What’s Really Going On?
What Really Happens When You Turn the Computer On?
Part I: Getting To Know Your Computer
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What Really Happens When You Turn the
Computer On?
When you press the power button, the following occurs:
1 The computer’s BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) loads
a bootstrap program.
This program, named from the expression “pull yourself up by
your bootstraps,” checks and displays the amount of memory
in the system before proceeding.
2 The bootstrap program attempts to load Windows 95.
It looks first for a diskette in the diskette drive and then at the
hard disk. If a diskette without the necessary startup files is in
the drive, the bootstrap program displays an error message.
If you’ve changed the Boot Priority option in TSETUP, the
computer will check the hard disk before the diskette drive.
3 As Windows 95 loads, it configures the system.
4 Windows 95 loads the desktop.