Which concept describes the concurrent execution of multiple tasks?

Which concept describes the concurrent execution of multiple tasks?

• A. Pipelining
• B. Batch processing
• C. Multithreading
• D. Multitasking

Answer: (D)

Multitasking is the ability of a computer system to run more than one task at roughly the same time by rapidly switching between them. The operating system schedules each task, giving small time slices and performing context switches to save and restore where each task left off. This creates the impression that multiple programs are progressing simultaneously, and on multi-core CPUs you can even have true parallel execution of separate tasks. Pipelining, by contrast, overlaps stages within the processor to speed up instruction throughput rather than manage distinct tasks at the system level. Batch processing handles many jobs in a group, typically without interactive switching between tasks. Multithreading is about running multiple threads within a single program, a finer-grained form of concurrency inside one process, whereas multitasking refers to multiple tasks across the system.

Multitasking is the ability of a computer system to run more than one task at roughly the same time by rapidly switching between them. The operating system schedules each task, giving small time slices and performing context switches to save and restore where each task left off. This creates the impression that multiple programs are progressing simultaneously, and on multi-core CPUs you can even have true parallel execution of separate tasks.

Pipelining, by contrast, overlaps stages within the processor to speed up instruction throughput rather than manage distinct tasks at the system level. Batch processing handles many jobs in a group, typically without interactive switching between tasks. Multithreading is about running multiple threads within a single program, a finer-grained form of concurrency inside one process, whereas multitasking refers to multiple tasks across the system.