Question

Although there are three well-known operating systems, the most common are Microsoft Windows and Mac OS. Discuss the similarities and differences between these two systems.
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Answer 1

Similarities between Microsoft Windows and Macintosh  

• Macs and Windows PCs can share the same printers, scanners, digital cameras, mice, keyboards, and other peripherals.

• Both systems are fluent in the common file types, including PDFs, JPEGs, and text.

• Microsoft produces a version of Office for both platforms, so you can work in programs such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint with little difficulty. The Mac and Windows versions of Office have used the same files since Office 97 for Windows arrived.

• The Mac can read most Windows PC-formatted CDs and DVDs.

• Both sides can easily communicate by e-mail or using the AIM (AOL) instant messaging service.

• You can access a MobileMe account from a Windows PC.

• Versions of Windows Media Player, QuickTime Player, and RealPlayer work on a Mac.

• Both Macs and Windows PC can be on the same wired or wireless network and share files.

• Intel is now inside both computers.

Difference between Microsoft Windows and Macintosh  

Apart from the fact that they both have GUIs, almost everything is different. On a pure technical level, there are nearly no similarities.

The kernels are different. They are even different types (darwin is micro kernel while windows kernel is hybrid kernel).

macOS is UNIX-like and mostly POSIX compliant. Windows is not like anything and not compliant to POSIX standards.

macOS can run on almost any machine by design but they run perfectly only on a few due to lack of drivers. Windows can run on almost any machine and is not designed for only specific hardware.

The OS level interfaces are different, which means drivers are written differently for them.

They use different file systems.

The network stack implementation are different although they both stick to the IETF/IEEE standards and thus, can intercommunicate.

The way you install and uninstall Application is different.