- Determine what operating system you have.
Operating Systems
Every computer has an operating system: put simply, this is the system that allows your computer to operate. It is important to know which operating system your computer has because the steps to accomplish various tasks varies between operating systems. Reading directions on how to change the desktop background in Windows 10 may not help you if you are running Windows XP, and those directions will be useless if you are using a Mac. However, nearly all versions of Windows and macOS are capable of doing the same things.
Operating Systems Overview
Watch this video for an overview of what an operating system does.
You can view the transcript for “Computer Basics: Understanding Operating Systems” here (opens in new window).