Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Software...

Software refers to a program that makes the computer to do something meaningful. It is the planned, step-by-step instructions required to turn data into information. Software can be classified into two categories: System software and application software.
System software consists of general programs written for a computer. These programs provide the environment to run the application programs. System software comprises programs, which interact with the hardware at a very basic level. They are the basic necessity of the computer system for its proper functioning. System software serves as the interface between hardware and the user. The operating system, compilers and utility programs are examples of system software.
The most important type of system software is the operating system. An operating system is an integrated set of specialized programs that is used to manage the overall operations of a computer. It acts like an interface between the user, computer hardware and software. Every computer must have an operating system to run other programs. DOS (Disk Operating System), UNIX, Linux and Windows are some of the common operating systems.
The compiler software translates the source program (user written programs) into object programs (binary form). Specific compilers are available for computer programming languages like FORTRAN<>Application software consists of programs designed to solve a user problem. It is used to accomplish specific tasks rather than just managing a computer system. Application software is in turn, controlled by system software which manages hardware devices. Some typical examples are: railway reservation system, game programs, word processing software, weather forecasting programs. Among the application software some are packaged for specific tasks. The commonly used Application Software packages are word processor, spread sheet, database management system and graphics.

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