Beginning a Work Session

A common term for a period of time during which a knowledge worker is computing is work session. The first step is loading DOS, the operating system. Personal computer software, whether it's the operating system or an application, usually comes on a floppy disk. It's from that disk that the personal computer's DOS got its name. The acronym DOS (disk operating system) dates back to the early 1970s when it was used to refer to an IBM mainframe operating system. Loading is the process of reading software, whether the operating system or application software, into the computer's memory. When we load DOS, we do so by copying the DOS disk's magnetic contents into the personal computer's RAM. Once this process is complete, DOS displays a screen. DOS lets you check the computer's internal clock to date and time stamp your files. If the date you see is correct, press the Enter key; if the time is correct, press Enter again. If the date and time are not correct, DOS lets you type in the correct date and time by displaying on the screen "Enter new (date:)." Now you are at the DOS prompt.

DOS Versions. All good software is revised and improved over time, and DOS is no exception. Microsoft, now the world's largest software company, has made a number of improvements to DOS, each of which is called a version. Which version does your computer use? When you boot up, the copyright notice and version are usually displayed on the screen prior to seeing the date and time. If you are already at the DOS prompt, simply type VER

and the version is displayed. The most common version in use is 3.3. Version 4.0 was developed by IBM and is most commonly used on portables. Microsoft introduced 5.0 in 1991 and 6.0 in 1993, and plans subsequent versions every 18 to 24 months.

The Prompt

The prompt is a character or message that tells you the computer system is ready to accept a command or input. A command is an instruction you give to the computer. A prompt may be textual, such as "ENTER COMMAND," or a character such as a question mark (?) or a period (.). In DOS, the prompt is a right-pointing arrow or caret that looks like this: >.

The Command Line

The prompt appears on the command line. The command line, as its name implies, is the portion of the screen where you issue DOS commands or instructions. Once you have typed the command and reread it to make sure it is accurate, you must press the Enter key to issue the command.

The Cursor

Commands are issued at the prompt on the command line by typing them on the keyboard. But first, we need to know if the command line is ready to accept a command. The cursor is usually a blinking rectangle or a blinking underline that tells us where the next keyboard character we type will appear on the screen. It appears just to the right of the prompt. Other types of personal computers that use a mouse, such as the Macintosh, often display an arrow for pointing at the menu and issuing commands. Regardless of the type of task we're working at, the cursor is our constant point of reference.