Hi Everyone,

This is my understanding of the subject, which is to say this is what I mean when I use the terms and it is what I infer when others use them.

Threads are independently executable blocks of code. Threads are the mechanism by which systems with multiple processors make use of them, by sending a separate thread to each. In order for a system to make use of multiple processors, it must have an operating system which can handle multiple threads. Windows NT was such an OS. Windows 95 was not. If you bought a dual processor computer and installed Win95, you gained nothing.

And, as Andy said, multi-tasking is another matter altogether. I've always thought of multitasking and real time as either/or choices. If an operating system includes a mechanism for timesharing the processor between multiple executables, it is a multitasking system. If an operating system dedicates 100% of its time to a single executable, it's real time.

These two cents have been contributed by

Joe