<Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This article needs attention from an expert on the subject . Please add a reason or a talk parameter to this template to explain the issue with the article . When placing this tag, consider associating this request with a WikiProject . (January 2018) </Td> </Tr> <P> In computer software, an operating environment or integrated applications environment is the environment in which users run application software . The environment consists of a user interface provided by an applications manager and usually an application programming interface (API) to the applications manager . </P> <P> An operating environment is usually not a full operating system, but is a form of middleware that rests between the OS and the application . For example, the first version of Microsoft Windows, Windows 1.0, was not a full operating system, but a GUI laid over DOS albeit with an API of its own . Similarly, the IBM U2 system operates on both Unix / Linux and Windows NT . Usually the user interface is text - based or graphical, rather than a command - line interface (e.g., DOS or the Unix shell), which is often the interface of the underlying operating system . </P> <P> In the mid 1980s, text - based and graphical user interface operating environments surrounded DOS operating systems with a shell that turned the user's display into a menu - oriented "desktop" for selecting and running PC applications . These operating environment systems gave users much of the convenience of integrated software without locking them into a single package . </P>

What is meant by an operating system in a computer environment