Software

Computer Fundamentals: Pradeep K. Sinha & Priti Sinha

Ref Page Chapter 10: Computer Software Slide 1/17


Learning Objectives

In this chapter you will learn about:

§ Term “Software” and its relationship with “Hardware”
§ Various types of software and their examples
§ Relationship among hardware, system software,
application software, and users of a computer system
§ Different ways of acquiring software
§ Various steps involved in software development
§ Firmware
§ Middleware

Ref Page 172 Chapter 10: Computer Software Slide 2/17


Software

§ Hardware refers to the physical devices of a
computer system.
§ Software refers to a collection of programs
§ Program is a sequence of instructions written in a
language that can be understood by a computer
§ Software package is a group of programs that solve
a specific problem or perform a specific type of job



Relationship Between Hardware and
Software

§ Both hardware and software are necessary for a
computer to do useful job. They are complementary
to each other
§ Same hardware can be loaded with different software
to make a computer system perform different types
of jobs
§ Except for upgrades, hardware is normally a one-
time expense, whereas software is a continuing
expense
§ Upgrades refer to renewing or changing components
like increasing the main memory, or hard disk
capacities, or adding speakers, modems, etc.



Types of Software

Most software can be divided into two major categories:
§ System software are designed to control the
operation and extend the processing capability of a
computer system
§ Application software are designed to solve a
specific problem or to do a specific task



System Software

§ Make the operation of a computer system more effective
and efficient

§ Help hardware components work together and provide
support for the development and execution of application
software

§ Programs included in a system software package are
called system programs and programmers who
prepare them are called system programmers

§ Examples of system software are operating systems,
programming language translators, utility programs, and
communications software



Application Software

§ Solve a specific problem or do a specific task
§ Programs included in an application software
package are called application programs and the
programmers who prepare them are called
application programmers
§ Examples of application software are word
processing, inventory management, preparation of
tax returns, banking, etc.



Logical System Architecture

HARDWARE
(Physical devices/components
of the computer system)

SYSTEM SOFTWARE
(Software that constitute the operating and
programming environment of the computer system)

APPLICATION SOFTWARE
(Software that do a specific task or solve a specific problem)

USERS
(Normally interact with the system via the user
interface provided by the application software)

Relationship among hardware, system software, application software, and users of a
computer system.



Ways of Acquiring Software

§ Buying pre-written software
§ Ordering customized software
§ Developing customized software
§ Downloading public-domain software

Each of these ways of acquiring software has its own
advantages and limitations


Advantages and Limitations of
Buying Pre-written Software

§ Usually costs less
§ Planned activity can be stared almost immediately
§ Often, operating efficiency and the capability to meet
specific needs of user more effectively in not as good
for pre-written software packages as for in-house
developed software packages



Advantages & Limitations of Ordering
Customized Software

§ User need not maintain its own software development team,
which is an expensive affair
§ User needs to always depend on the vendor for carrying out
the changes and the vendor may separately charge for
every request for change



Advantages & Limitations of Developing
Customized Software

§ Easier to carry out changes in the software, if it is
developed in-house
§ Developing software in-house means a major
commitment of time, money, and resources
§ In-house software development team needs to be
maintained and managed



Advantage & Limitations of Downloading
Public-domain Software

§ Available for free or as shareware, and are usually accompanied
with source code
§ Usually community-supported as author does not support users
directly
§ Can be downloaded and used immediately
§ They may not be properly tested before release
§ Open Source Software (OSS) are becoming popular due to:
§ Allows any user to download, view, modify, and redistribute
§ User can fix bugs or change software to suit needs
§ Copyright is protected for both original and subsequent
authors
§ Not all open source software are free and vise-verse



Software Development Steps

Developing a software and putting it to use is a complex
process and involves following steps:
§ Analyzing the problem at hand and planning the
program(s) to solve the problem
§ Coding the program(s)
§ Testing, debugging, and documenting the program(s)
§ Implementing the program(s)
§ Evaluating and maintaining the program(s)



Firmware

§ Firmware is software substituted for hardware and stored
in read-only memory
§ Firmware technology has enabled production of various
types of smart machines having microprocessor chips
with embedded software



Middleware

§ Basic idea is to have a separate software layer to:
§ Act as “glue” between client and server parts of
application
§ Provide programming abstraction
§ Mask heterogeneity of underlying network, hardware,
and OS
§ Encourages three-tier software architecture against two-
tier popularized by Server-Client architecture



Key Words/Phrases

§ Application programmers § Pre-written software
§ Application programs § Public-domain software
§ Application software § Shareware
§ Computer program § Software
§ Customized software § Software package
§ Database § Spreadsheet
§ Education software § System programmers
§ End-to-end solution § System programs
§ Entertainment software § System software
§ Firmware § Turnkey solution
§ Graphics software § User-supported
§ Hardware software
§ Middleware § Utilities
§ Open Source Software § Word-processing
§ Personal assistance software


Software

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