The Final Quarter: Software

               The programs which tell the computer system what to do are software. They give instructions that the CPU will need to carry out. There are two types of software:

1. System Software manages, maintains and controls the resource of the computer. These are the programs that take control of the computer.

• System Management Program

          Operating System (OS) is a program that monitors and controls all input/output and processing activities within a computer system.    

• System Development Program

          Compilers are what software used to create software through programming.

2. Application Software is designed and created to perform specific personal, business, scientific processing tasks.

• General Purpose Program
• Application Specific Program     

Here are a few reminders from Sir Tom:

*Platform is defined by a processor and an operating system.
*Software created to run a specific platform won't run on other platforms.
*Microsoft Windows operating system + Intel compatible-processor = Wintel platform is what most personal computer users choose.
*You can't run modern systems on earlier platforms.
*Before choosing a platform, consider the availability of appropriate commercial application software for the platform and the compatibility of platform with existing hardware, software and expertise.