GEOS SDK TechDocs
|
| 
2.3 The Kernel
| 
2.5 The User Interface
GEOS device drivers isolate the system and applications from the specific needs and foibles of a user's hardware. Drivers translate the generic actions of an application (such as opening a file) into the specific needs of the hardware or system in use (such as the specific call to MS-DOS to open the file). By isolating the system from hardware specifics, drivers allow GEOS to be expanded in the future to use new devices and engines without recompiling applications.
Drivers are provided with the system for printers, video cards, mice, keyboards, serial and parallel ports, file systems, task switchers, power management hardware, and font engines. In the future, developers will be able to develop their own drivers for new hardware and file systems.
Most applications and libraries will access drivers through kernel calls. Drivers are also accessible to applications and libraries directly.
GEOS SDK TechDocs
|
| 2.3 The Kernel
| 2.5 The User Interface