CLASS NOTES

TOPIC: SOFTWAREWHAT IS SOFTWARE ?

Software is the general name given to all computer programs that can be run on computer
hardware. They consist of step-by-step instructions that tell the computer how to perform a task or
behave when a certain instruction is given to hardware. It sets up a computer to perform a specific
task. Hardware needs software to work as the software instructs the hardware on how to behave or
allows the user to get some form of functionality from the computer to solve a specific problem.
There are two main categories of software:

1. Systems software consists of a program that performs the basic operations involved in
running and maintaining a computer.
2. Application software is the software that users apply to real world tasks. It can be used to
solve particular problems or perform a particular task needed by a user.

An Overview of software
Here the user interacts with the application software that is related to the task at hand.
The System software acts as the intermediary between the application software and the hardware.

1. Systems Software
Systems software consists of a program that performs the basic operations involved in running and
maintaining a computer. It helps to control the computer’s operations. For example selecting and
controlling the input and output devices. It also improves the way the computer works. It is not
directed to any particular application of the computer. They are often supplied by the computer
manufacturer. Examples of system software include:
Systems
Software

Operating Translation Utility User

System Programs Programs Interfaces

The most important piece of system software in a computer is the operating system which controls
it.
 1. OPERATING SYSTEM
An operating system is a computerprogram that controls and organizes the general operations of
the computer. A simple computer comprises of hardware and at least one operating system.
Operating System allows the Application Software to communicate with the hardware. The OS
provides an interface (a link or channel of communication) between the user and the computer. A
computer cannot work without an operating system. When a computer is switched on, the operating
system (OS) is the first to load into main memory. The operating system then loads and unloads any
application software or device drivers as required. Examples of OS are Windows Vista, Windows XP,
Unix, Linux etc.

The operating systems perform the following tasks:

(a) They provide a way for applications software to communicate with the hardware. For
example, in your word processing package (MS Word, MS Excel), if you click on the print icon,
the operating system gives an instruction to the printer to start printing.
(b) It allows multitasking – the ability of a computer to run two or more programs at the same
time.
(c) In some Operating Systems like Network Operating systems allow multi-user – they allow
different users to access the computer using different accounts on the same computers.
(d) Loading and running programs that are being used by the computer.
(e) They manage the system resources such as memory and also allocate CPU time to the task
being run.
(f) They manage the transfer of data to and from the various peripherals (keyboards, mice, etc.).
(g) They manage system security. Many operating systems allocate certain rights to users. A user
can only do certain things on entering a password.
(h) Dealing with program errors and interruptions to the running of a program.

Without an operating system, a computer would be useless, so the first thing a computer looks for
when it is switched on is the operating system. Once the operating system has been found, the
computer loads it from disk.

The Booting process - Booting the computer is the process of starting/switching on the computer.
When a computer is switched on, the operating system loads itself. The operating system after
loading itself starts command interpretation. The command interfaces between the operating
system and the user, as well as between the operating system and application.

THE APPLICATION SOFTWARE

What is Application software?

Computer Software thatallows end users to accomplish one or more specific (non-computer related)
tasks. It can be defined as a program which allows a computer to be used for a specific application.
Typical applications include industrial automation, business software, educational software, medical
software, databases, computer games, payroll programs and word processors. Businesses are probably
the biggest users of application software, but almost every field of human activity now uses some form of
application software. Think of examples…..
CATEGORIES OF APPLICATION SOFTWARE

Application software is categorized into types such as;

1) THE CUSTOM DESIGNED PROGRAM / TAILOR-MADE SOFTWARE

An organization may write its own software or employ an outside company to write it. The software can
be designed by a software house (a company which specializes in writing software) and or may be
designed in-house - by someone within the company.
Custom designed / Tailor-made software is a program that is designed and written just to solve this/a
particular problem. In other words it solves only this problem it is tailored/customized to solve and not
any other problem except this one. This tailor-made software can be very expensive and is used only by
companies with large computer departments, or where applications packages are not available.

ADVANTAGEOF A CUSTOM DESIGNED PROGRAM

 The program is designed to fit the user's problem exactly hence it is efficient in problem solving.

2) APPLICATION SPECIFIC SOFTWARE PACKAGE / OFF-THE SHELF SOFTWARE

Many problems are the same for many companies so software houses produce programs to suit a
particular type of problems within an application area. This are called off-shelf/application specific. It is
possible to buy a ready-made package' off the shelf'only and only if the buyer wants to use it to solve
problem within the specific application area of that off-shelf software.

Example of application specific software packages include;

Programs to:
 handle a stock control (stock control systems) –These are used to solve any problem to deal with
stock control application.
 organize the payroll; solves all payroll application problems
 Students registry---can be used to automatically register pupils at any school ie is used to perform
any school registry application
ADVANTAGES OF APPLICATION SPECIFIC SOFWARE PACKAGES
 Because the package applies to other users, it is well tried and tested.
 It will usually be cheaper than a custom designed program to do the same thing why—because
the software is ready made, one do not have to hire a programmer who will start the design of
the program from scratch..

3) A GENERAL PURPOSE APPLICATION PROGRAM/SOFTWARE

Many programs are not written for any specific application but can be used in a wide variety of
applications. These are called general purpose application software. Often such programs are described
as content free.

EXAMPLES OF GENERAL PURPOSE SOFTWARE:

 spreadsheet program egMs excel
 database egMs access
 Word processor egMsWord, word perfect.

ADVANTAGES OF GENERAL PURPOSE APPLICATION PROGRAMS

 Each package is well tested and well documented.
 The package is not expensive; often a set of general purpose applications are'bundled' together,
think of Microsoft office suite which comprise of spreadsheet, access, word processor and others.
This comes as a bundle. Sometimes this software may be included with the computer.
 Each program applies to a wide variety of applications.
 There is a wide user base, providing plenty of other users with whom to discuss problems
Integrated software

Application software can be integrated that is are included in as one package. The software consists of a
collection of application packages which share a common set of commands. Often application specific
software are the ones that are integrated Eg think of Microsoft-office suite software,it is an integrated
package made up of Ms word, Ms excel, Ms access, Ms power point etc. The sole purpose of having
integrated software is to have an all in one package that often has aword-processor software,
spreadsheet, database software graphics software etc which share common commands such as the menu
commands (file, view, edit, format and other features of Graphical User Interface. They share common
commands because there is consistency of the use of commands eg menu in each application software
package. For instance the file menu of Ms word has options which perform similar tasks as the file menu
options in Ms excel. We are again saying they share common commands because it is easier to transfer
data between these different software in an all in one package (integrated); we can cut and paste or
import and export data between these software.

ADVANTAGES OF INTERGRATED SOFTWARE

 One of having such a package is that the commands are common

throughout so it is easier to get used to than several different packages.
 Also, moving data from one program to another is easier. For instance, if you wanted to print out
details of amounts outstanding from your database you could transfer the data to your word
processor. This would be easier to do with the integrated package than with the two separate
programs.
 Integrated packages tend to be much cheaper than separate packages and this is a major reason
for their popularity.
 The application software within all in one are tested and trusted hence reliable.

DISAVANTAGES OF INTERGRATED SOFTWARE

 Integrated packages tend to be strong in one area and weak in others. For instance, a package
may have a good database but a poor word processor. If you want the best word processor,
database, etc. and are prepared to pay a higher price, then it is best to buy the separate packages.

USES AND FUNCTIONS OF COMMONLY USED APPLICATION SOFTWARE

Word processor
A word processor is a program for producing and editing text such as- letters and reports.
Characteristics of word processors, have:
 Improved appearance and style with features such as underlining, bold, italics.
 Spell checking and even grammar checking.
 some control of layout - changing margins, page numbering, etc.
 Some choice of fonts.
 Facilities for printing and addressing a set ofletters.

Applications of Word processor s

 Writing letters, reports, lists and other documents in an office.

 Producing the text of books and articles. Although a book or magazine may be
produced with another package such as a desktop publisher, the text is often written on a word
processor first.
 Personalizing letters - producing a set of similar letters to be posted to a number ofpeople.
Spreadsheet

Spread sheet is a package which displays information in the form of a table

It is divided into rows and columns of individual boxes called cells. The spreadsheet allows calculations to
be done on cells or groups of cells.

Characteristics of Spreadsheet
 The user can enter text, a number or a formula into any cell.
 A formula allows calculations to be done on other cells.
 Formulae and other data can be copied into groups of cells.
 A variety of operations can be carried out on rows or columns.

APPLICATIONS OF A SPREADSHEET
 Displaying and calculating accounts and other financial information.
 Performing calculations on data collected in experiments and surveys.
 Producing columns of data from which graphs can be drawn, e.g.
. calculating the average temperature for a graph of weather data; . a graph to solve a mathematical
equation..
Desktop publishing (DTP)
A desktop publisher is a program which makes it possible to produce text and pictures and to organize
them into pages. It will produce work of sufficient standard for publication

CHARACTERISTICS: OF A DESKTOP PUBLISHER.

The document may be divided into pages and the pages may be divided into columns. It has:
 good word processing capability with good range of fonts.
 some drawing capability using standard shapes such as lines and circles.
 Good facilities for importing word processor and drawing files.
 Good facilities for arranging text and pictures together and changing their sizes.

Application of a desktop publisher

 To produce newspapers, newsletters and magazines.
 To produce posters.
 To add pictures, logos, ete. to letters to make them more attractive.

DATABSE PROGRAM/APPLICATION SOFTWARE

A database is a program for handling files and retrieving information £rom them.
CHARACTERISTICS/FEATURES OF A DATABASE PROGRAM
 Data is stored in the form of records, e.g. if the database is about people then each
record would contain all the information about one person.
 The user defines a record structure choosing:the number of fields and their names;the size of
each field and the type of data it will hold;the way the records are displayed on the screen.
 Facilities to sort the data into different orders.
 Facilities for information retrieval:
 producing lists of all records which meet certain conditions;
 calculating statistics for groups of records.
Applications of database application softaware
 Maintaining personal lists such as:details of customers' names, addresses and accounts; pupil
records for a school; a list of suppliers for a stock control system.
 Allowing access to large stores of information such as: an encyclopedia stored on CD-ROM; details
of books currently in print with their authors, publishers and summaries
of their contents; details of possible careers.
Advantages of word processor

Use advantages of its type (those of a general purpose software)

And think of others!
Consider user interface and user friendliness of the software

Disadvantages
Those of its type (general purpose software)
And think of others!
Consider user interface and user friendliness of the software

Advantages of Spreadsheet

Use advantages of its type (those of a general purpose software)

And think of others! Consider user interface and user friendliness of the software

Disadvantages
Those of its type (general purpose software)
And think of others!
Consider user interface and user friendliness of the software

Topic: USER INTERFACES

User interface can be defined as a means through which we use to interact with the computer. It may also
be described as what you see when you turn on the computer. It consists of the cursor, prompts, icons,
menus etc which allow the user to gets something done using a computer.

TYPES/ EXAMPLES OF USER INTERFACES

These are: 1) the command-driven interface 2) Menu-driven interfaceand 3) the Graphical user interface
(GUI)

1)Command Line Interface (CLI)/ command driven interface: is a mechanism for interacting with the
computer’s operating system or System Software by typing commands to perform specific tasks. This
contrasts with the use of a mouse pointer with a graphical user interface (GUI) to click on options, or
menus on a Text user interface (TUI) to select options.

Advantages of CLI

• •Many IT professionals favor CLIs because they make up little RAM and are quick to
operate.
• •Many commands can be grouped together as a batch file so that repetitive tasks can be
automated.

Disadvantages of CLI

• • Many commands have to be learnt

1Graphical User Interface (GUI) is a type of user interface which allows people to interact with a
computer and computer-controlled devices. As opposed to traditional interface, it presents graphical
icons, visual indicators or special graphical elements called "widgets".

It uses WIMP(Windows,Icons,Menus and Pointers)

Advantages of GUIs

• • They are easy to use without the need to know commands.

• • For any application the interface is familiar
• • The user environment can be changed easily

Disadvantages

• • They require a lot of RAM to store the graphic images

• • They require a lot of processing power to refresh the display
• • A lot of disk space is needed to hold all the functions
• • It is difficult to automate functions for expert users

MENU DRIVEN INTERFACE

This type of user interface produces a list of commands or options available within a program through
menus and the user can make a selection by using a mouse or keyboard inorder to execute a task.
Advantages
 • They are easy to use as the user does not have to remember sets of commands.
 • They are user friendly - you can often guess your way around the options.
Disadvantages
 They can be irritating if there are too many levels of menus to move around - with a command line
interface you can go to the option required immediately.

DESIGNING A USER INTERFACE

To make an interface as user friendly as possible it is necessary to take care when designing it and take
into account the following. .
. Consistency - each part of the software
should behave in the same way as another, making the program easier to learn and use.
. Positioning of items on the screen - icons, menus, etc. should be consistent, again making software
easier to learn and use.
. Use of colour -some colours areeasier'for the eye while others make things harder to see; colours should
be chosen carefully.
. Use of sound - sound can be annoying to some people so it is best to make sound an option which a user
can turn off if desired.
. Availability of help - most software has on-line help which means that it is often' not necessary to refer
'to a manual; the user simply accesses the help screen for a particulaI: function or topic.