Software

Module 1.4

1
Software
Module 1.4

2
 Content

• Choosing the right software

• Application software
• Fixing software problems
• Test and Improve
3
Choosing the right software

4
 The purpose of the software
• Many applications that can perform the task you want to
perform. Often basic software could be adequate, but you
may need more advanced programs specifically designed.

• Notepad can be used to write anything, but Word provides

more features.

Notepad
MS Word 2016

• Microsoft Paint 3D or more advanced Adobe Photoshop 5

 Web-based applications vs.
installed applications

Advantages of web‑based
Disadvantages
applications
• Use the software from any • Cannot use the software if you do
computer (with internet). not have an internet connection.
• Software always up to date. • Performance of software affected
• Don’t have to download or install by speed and quality of internet.
application – saves storage space. • Web applications may have slower
• Hardware requirements to access performance than desktop.
and run software not as high. • Software might not have all the
• No compatibility issues. features or capabilities.
• Many apps offer free online
storage.

6
 Web-based applications – examples

G-Suite apps:
• Google Calendar
• Google Hangouts
• Google Drive
• Google Forms
• Google Maps

7
 Web-based applications – examples

• Office 360/365 and Google Docs

• Facebook apps
• Adobe Photoshop Express

8
 Web-based applications – examples
Adobe Photoshop Express
• Web‑based image editing app from Adobe
• can be used to edit photos on blogs and social networking sites
directly.

9
Subscription-based software
• Traditional licensing models – the user pays ‘up-front’ for a
license to use the software indefinitely.
• With subscription software, the user pays a monthly or yearly
subscription for the use of the software.
• Office 365 gives you access to an offline version, but you need
internet connectivity at least once a month for updates and
account verification.

10
 Compatibility

• Compatibility with the operating system

• Any app you want to install must be able to work with your
operating system e.g. Android 7 or Windows 10.
• Vendors produce software to work with specific sets of operating
systems. Platform-specific versions of apps are sold to online
stores.

11
 Compatibility

• Compatibility between versions of the same application

• Most software applications are ‘downward/backward
compatible’.
• Some older versions may not support features from newer
versions.

12
 System requirements
• Check hardware and software specifications before
buying software.
• Minimum or recommended requirements.
• E.g. Photoshop
Processor Intel® Core 2 or AMD Athlon® 64 processor; 2 GHz or faster
processor
Memory 2 GB or more of RAM (8 GB recommended)
Disk space 3.1 GB of available hard disk space for installation
Graphics 1024 x 768 display (1280 x 800 recommended) with 16-bit colour and
requirements 512 MB or more dedicated video RAM
Operating system Microsoft Windows 7 with Service Pack 1(SP1), Windows 8.1 or 10
Connectivity An internet connection for software activation, user validation and
access to online services 13
Application software

14
 Office suites
• Word processing – create, edit, format or work with a
document.
• Spreadsheet – budgeting, financial and business planning,
analysis.
• Presentation – creating slides to get your message across
to an audience.
• Database – collect, store, search, filter and report on data.

15
Productivity software for the mobile user
Lightweight versions of productivity software for mobile
devices.
• Automatic meeting
• Scheduling
• Video conferencing
• Note taking
• Project management
• Time and travel tracking, etc.

16
 Reference software

• The web much easier to use; mostly more up to date than

a CD/DVD.
• People increasingly use reference apps on mobile devices.

17
 Web browsers

• A web browser allows you to navigate and view and also

interact with their content (web pages).
• Web browsers have ability to view content such as pdf
documents and multimedia.
• Many add-ons or extensions to download to add
functionality: creating RSS feed, video clip downloaders,
note-taking apps etc.

18
 E-mail software
• All e‑mail software allows you to receive mail, read it, reply to
it and create your own messages.
• E‑mail software such as Outlook includes a database of
contacts, a to‑do list and a calendar function, message rules,
spam detection and meeting scheduling.

19
 Document management software
– using the PDF

• Create your document using whatever software you want to

use.
• Then create a PDF file by
• using the Save As option
• using PDF creation software

• You can send it to anyone and they will see the document the
way you created it.

20
Software that enhances accessibility,
efficiency and productivity
• Voice recognition software
• Voice recognition – the ability to talk to the computer
and for it to ‘understand’ you.
Advantages Limitations
• Allows disabled users to • Have to invest a lot of time and
control a computer by effort to train the computer to
verbalising instructions. recognise your voice.
• Enter text by dictating it rather • Background noise and a poor
than typing it. quality microphone can have a
• Situations where you can’t serious impact on the
afford the distraction of effectiveness.
looking at a screen and typing.
21
Software that enhances accessibility,
efficiency and productivity
• Voice recognition software
• Voice recognition on computer
• Google Docs Voice Typing
• Siri
• Windows Speech Recognition software (used in Word)
• Google Voice Search
• Dragon range by Nuance Software

• Voice recognition on smartphones and tablets

• Intelligent systems that can act as your ‘personal assistant’.
• Software will ‘understand’ your natural voice and respond, based on
context.
• Virtual assistant software coupled to ‘pods’: Alexa and Siri. 22
Software that enhances accessibility,
efficiency and productivity
• Note‑taking software
• Make handwritten notes on touch screen devices
• Keep handwritten notes, text, images, photos, links to web
pages and other documents in one document
• Record sound during a session that you are taking notes in and
it will synchronise the notes that you write with the recording
• Examples: OneNote, Evernote

23
Software that enhances accessibility,
efficiency and productivity
• Education or training software
• Includes video tutorials, online courses and specific software
• Advantages:
• Work at your own pace.
• Immediately assessed and given feedback.
• Motivated to learn by the immediate feedback and competing
against yourself and others.
• Learning material easily updated and quickly customised for
different groups.
• Working with online content promotes green computing.
• You can collaborate with others online.
24
Software – which, where, when, by whom
• Software choices mainly task related
• Writing
• Home user will go for Google Docs (free web-based).
• Running a small business from home might prefer Microsoft Word
because of compatibility needed when sharing documents with
others.
• Working with photos
• To save photos, crop them and share them, a program such as
Paint 3D.
• Web-based Adobe Photoshop Express – free of charge.
• To produce high quality photographs would need program such as
Adobe Photoshop, at an expensive price.

25
Software – which, where, when, by whom
• Calculations
• Spreadsheets allow for all kinds of calculations, invoices and
budgets.
• Also assists with stock control for small businesses.
• Large companies might need software especially designed for
complex payroll systems.
• Communication
• Every user will make use of a web browser and email software.
• More experienced users might make use of RSS feeds in web
browsers

26
Fixing software problems

27
 Basic troubleshooting
‘Freezing’ – non-responsive programs
• The software seems to ‘freeze’ and become non-responsive.
• The rest of the system works fine.
Close the ‘frozen’ application by pressing Ctrl+Alt+Delete and close
the ‘frozen’ application.

28
 Basic troubleshooting
Software ‘crash’
• Reboot your system and try again.
• Run the problem software without loading any other programs, to
prevent conflicts.
• Uninstall programs you have recently installed.
• Check the online forums and help system.
• Send an email to the company to inform them of the problem.
• Make sure your software is up to date.

29
 Basic troubleshooting
• Read-only files
• Might be because it was loaded from read-only medium.
• Copy file to another location and remove read-only attribute.
• Copy the file and save it under different name or in a different folder.
• Be careful in a network environment, as ‘read-only’ file might be in use
by another user.
• If program crashes, reload program to recover the file.

30
 Bugs – why we need to keep
software updated
Any software will initially have ‘bugs’ in it. These are not viruses, but are
‘mistakes’ or errors that were introduced when the programmers wrote the
software. Risks include:
• Corrupted data or invalid information
• Unexpected or dangerous behaviour of computer-controlled machinery
• Security breaches and existence of ‘loopholes’ for malware and hackers
Beta versions of software are made available for people to test the software,
find errors and report them.
Developers work continually on improving the versions of their software.

31
 User-centred design
Basic guidelines for user-centred design:
Layout and Use of instructions
Font and colour
readability and graphics
• Don’t put too much • Appropriate colour • Simple concise
on a single page, combinations language
slide, etc. • No distracting • Commonly known
• Group related colours and fonts and used icons
items together • Legible text sizes – • Clear graphs,
• ‘White space’ appropriate fonts diagrams and
• Clear labels and and font sizes tables
headings • Use formatting to
• Links must be used emphasise
in consistent important
fashion and all concepts
32
work
 User-centred design

• Some steps to include in the process of user-

centred design:
• Put the needs of the user first.
• Test on real users.
• Repeat and refine.

33
Test and improve

34