Computer Software
3 min readA computer is a machine that can only understand the binary language i.e. 0 and 1. It consists of hardware and software. Hardware is the physical part of a computer such as the central processing unit, the mouse, keyboard, storage device, multimedia and the monitor.
Since computers can understand only the binary language of 0s and 1s the software basically work as a plat form or a compiler that translates human instructions or language to machine language in order for the computer to understand. Software are designed by expert programmers who have command over various computer languages such as the Assembly Language, the C Language, COBOL, FORTRAN and the Visual Basics. In the modern times since the technology has made significant progress certain programming languages have become obsolete and there are far easier ways to design computer programs through modern programming languages (Cole, 2003).
There are different types of software designed to meet the challenges and demands of the modern world. Since the amazing invention of the Internet certain software are specifically designed to meet the requirements of the web. Software are also divided in to two types namely Application Software and System Software. System software works as a platform or an interface between the computer and human beings. Without system software a computer machine will be useless as it helps run other essential software applications. Computer accessories such as the printer, scanner, mouse and multimedia are used using the System Software.
There are different kinds of system software that were innovated from time to time as the technology improved from decade to decade since the invention of computers. Some of the oldest versions of system software include the Disk Operating System, Linux and UNIX which mainly worked through providing set of commands using the keyboard for a particular program to run. Working on Disk Operating System was a cumbersome task as it required long set of commands required to switch from one directory to another and one drive to another. Since the Disk Operating System did not require a mouse as it is today in the modern version of windows it was quite difficult to store and copy files from a floppy device to the computer hard disk.
The current version of the most popular system software among the PC users Windows XP is far more user friendly compare to older versions of windows with enhanced support for the internet devices and various networking options. You can easily load a number of software applications following instructions in windows XP. The existing system software can support all the multimedia devices such as the DVD ROM, headphones, microphone and sound devices unlike the older versions such as the DOS. You can easily watch movies and listen to songs using the internet and DVD ROM device. Maintaining folders and files is just a matter of using the mouse.
Application Software such as Microsoft office have become an essential need for the organizations around the world and ordinary PC users. You can create projects, presentations and financial budgets using Word, Power Point and Excel spreadsheets. You do not need to record your important data on paper folders and files you can all create and store data using application software and system software.
References
Cole, B. (2003). What is Computer Software?
Retrieved November 19, 2009, from What is Computer Software website:
