What does a multitasking operating system optimize?

A multitasking operating system is designed to manage multiple tasks or processes at the same time efficiently. The primary objective of such an operating system is to optimize CPU usage, ensuring that the central processing unit is kept as busy as possible. This is achieved by quickly switching between tasks, allowing the CPU to handle multiple processes without significant delays, thereby improving overall system performance.

By utilizing techniques like context switching, where the state of a process is saved and restored for CPU execution, multitasking operating systems improve responsiveness and resource utilization. This ability to run several processes concurrently means that the CPU can be constantly active, leading to less idle time and better performance. While file organization, network speed, and power consumption may be important aspects of an operating system, they are not the primary focus of multitasking optimization.