SOFTWARE

These are programs that run on a computer. Programs are instructions that are carried out or executed
by the computer’s processor, which provides other instructions for the rest of the computer.

We have two major types

a) System software

b) Application software

Some computers can only run one program at a time, these are called single purpose, which means that
they are only able to run able to run one piece of software e.g the software used to control a
microwave. Other computers are general purpose, which means that they are able to carry out a range
of tasks e.g tablet computer.

SYSTEM SOFTWARE
These are programs that are designed to maintain or operate the computer system.

They include:

1. Utility Software
Utility software carries out configuration and maintenance tasks.

 Backup – creates a copy of files and programs. Backups can be set to run automatically, usually
at a time when the system is not in use or can be started by a user.

 Defragmentation – this utility is used to rearrange fragments of files that have been spread over
multiple locations to keep them as close to each other as possible.

As data is stored to hard disk, some systems spread it across the disk wherever there is free
space. This means that sometimes data is fragmented and stored out of order or out of
sequence. When these files are loaded, data has to be retrieved from these multiple locations.
This takes extra time and slows down the process of loading the files.

 Compression – this utility reduces the original size of a file or set of files.

Where there are repeated patterns of data, rather than storing every repeated instance, only
the first instance of the data is stored, alongside how many times it is repeated.
  Formatting – prepares storage media such as a hard disk drive or USB flash drive for its first use.
If a disk has already been used, then formatting it will make all of the data on the disk
unreadable by normal applications.

2. Operating systems
The operating system (OS) allows the user to control and manage the computer’s hardware.

Roles or functions
a) Single user and network

Single-user operating systems only allow for a general user and do not provide the option to customize
the user interface for different users. They are often found in household appliances.

Network operating systems have additional functionality, including:

 Sending requests to a server when users log in with their username and password.
 Separating user accounts and ensuring that users cannot access each other’s files.
 Providing access to network storage and shared resources such as networked printers.

b) Memory management

The operating system allocates the required amount of memory (RAM) to one or more applications.
When the application no longer requires the memory space, the operating system makes the space
available for other applications to use.

c) Resource management

System resources include internal components, such as the processor and graphics card, and external
devices, such as printers. As well as allocating memory, the operating system ensures that system
resources are made available to applications when they are required. If a system resource is already
being used by another application, then the operating system may say that the required resource is in
use and place the additional request in a queue. For some resources, such as printers, the operating
system can tell the user when the resource becomes available.

d) Security

Operating systems can give users secure access to a computer’s storage and other hardware through
usernames and passwords, biometric scanning or personal access cards. This process is called
authentication. Operating systems can provide software firewalls to authorize or prevent network data
from remotely accessing a service or application.

e) Print spooling

When printing large print jobs, the computer will have the pages ready for the printer faster than the
printer can produce them. The operating system keeps each page in queue ready for printing. This
process is called print spooling.
APPLICATION SOFTWARE
These are software that allow users to produce a digital product, such as a presentation or
image, or carry out specific tasks that are not related to the operating system. We have
various types such as
 Office productivity software
 Web authoring
 Image editing
 Sound editing
 Presentation software
 Control applications
 Project management
 Communication software
1. OFFICE PRODUCTIVITY SOFTWARE
This is any application software that can carry out work-related tasks. They are often
available as an application suite. They include
a) WORD PROCESSING – this software lets users create documents that mostly include
words, but also some images.
Documents created using word processors include:
o Letter
o Reports
o Books
o Essays

Some features of Word processing include;

o Adding comments to text
o Spelling and Grammar checking tools
o Changing font type, size and colour
o Use of picture tool and clip art features for images.

Examples include;
o LibreOffice write
o Wordpad
o Google docs

b) DESKTOP PUBLISHING (DTP) – Desktop publishing is the process of laying out and
designing pages with your desktop computer.
Documents created using Desktop publishing include:
o Birthday cards
o Flyers
o Newsletters
o Greeting card

Some features of Desktop publishing include;

o Use of page layouts
o Use of templets

Examples include;
o Adobe InDesign.
o Microsoft Publisher.
o Foxit PDF Editor.
c) SPREADSHEETS – this is an application that is used to do calculations.
Documents created using spreadsheets software include:
 Profit and loss sheets
 Ledger sheets
 Balance sheets
Some features of spreadsheets software include:
 Use of formula
 Use of functions
 Charts
Examples of spreadsheets include:
 Microsoft Excel
 Lotus123(old)
 Google sheets
d) DATABASES: these are used to enter, edit and search records or data.
Documents created using database software include:
 Students records
 Patients records
 Car registration records
Some features of databases softwares include:
 Use of queries
 Use of forms
 Use of reports
Examples of databases softwares include:
 Microsoft access
 Oracle databases

2. WEB AUTHORING
Web authoring software lets users create webpages that include text and images. The pages
are output as Hypertext markup language (HTML). Although some people prefer to create or
customize web pages by writing their own HTML. Some applications will allow users to produce
complex websites with little or no experience of HTML coding. These applications are
sometimes called ‘what you see is what you get’ editors (WYSIWYG).

3. IMAGE EDITING
a) Graphics editors
b) Photo editors

A. GRAPHICS EDITORS
Graphics editing applications allow users to create or edit vector graphics. An example is
Microsoft paint.
Features of graphics editors include:
 Vectorizing images (that is, converting or tracing bitmap graphics to vector graphics)
 Layers (that is, having the ability to place some graphics on top of others)
 Adding text
 Adding or drawing shapes and lines.
 Resizing, aligning or moving shapes and lines.
 Altering the colour of shapes, lines and fill areas.

B. PHOTO EDITORS
These allow users to edit and enhance digital photographs and images. An example is
Photoshop.
Features of photo editors include:
 Adjusting brightness and contrast
 Resizing the image
 Altering sharpness and blurring
 Applying filters and effects such as distortion
 Red-eye removal
 Cropping
Evolution Video

4. SOUND EDITING SOFTWARE

Sound editing software allows user to edit audio files or to join together different audio files in
order to create multitrack music or sound tracks for video.
Example: audacity
Features:
 Cut and join audio clips
 Mute and solo some audio tracks
 Alter volume levels for individual tracks
 Change tempo
 Frequency equalization
 Add effects like reverberation
  Apply audio processing

5. PRESENTATION SOFTWARE
Presentation software allows user to create engaging multimedia content including
images, text, animation and video.
Features
 Slides
 Use of different layout
 Animation
 Transition

6. CONTROL APPLICATION
Control application are used to make something happen in the physical environment.
This type of software is often used to automate the movement of control devices.
Examples of control application:
 Actuators
 Motors
 Valves etc
Control application are often created by programmers rather than general user and
they are not as easy to modify as other application software.

7. PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Project management applications are used to help plan and track the individual tasks in a
project, so that project managers can make the most efficient use of the available resources.
Some tasks cannot be started until a previous task is complete or has been partly completed,
so, it is important for a project manager to see which tasks are dependent on others.
When all of these dependent tasks are combined together into a timeline, it is easy for the
project manager to see the critical path. These applications can also be used to set milestones.
Timeline: a linear graphical representation or events and the time and order in which they
occur.
Critical path: the shortest time a project will take to complete if no problems or failures are
experienced.
Milestone: a time or date by which a task must be completed.
A Timeline

A Gantt chart
 Revision Question:
Describe two key features of project management software that Hugh could use to make sure the
project is complete before the deadline.

 Gantt chart / timeline (1) to visualise milestones/dependencies / sequence subtasks (1)

• Collaboration/scheduling tools (1) to share the workload / notify others when a task is ready for
them to process (1)

• Reporting tools (1) to keep key stakeholders informed of progress. (1)

• Human resource management tools (1) so stakeholders can see who is doing which task.

8. COMMUNICATION SOFTWARE
These provide remote access to systems and allows users to contact people using the
internet.
They include:
a. WEB BROWSERS – allow users to view web pages and websites created in web authoring
software and hosted on servers that are connected to the internet.
b. EMAIL (Electronic mail) – allows users to send and receive email. Email can be sent using
locally installed applications, or using webmail software that is hosted on web servers and
accessed using an internet connection.
c. SOCIAL MEDIA -provide access to multiple social media accounts.
d. SMS (short messaging service) – these are found on mobile phones and allows users to
send up to 160 characters per message using the mobile phone network without internet
connection.
e. MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service) – These extend the capabilities of SMS. MMS can
deliver more than 160 characters per message and can include video, animations, images
and audio.
f. INSTANT MESSAGING – These applications are very similar to MMS applications, but they
require a connection to the internet. They allow user to see when other users are typing,
and users can also prevent others from seeing when they are typing.

SOFTWARE LICENSING
A Software License is a legal arrangement that gives a user the right to install and use
software. There are many types of software license but we will only discuss these two:
Free or open-source
Proprietary
Free or Open-source
Free software license gives users the right to study, modify, copy or distribute a program.
The software can be made available for a fee or free of charge. ‘Free’ refers to the user’s
freedom to charge whatever they want because there is no restrictions.
Open-source software license make the source code available to users so that they can
modify how the software works, or distribute the modified or unmodified software.
Source code – is a collection of instructions that forms a piece of software.

Proprietary Software
This software is marketed and distributed by its owner under a brand name. e g Microsoft.
The software owner can decide the fee for the software and whether or not the software
should be distributed.

SOFTWARE UPDATES
These are changes or additions to computer software so that it has the most recent
information.
Reasons why software developers release software updates.
 Fixing security vulnerabilities or bugs.
 Increasing compatibility with newer operating systems.
 Improving performance and efficiency.
 Introducing new features
 Improving usability.