Software

INTRODUCTION

This is code that instructs a computer or network device. Until the 1980s, most of the operational instructions used by a telecommunications network were hard-wired or pre-set. The advent of digital systems and data networks has led to a much wider range of network services. Software solutions are well suited to the complexity and flexibility inherent in these services
Software, computer programs; instructions that cause the hardware—the machines—to do work. Software as a whole can be divided into a number of categories based on the type of work done. The two primary software categories are operating systems (system software), which control the workings of the computer, and application software, which addresses the multitude of tasks for which people use computers. System software thus handles such essential, but often invisible, chores as maintaining disk files and managing the screen, whereas application software performs word processing, database management, and the like. Two additional categories that are neither system nor application software, although they contain elements of both, are network software, which enables groups of computers to communicate, and language software, which provides programmers with the tools they need to write programs. See Programming Language.
In addition to these task-based categories, several types of software are described based on their method of distribution. These include the so-called canned programs or packaged software developed and sold primarily through retail outlets; freeware and public-domain software, which is made available without cost by its developer; shareware, which is similar to freeware but usually carries a small fee for those who like the program; and the infamous vapourware, which is software that either does not reach the market or appears much later than promised.
OPERATING SYSTEM
Operating System abbreviated sometimes called the executive. In computer science the software responsible for controlling the allocation and usage of hardware resources such as memory; central processing unit time, disk space and peripheral devices. The operating system is the foundation on which applications, such as word-processing and spreadsheet programs, are built.
APPLICATION

Application, in computer science, a computer program designed to help people perform a certain type of work. An application thus differs from an operating system (which runs a computer), a utility (which performs maintenance or general-purpose chores), and a language (with which computer programs are created). Depending on the work for which it was designed, an application can manipulate text, numbers, graphics, or a combination of these elements. Some application packages offer considerable computing power by focusing on a single task, such as word processing; others, called integrated software, offer somewhat less power but include several applications, such as a word processor, a spreadsheet, and a database program. Network
NETWORK
Network, in computer science, a group of computers and associated devices that are connected by communications facilities. A network can involve permanent connections, such as cables, or temporary connections made through telephone or other communications links. A network can be as small as a local area network consisting of a few computers, printers, and other devices, or it can consist of many small and large computers distributed over a vast geographic area. Small or large, a computer network exists to provide computer users with the means of communicating and transferring information electronically. Some types of communication are simple user-to-user messages; others, of the type known as distributed processes, can involve several computers and the sharing of workloads or cooperative efforts in performing a task.
PROGRAMMING LANGUAGE

Programming Language, in computer science, any artificial language that can be used to define a sequence of instructions that can ultimately be processed and executed by the computer. Defining what is or is not a programming language can be tricky, but general usage implies that the translation of instructions written in the language into code that the computer understands should be completely systematic. Indeed such a translation is usually carried out by computer.

a) LOW LEVEL LANGUAGES

At a low level of description, microprocessors deal exclusively with binary electronic signals. Giving an instruction to a microprocessor really involves sending it a carefully timed series of on and off signals. This sequence of signals is called machine code. The code usually represents numbers, data, and instructions for manipulating those numbers and data. A more “human-friendly” way of understanding machine code is to give each instruction a mnemonic, such as STORE, ADD, or JUMP. The result is called an assembly language—a very low-level language that is specific to a particular microprocessor.
Low-level languages, such as assembly language, produce very fast programs but are often hard to learn. More importantly, programs written at a low level are highly specific to a type of microprocessor; move to a new machine and you have to rewrite your program from scratch.

b) HIGH LEVEL LANGUAGES

Computers are ordinarily thought of as machines that perform tasks such as calculation or word processing. Compared to the above description of what computers actually do, this is a high-level way of looking at a computer. There is a high level of abstraction between what is asked of the computer and what it actually understands. In the same way, there is a complex relationship between high-level languages and machine code.
High-level languages are normally easy to learn because they are formed from parts of natural languages such as English. In BASIC, the most familiar high-level language, commands such as “IF COUNT = 10 THEN STOP” can be used when you require the computer to stop if COUNT is equal to 10. Unfortunately, many people find computers frustrating because although they appear to understand English they actually obey it in a rigid, systematic, and literally inhuman way.
c) INTERPRETERS AND COMPILERS
Translating a list of assembly language instructions (the source code) back into machine (or object) code is a simple matter, usually carried out by a type of program called a compiler. Translating high-level source code into machine code can be carried out by either a more complex compiler or an interpreter.
A compiler literally compiles a list of machine code instructions, the object code, based on the source code. The resulting object code is a ready-to-run program that is very fast, but which may crash the computer. Interpreters, on the other hand, are much slower than compilers because they do not produce object code. Instead they scan the source code a line at a time. Each line is translated and the equivalent machine code executed, even if the line is read for a second time, as in the case of programs that loop back on themselves. The result, though slow, is much less likely to crash than a compiled program.

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