COMPUTER

SOFTWARE
CHAPTER 3

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

Topics
Introduction to Software
Applications Software and Types
Applications Software Classification : Ownership
and Distribution Rights
System Software and Types
Programming Languages
(generations/classifications, high vs low level
languages, query languages(4gl ), web
languages),
Language Translators (compilers, interpreters,
assemblers)
Course Instructor : Engr Sarama
Kamal

Software
Software is a generic term for organized
collections of computer data and instructions,
often broken into two major categories:
System software that provides the basic nontask-specific functions of the computer. System
software is responsible for controlling, integrating,
and managing the individual hardware
components of a computer system
Application software which is used by users to
accomplish specific tasks.

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

The Relationship
Hardware
System
Software
Applicatio
n
Software
User

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

Classifications of
Software
Software

Operating
System

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

System
Software

Application
Software

Device Drivers
Utilities
Language
translators
GeneralPurpose
Appliications
SpecialPurpose
Applications
Custom
Software
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Spheres of Influence
Personal
o Information systems that serve the needs of an
individual user

Workgroup
o Two or more people who work together to
achieve a common goal

Enterprise
o Information systems that support the firm in its
interaction with its environment.

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

Spheres of Influence

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

Application Software
General-Purpose
E.g. : Word Processing software,
Spreadsheet, etc

Special-Purpose

E.g. :Tax Calculating software, Animation

software, etc

Custom-made Software
Softwarethat is speciallydevelopedfor
some specific organization or other user
Course Instructor : Engr Sarama
Kamal

Common Softwares
Word Processing Software:Allows users to create,
edit a document. Example: MS Word, Word Pad etc.
Spreadsheet Software:Allows users to create
document and perform calculation. Example: Excel,
Lotus1-2-3 etc.
Database Software:Allows users to store and retrieve
vast amount of data. Example: MS Access, MySQL,
Oracle etc.
Presentation Graphic Software:Allows users to
create visual presentation. Example: MS Power Point
Multimedia Software:Allows users to create image,
audio, video etc. Example: Real Player, Media Player etc.
Course Instructor : Engr Sarama
Kamal

Application
Software
Classificatio
n
Ownership and Distribution

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

10

Ownership
Commercial Software:Installation in number of
computers is specified by the software
vendor/producer. User only buys the license to
use it. User does not buy the software. He/she
may not be allowed to install a software more
than one machine.
A demo version of software may exist for free but
demo version does not include all the key
components of the software.

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

11

Ownership(contd)
Shareware:May be free of charge or the
software company may charge a nominal fee.
Users can download these kinds of software from
the Internet.
Example: Real Player full version, MP3 player full
version, different games downloaded from he
Internet, Winzip, Cuteftp, Getright, etc

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

12

Ownership(contd)
Freeware:Software that are given away for free
by the vendor/producer.
Example: Adobe PDF, Google Talk, yahoo
messenger, MSN messenger, etc

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

13

Ownership(contd)
Open Source Software :The term Open
Source is very close to freeware but not
identical to it. We say this because, the source
code of an open-source software is readily
available to users 2 but under a copyright, and
one is freely allowed to re-distribute the software.
The concept of open-source program relies on the
fact that a user can review a source-code for
eliminating possible bugs in it.
EXAMPLE : Android OS

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

14

Ownership(contd)
Crippleware : Some software are offered as
freeware but with very limited features or with
the major feature missing. These arereferedto as
Crippleware.
Example : Realplayer trial version, MP3 player
trial version

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

15

The Components of System

Software
Operating system - the
principal component of
system software
Device drivers - help
the computer control
peripheral devices
Utility programs support, enhance, or
expand existing
programs
Examples of utility
programs are antivirus
software, backup
software and disk tools.
Course Instructor : Engr Sarama Kamal

OS- What does it do ?

Booting
CPU management
File management
Task management
Security management
Course Instructor : Engr Sarama
Kamal

17

The Operating System: What

It Does

Booting - the process of loading an operating

system into a computers main memory

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama Kamal

The Operating System: What It

Does
CPU Management

Supervisor (kernel) - program which remains in

main memory while the computer is running, and
directs other nonresident programs to perform
tasks that support application programs

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

20

The Operating System: What It

Does
File Management

A file is (1) a named collection of data (data file), or (2) a

program (program file) that exists in a computers secondary
storage.
Move
Rename
Delete
Copy
Back up
Course Instructor : Engr Sarama
Kamal

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File Management

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

22

The Operating System: What It

Does
Task Management

Hold down CTRL, ALT and DEL keys to open the Task Manager
Course Instructor : Engr Sarama Kamal

The Operating System: What It

Does
Formatting
(initializing) a disk the process of
preparing that disk so
that it can store data
or programs

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

Security
management

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Other System Software:

Device Drivers & Utility
Programs
Device drivers specialized
software programs
that allow input
and output devices
to communicate
with the rest of the
computer system

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama Kamal

Utilities: Service Programs

Backup utility - program which makes a duplicate
copy of the information on your hard disk
Data-recovery utility - program which restores data
that has been physically damaged or corrupted

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

26

Utilities: Service Programs

Antivirus software - program that scans hard disks,
floppy disks, and memory to detect viruses
Data compression utility - program which removes
redundant elements, gaps, and unnecessary data
from a computers storage space so that less space
(fewer bits) is required to store or transmit data

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

27

Utilities: Service Programs

Fragmentation - the
scattering of portions of
files about the disk in
nonadjacent areas, thus
greatly slowing access to
the files
Defragmenter utility program that finds all the
scattered files on your
hard disk and reorganizes
them as contiguous files

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama Kamal

Utilities: Service Programs

Disk scanner and disk
cleanup utilities:
Detect & remove
unnecessary files
Detect & correct
disk problems

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama Kamal

What is a (programming)
language?
A sequence of instructions
An algorithm
(in human language)

A program
(in computer language)

A program needs to be written in a

language
There are many programming languages
o Low-level :understandable by a computer
o High-level :needs a translator
Course Instructor : Engr Sarama
30

KamalC++ is a high level programming language

 1st Generation Programming language

(1GL)
o Machine Language: 0s or 1s
2nd Generation Programming language
(2GL)
o Assembly Language : Mnemonics
3rd Generation Programming language
(3GL)
o High-Level Languages ; (procedure
oriented or Object Oriented)
4th Generation Programming language
(4GL)

CSC141 Introduction to Computer

Programming

CSC141 Introduction to Computer Programming

Levels/Generations
of Programming
Languages

CSC141 Introduction to Computer Programming

Machine language (1GL)

The lowest level of language.
The language used to program the firstgeneration computers.
The instructions in 1GL are made of binary
numbers, represented by 1s and 0s.
1s and 0s correspond to the on and off
states of electrical switches.
Suitable for the understanding of the
machine but very much difficult to
interpret and learn by the human
programmer.

CSC141 Introduction to Computer Programming

Assembly language (2GL)

Low-level
language
that
allows
a
programmer to use abbreviations or easily
remembered words instead of numbers.
These Observations are called Mnemonics.
These Mnemonic are Opcode and Operands
For Example: ADD AX, BX
MOV CX, AX
INC CX
Op-code; ADD, MOV, INC
Operands AX, BX,CX

CSC141 Introduction to Computer Programming

Assembly language (2GL)

Programmer can write instructions faster
but it is still not an easy language to learn.
Drawback: The language is specific to a
particular
processor
family
and
environment.
(Machine
Dependent
Language)
Assembler A program that translates
the assembly language program into
machine language.

CSC141 Introduction to Computer Programming

High Level languages (3GL)

A High-Level Language is an English-like language.
It is a refinement of a second-generation
programming language.
It allowed users to write in familiar notation, rather
than numbers or abbreviations.
Most High-level languages are not Machine
Dependent.
Translator for High-level languages is either a
Compiler or an Interpreter.
Examples of High-level languages:
FORTRON
COBOL
BASIC
C and C++

CSC141 Introduction to Computer Programming

Very-High-Level Languages (4GL)

4GLs are much more user-oriented and allow
programmers to develop programs with fewer
commands compared with 3GLs.
Saves a lot of time.
4GLs consist of report generators, query
languages,
application
generators,
and
interactive database management system
Select*from(TABLE 1)

For example:
o RPG III (Report Generator)
o SQL (Structured Query Language)
o NOMAD and FOCUS (DBMS)

Natural Languages
(5GL)
CSC141 Introduction to Computer Programming

Two types
o Ordinary Human Languages; like English.
o Programming language that use human
language to give people a more natural
connection with computers.
5GLs are designed to make the computer solve a
given problem without the programmer.

An example:
Machine binary language

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

Low-level assembly

High-level

38

How to translate?
A program written in high-level programming language
(for example, C++ program)
LANGUAGE TRANSLATOR
(for example, Visual C++)
A low-level (machine/binary language) program that
is understandable by a computer (for example, a
PC)
Examples of language translators:
o Microsoft Visual C++, Eclipse, g++
Course Instructor : Engr Sarama
Kamal

39

Assembler
An assembler is a program that translates the
mnemonic codes used in assembly language into
the bit patterns that represent machine
operations.

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

40

Compiler
A compiler turns the source code that you write in
a high-level language into object code (machine
code) that can be executed by the computer.
The compiler is a more complex beast than the
assembler. It may require several machine
operations to represent a single high-level
Input
language statement.
Source
Program

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

Compiler

Target
Program

Error messages

Output

41

Interpreter
Interpreters translate the source code at runtime. The interpreter translates statements oneat-a-time as the program is executed.
Interpreters are often used to execute high-level
language programs whilst they are being
developed since this can be quicker than
compiling the entire program. The program would
be compiled when it is complete and ready to be
released.
Source
Program

Interpreter

Output

Input
Course Instructor : Engr Sarama
Kamal

Error messages

42

Concept Check
Place the following software into its correct
category:
Computer Game
This is built for a human user, therefore it is
application software
Virus Scanner
This is built to make the computer run better,
therefore it is system software

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

43

Assignment 1
Submission 12th March, 15

Question 1 : Define Telecommuting.

Question 2: Define computer(system) clock.
Differentiate in between the 24 hour clock and
the computers clock.
Question 3 : Define a computer processor(CPU).
Question 4 :Differentiate in between bit, byte and
nibble.
Question 5 :Define cache memory. How is it
different from RAM ?
Question 6 : What do u understand by the terms
computer bus, register , port and connector ?
Course Instructor : Engr Sarama
Kamal

44

 Question 7 : Define Machine Cycle and explain

the following diagram

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

45

Assignment 1
Submission 12th March, 15

Quiz 1 on 12th March, 2015

Time : 40 minutes. (11 30 12 10)

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

46

References
Introduction to Information Technology Stacey C
Sawyer
Introduction to Computers by Peter Norton 7th
edition

Course Instructor : Engr Sarama

Kamal

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