Time-sharing

Time-sharing is a computing method that lets multiple users interact with one computer by allocating processor time among them. Rapid switching makes each user’s work appear to run continuously.

Round-robin scheduling: A scheduling method that gives each ready process a fixed time slice in turn. Its recurring time slices are a direct way to divide processor access among users.
John McCarthy: An American computer scientist who helped establish artificial intelligence and advocated interactive computing. His advocacy helped frame time-sharing as a way to make computing broadly accessible.
Process (computing): A running instance of a program, including its execution state and allocated resources. The scheduler allocates processor time to processes representing users’ active work.
Remote job entry: A method for submitting batch computing jobs from a remote terminal or workstation. It offers remote access but not the ongoing interactive sessions time-sharing provides.
Multics security: The protection architecture and security mechanisms developed for the Multics operating system. Multiuser time-sharing made strong isolation and controlled access central design concerns.
Context switch: The operation of saving one process’s state and restoring another’s so a processor can change tasks. Frequent context switches create the appearance of simultaneous interactive work.
Fernando J. Corbató: An American computer scientist who led development of the Compatible Time-Sharing System and Multics. His systems made practical multiuser time-sharing a reality.
Operating system: System software that manages computer hardware and provides services to programs. Time-sharing depends on the operating system to coordinate users, processes, and devices.
Multi-user system: A computer system designed to support several users with distinct accounts or sessions. A multi-user system is the direct operational setting for time-sharing.
Computer utility: A vision of computing supplied as a shared service, much like electricity or telephone service. Time-sharing helped make computing-as-a-service technically and socially imaginable.

Linked from 12 pages