Computer Software
Professor Dr. Md. Ismail Jabiullah
Department of CSE
Daffodil International University
Learning Objectives
In this Lecture you will learn about:
Term “Software” and its relationship with “Hardware”
Various types of software and their examples
Relationship among hardware, system software, application
software, and users of a computer system
Different ways of acquiring software
Various steps involved in software development
Firmware
Middleware
Software
Hardware refers to the physical devices of a
computer system.
Software refers to a collection of programs
Program is a sequence of instructions written in a
language that can be understood by a computer
Software package is a group of programs that solve
a specific problem or perform a specific type of job
Relationship Between
Hardware and Software
Both hardware and software are necessary for a
computer to do useful job. They are complementary to
each other
Same hardware can be loaded with different software
to make a computer system perform different types of
jobs
Except for upgrades, hardware is normally a one-time
expense, whereas software is a continuing expense
Upgrades refer to renewing or changing components
like increasing the main memory, or hard disk
capacities, or adding speakers, modems, etc.
Types of Software
Most software can be divided into two major categories:
System software are designed to control the operation and
extend the processing capability of a computer system
Application software are designed to solve a specific problem
or to do a specific task
System Software
Make the operation of a computer system more
effective and efficient
Help hardware components work together and
provide support for the development and execution
of application software
Programs included in a system software package are
called system programs and programmers who
prepare them are called system programmers
Examples of system software are operating systems,
programming language translators, utility programs,
and communications software
Application Software
Solve a specific problem or do a specific task
Programs included in an application software
package are called application programs and the
programmers who prepare them are called
application programmers
Examples of application software are word
processing, inventory management, preparation of
tax returns, banking, etc.
Logical System Architecture
Ways of Acquiring Software
Buying pre-written software
Ordering customized software
Developing customized software
Downloading public-domain software
Each of these ways of acquiring software has its own
advantages and limitations
Advantages and Limitations
of Buying Pre-written Software
Usually costs less
Planned activity can be stared almost
immediately
Often, operating efficiency and the
capability to meet specific needs of user
more effectively in not as good for pre-written
software packages as for in-house developed
software packages
Advantages & Limitations of
Ordering Customized Software
User need not maintain its own software
development team, which is an
expensive affair
User needs to always depend on the
vendor for carrying out the changes and
the vendor may separately charge for
every request for change
Advantages & Limitations of
Developing Customized
Software
Easier to carry out changes in the software, if it is developed in-
house
Developing software in-house means a major commitment of
time, money, and resources
In-house software development team needs to be maintained
and managed
Advantage & Limitations of
Downloading Public-domain
Software
Available for free or as shareware, and are usually
accompanied with source code
Usually community-supported as author does not support users
directly
Can be downloaded and used immediately
They may not be properly tested before release
Open Source Software (OSS) are becoming popular due to:
Allows any user to download, view, modify, and redistribute
User can fix bugs or change software to suit needs
Copyright is protected for both original and subsequent authors
Not all open source software are free and vise-verse
Software Development Steps
Developing a software and putting it to use is a
complex process and involves following steps:
Analyzing the problem at hand and planning the
program(s) to solve the problem
Coding the program(s)
Testing, debugging, and documenting the
program(s)
Implementing the program(s)
Evaluating and maintaining the program(s)
Firmware
Firmware is software substituted for hardware
and stored in read-only memory
Firmware technology has enabled production
of various types of smart machines having
microprocessor chips with embedded
software
Middleware
Basic idea is to have a separate software layer
to:
Act as “glue” between client and server parts of
application
Provide programming abstraction
Mask heterogeneity of underlying network, hardware,
and OS
Encourages three-tier software architecture
against two-tier popularized by Server-Client
architecture
Key Words/Phrases
