Final answer:
A computer system that allows multiple users to run programs at the same time is called a Time sharing system. It gives users a personal interactive experience by sharing the computer's processing time.
Step-by-step explanation:
A computer system that permits multiple users to run programs at the same time is known as a Time sharing system. This system is designed to provide a personal interactive user interface to multiple users by sharing processing time. Each user has the impression of having exclusive access to the computer, which in reality is being shared among multiple users.
Minicomputers, which were less powerful than mainframes, were capable of supporting many users simultaneously. Although minicomputers have largely been replaced by more powerful personal computers, the principle of supporting multiple users continues to be a fundamental aspect of modern computing and operating systems.
An example of this evolution can be seen in the transition from proprietary systems to more open systems, a change spearheaded by UNIX and the way it was developed and commercialized over time.
A computer system that permits multiple users to run programs at the same time is called a time sharing system. In a time sharing system, each user is allocated a small time slot in which they can run their programs, allowing multiple users to effectively share the resources of the computer.
This is different from multi-programming systems where multiple programs are loaded into memory and executed concurrently, but without true parallel execution.