distant relatives of this original system. The advantage to this is that applications written for the OS 360 can still be run on modern machines. The OS 360 system also contained another important advance affecting today’s computers: the development of a hard disk permanent storage device which IBM called DASD.
A second key development was the concept of time sharing. Time sharing involves sharing the resources of expensive computers among multiple computer users interacting in real time with the system. That essentially means that all of the users have the illusion of exclusive access to the machine. The most famous of time sharing system was called Multics.
Multics served as an inspiration to a number of operating systems developed in the 1970’s. Most notably was the Unix system. Another commercially popular mini-computer operating system was VMS.
The first microcomputers did not have the capacity or need for the elaborate operating systems that had originally been developed for mainframes and minis. Smaller operating systems were developed and often loaded from ROM and known as Monitors. One notable early disk-based OS was CP/M which was supported on many early micro-computers and was largely cloned when MS-DOS was created. MS-DOS became wildly popular as the operating system chosen for the IBM PC. The successive operating systems that came from MS-DOS made Microsoft one of the most profitable companies in the world with the development of Windows. The only other alternative throughout the 1980’s was Mac OS which was tied intimately to the Apple McIntosh computer.
By the 1990s, the microcomputer had evolved to the point where it became increasingly desirable. Everyone wanted a home computer. Microsoft had already come out with Windows 95 and 98, but people longed for more power and more options. Microsoft’s response to this change was the development of Windows NT which served as the basis for Microsoft’s desktop operating system line that launched in 2001.
Apple was also rebuilding their own operating system on top of Unix core as Mac OS X also released in 2001 developing one of the business world’s greatest rivalries.
Today, our operating systems usually have a graphical user interface (GUI) which uses a pointing device such as a mouse or stylus for input in addition to the keyboard. Older systems used a command line interface asking for commands to be entered via the keyboard.
(http://www.wownichecontent.com/software/operating-systems.pdf)
SMART CITIES GET THEIR OWN OPERATING SYSTEM
By K. Moskvitch, Technology reporter, BBC News
Cities could soon be looking after their citizens all by themselves thanks to an operating system designed for the metropolis.
The Urban OS works just like a PC operating system but keeps buildings, traffic and services running smoothly. The software takes in data from sensors dotted around the city to keep an eye on what is happening. In the event of a fire the Urban OS might manage traffic lights so fire engines can reach the blaze* swiftly.
The idea is for the Urban OS to gather data from sensors buried in buildings and many other places to keep an eye on what is happening in an urban area. The sensors monitor everything from large scale events such as traffic flows across the entire city down to more local phenomena such as temperature sensors inside individual rooms. The OS completely bypasses humans to manage communication between sensors and devices such as traffic lights, air conditioning or water pumps that influence the quality of city life.
Channelling all the data coming from these sensors and services into a over-arching control system had lots of benefits, said Steve Lewis, head of Living PlanIT – the company behind Urban OS.
Urban OS should mean buildings get managed better and gathering the data from lots of sources gives a broader view of key city services such as traffic flows, energy use and water levels.
“If you were using an anatomy analogy, the city has a network like the nervous system, talking to a whole bunch of sensors gathering the data and causing actions,” said Mr Lewis. “We distribute that nervous system into the parts of the body – the buildings, the streets and other things. Having one platform managing the entire urban landscape of a city means significant cost savings, implementation consistency, quality and manageability,” he added. “And it's got local computing capacity to allow a building or an automotive platform to interact with people where they are, managing the energy, water, waste, transportation, logistics and human interaction in those areas."
Urban apps
The underlying technology for the Urban OS has been developed by McLaren Electronic Systems – the same company that creates sensors for Formula One cars. The Urban OS was unveiled at the Machine-2-Machine conference in Rotterdam. To support the myriad of different devices in a city the firm has developed an extensive set of application services that will run Urban OS, dubbed PlaceApps – the urban environment equivalent of apps on a smartphone.
Independent developers will also be able to build their own apps to get at data and provide certain services around a city. Mr Lewis said that eventually applications on smartphones could hook into the Urban OS to remotely control household appliances and energy systems, or safety equipment to monitor the wellbeing of elderly people. It could also prove useful in the event of a fire in a building, he said. Sensors would spot the fire and then the building would use its intelligence to direct people inside to a safe stairwell, perhaps by making lights flicker or alarms get louder in the direction of the exit.
“That's dealt with by the building itself, with the devices very locally talking to each other to figure out what’s the best solution for the current dilemma, and then providing directions and orchestrating themselves,” said Mr Lewis.
'Magical actions'
Living PlanIT is working with Cisco and Deutsche Telekom on different parts of the system. Markus Breitbach of the Machine to Machine Competence Center at Deutsche Telekom said that his firm was helping to bring all the parts of the Urban OS together.
“Everybody’s talking about 50 billion connected devices, which effectively means huge amounts of data being collected, but nobody is really caring about managing it and bringing it into a context – and Urban OS can do just that,” he said.
“If there’s a fire alarm on the fifth floor and the elevator is going to the next floor, the light will switch on – but in addition the traffic lights will be switched accordingly to turn the traffic in the right direction so that fire workers can get through.” “And this is what Urban OS is providing, this kind of solution to analyse mass data, enter it in a context and perform magical actions.”
A test bed for the Urban OS is currently being built in Portugal. For its work in developing smart cities, Living PlanIT was selected as one of the World Economic Forum's Technology Pioneers of 2012.
(http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology)
Notes on the Text
* blaze = fire
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