Computer Software

srss
Mr. Yusuf D Msemo
[email protected]
+255 713 260 549

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 COMPUTER SOFTWARE
Software Concepts
You might have heard that programs or instructions have to be fed to the computer to
do a specific task. In this case having Computer hardware without
programs/Instructions nothing will be done because hardware waits for the Instructions
from the user to do a certain task.
Computer Software (Software) – Refers to the set of Instructions which tells the
hardware what to do and how to do it.
Software guides the computer hardware at every step where to start and stop during a
particular job.
The process of software development is called Programming and a person who develop
software is called Programmer or Coder.

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So, Software and Hardware are complementary to each other, both have to work together
to produce a meaningful result.

Types of Software
There are two major types of software
A. System Software
B. Application Software

A. System Software
When you switch on the computer the programs written in ROM is executed which
activates different units of a computer and makes it ready for a user to work on it. This set
of program can be called system software.
System software Is a computer software designed to operate and control the computer
hardware and to provide a platform for running application software.

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System software are general programs designed for performing tasks such as controlling
all operations required to move data into and out of the computer. It communicates
with all units in a computer system such as Input Unit, Storage Unit, System Unit(CPU)
and Output Unit.
Types of System software are:
Devices driver, Linker Software, Compiler, Assembler, BIOS Software, Interpreter and
Operating system(OS).
i. Device driver (commonly referred to as simply a driver) is a computer program that
operates or controls a particular type of device that is attached to a computer.
Enables device communication with the OS and other programs.
ii. Linker or link editor is a computer program that takes one or more object
files generated by a compiler and combines them into a single executable program.
iii. Compiler is a program that translates a source program written in some high-level
programming language (such as Java) into machine code.

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 High-level-language is the programming language that enables the development of a
program in a user-friendly context and is generally independent of computer’s
hardware architecture. e.g Java, C++
iv. Assembler is a program for converting instructions written in low-level symbolic code
into machine code.
Low-Level Language is the programming language that deals with a computer’s
hardware components and constraints. it is also known as Computer’s native
language.
Machine Code/Machine Language/Assembly Language is the set of instructions
executed directly by a computer’s central processing unit (CPU)
iv. Interpreter a program that can analyses and execute a program line by line.
Computer programs are usually written on high level languages. A high level
language is one that can be understood by humans. ... Interpreter translates just one
statement of the program at a time into machine code. Compiler scans the entire
program and translates the whole of it into machine code at once.
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iv. An Operating system(OS) - Is the core software that allows a computer to
run as an useful device. It allows you to communicate with the computer
without knowing how to speak the computer's language. Without an
operating system, a computer is useless.

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Types of Operating system
OS are classified into different types depending on their capability of processing.
There are six mainly types of Operating system
1. Single user and single task OS
2. Single user and multtask OS
3. Multi User and multtask OS
4. Real time
5. Embedded.
6. Network OS
7. Mobile OS

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i. Single User and single task OS, can either be Single user Single task OS are simple
operating system designed to manage one task at a time e.g. mobile phone. Is the
operating system designed to manage the computer that one user can effectively do one
thing at a time. At one time, only one task (application, program) can run on the
Computer E.g. DOS, Palm OS
ii. Single User Multitasking OS is an operating system designed to be used by one person at
a time but it can perform many task at the same time e.g. Personal Computers (PC) are
single-user Multitasking OS
iii. Multi User OS is used in computer networks that allow same data and applications to be
accessed by multiple users at the same time. The users can also communicate with each
other. Linux, UNIX, and Windows 7 are examples of multi user OS.
iv. Multitasking OS allows execution of more than one task or process concurrently. For this,
the processor time is divided amongst different tasks. This division of time is also
called time sharing. The processor switches rapidly between processes. For example, the
user can listen to music on the computer while writing an article using a word processor
software. The user can switch between the applications and also transfer data between
them.
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v. Real Time OS are designed to respond to an event within a predetermined time.
Processing is done within a time constraint. They are used to respond to queries in
areas like medical imaging system, industrial control systems etc. Linux OS is an
example of real time OS. – Normally used to control scientific machinery ,insures
that a given task occurs in precisely the time allocated for it

v. Embedded OS is the operating systems designed for being used in embedded

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Network OS: Is used to share resources such as files, printers in a network setup
– Designed to work on network servers
– Such machines often have multiple processors .

Mobile OS: Is designed to run on mobile phones, tablets and other mobile devices.

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Functions of Operating System
Although these operating systems have been developed to work with very different types
of computers, they all share a number of common functions:
i. Hardware Management
Several peripheral devices like mouse, hard disk, printer, plotter etc are connected to the
computer. The peripheral devices have varying characteristics like character or block
device, sequential or random access device, and dedicated or shared device. OS manages
and controls the devices attached to the computer
ii. Protection and Security
The access of programs, processes, and users, to the resources defined by the computer
are controlled by the protection mechanism. Security mechanism prevents unauthorized
access to the computer. Security concerns include—security of software, security of data
stored in the computer, and security of physical resources of the computer.

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 iii. File Management
The file management function of the operating system involves handling the file system which
consists of two parts a set of Files, and a Directory structure.
● File is a collection of related information, has a name, and is stored on a secondary storage. A
file has attributes like its name, location, size, type, time, and date of creation etc.
The information stored in a file can be accessed in different ways:
1.Sequential access , information in a file is accessed sequentially from one record to
another
2.Direct / random access the file can be accessed in any order, random access.
● Directory structure provides information about the files stored on the secondary storage.
Directory contains information about all the files within it. Directory contains the name,
location, size, and type of all the files defined on the device.

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Types of files
there are three types of files namely system file, application files and data files.
● System files: contains critical information for the operation of the computer
● Application files: holds program and are executable(can be ran)
● Data file: contains user specific data.

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 iv. Process Management
A process is a program in a state of execution. It is a unit of work for the operating
system. A process can be created, executed, and stopped.
The process management function of an operating system handles allocation of
resources to the processes in an efficient manner like I/O devices, CPU, memory, storage
device etc. The allocation of resources required by a process is made during process
creation and process execution.
v. Memory Management
In a computer, there may be multiple processes executing at the same time. Every
process that needs to execute, requires a certain amount of memory.
Memory management is one of the tasks handled by the operating system. Memory
management schemes handle the allocation of memory to different processes. On
completion of process execution, the memory is de-allocated and made available to
another process.

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vi. Graphical User Interface
The primary goal of operating system is to make the computer convenient for use by its
user. It should allow users to easily access and communicate with the applications and
the hardware.

Interface: refers to the interaction between the user and the computer.
The users can interact with the computer by using mainly two kinds of interfaces
a. Command Line Interface (CLI)
b. Graphical User Interface (GUI).

a. CLI requires the user to interact with operating system in the form of text keyed in
from the keyboard. In this, the user has to learn and remember the different
commands required for copying, deleting, opening a file or folder etc. MS-DOS and
Linux shell are examples of command line mode of interfaces.

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b. GUI use graphics to display the various commands. The interface consists of
Window, Icons, menus and pointers (WIMP). The user need not learn the
commands, instead, the user can give instructions by moving the pointer on the
screen using a mouse and pressing the mouse button. Windows 7 and Mac OS are
examples of graphical mode of interface. GUI interface for the Linux OS also exist
like the GNU Object Model Environment (GNOME).

Window: a rectangular portion of the screen that display an open program or contents
of a folder or disk
vii.Error handling
The Operating System has a way to alert the users of hardware, software and data
errors, and suggestions to the problem

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Examples of Operating Systems
i. MS-DOS
ii. Windows family (Windows XP,7,8 ,Vista,10)
iii. Unix OS
iv. Linux OS
v. Fedora
vi. Ubuntu
vii. Suse
viii.Mac OS X
ix. android
x. IOS
● Qn. How does OS differ?
Factors to Consider when Choosing an Operating System
When considering the importance an operating system plays on the entire computer, it is
important to take care in choosing the right one. There are a few things one should evaluate
before deciding on an operating system.
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 Features of Operating System (OS)

• Hardware Management

• Protection and Security

• Program Execution

• Memory management

• File Management

• Process Management

• Graphical User Interface

• Error Detection and handling

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i. What Will the Operating System Be Used For?
Knowing what an operating system will be used for or where the computer will be used
will help in determining which system to get. Certain operating systems are better for
business use where others are better for home use.
i. What Level of Security Does it possess?
Today, security is a big issue and one of the highest priorities for both home and business
computers. Like securing a home, different operating systems come with different levels
of security.
i. Networking & Mobile Features : Selecting an operating system which is easily to connect
in a network for sharing resources.
ii. Hardware compatibility with help and support .
iii. Software compatibility with help and support.
iv. Backup and Restore features.
v. Troubleshooting ,remote assistance and automatic updates .
vi. Cost of Operating System.
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B. Application Software(End User Programs, Apps) – Are programs designed to
perform a specific task in a computer.
The word application is used because each program has a specific application for the user.
For example, a word processor used to process word, Spreadsheet used for calculations,
Payroll used to produce pay slips, Corel Draw, Paint and Adobe family for Graphics,
Powerpoint for Presentation

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Classification of Software in diagram

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Difference between system software and application software.
1. System software gets installed directly to the computer when the operating system is
installed while application software is installed according to the requirements of the
user.
2. System software includes programs such as compilers, debuggers, drivers, assemblers
while application software includes media players, word processors, and spreadsheet
programs.
3. Generally, users do not interact with system software as it works in the background
whereas users interact with application software while doing different activities.
4. A computer may not require more than one type of system software while there may be
a number of application software programs installed on the computer at the same time.
5. System software can run independently of the application software while application
software cannot run without the presence of the system software.

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Hierarchical architecture showing aliment Operating with other devices

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END

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