BML MUNJAL GREEN MEDOWS SCHOOL

CLASS XI
COMPUTER SCIENCE

Software Concepts
Hardware and Software
A computer consists of both hardware and software and both are equally
important for the working of the computer system.
The electronic components of a computer system that we can see and touch are
called hardware.
Software is a general term used for computer programs that control the
operations of the computer.
A program is a sequence of instructions that perform a particular task.
A set of programs form a software. It is the software which gives hardware its
capability.

Hardware is of no use without software and software cannot be used without

hardware.

Types of Software
Software can be broadly are categorized as:
1. System Software
2. Application Software
3. Utility Software

System Software
System Software is the software that is directly related to coordinating computer
operations and performs tasks associated with controlling and utilizing computer
hardware. These programs assist in running application programs and are
designed to control the operation of a computer system.
System software directs the computer what to do, when to do and how to do.

System software can be further categorized into

I. Operating System
II. Language Translators
III. Utilities

I. Operating System
An Operating system is the most important system software. It is a set of
programs that control and supervise the hardware of a computer and also provide
services to application software, programmers and users.

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It manages all hardware and software, input, output and processing activities
within the computer system, the flow of information to and from the processor,
sets priorities for handling different tasks, and so on. Without operating system a
computer cannot do anything useful.

When a computer is switched on, the operating system is the first program that is
loaded onto Software

Some of the popular operating systems used in personal computers are DOS,
Windows, Unix, Linux, Solaris, etc.

An operating system can be

a Single User or
a Multiuser operating system.

A single user operating system allows only one user to work at any time but a
multiuser operating system allows two or more users to use a powerful computer
at the same time.
For example Windows 7 is a single user operating system while Linux is a
multiuser operating system.

Need for an Operating System

Operating system provides a platform, on top of which, other programs, called
application programs can run. It acts as an interface between the computer and
the user. It is designed in such a manner that it operates, controls and executes
various applications on the computer. It also allows the computer to manage its
own resources such as memory, monitor, keyboard, printer etc.

Our choice of operating system, therefore, depends to a great extent on the CPU
and the other attached devices and the applications we want to run. The
operating system controls the various system hardware and software resources
and allocates them to the users or programs as per their requirement.

Functions of an Operating System

An operating system has variety of functions to perform. Some of the prominent
functions of an operating system can be broadly outlined as-

1. Processor Management: This deals with management of the Central Processing

Unit (CPU). The operating system takes care of the allotment of CPU time to
different processes. This is called scheduling. Two types of scheduling techniques
are employed by an operating system :
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2. Device Management: The Operating System communicates with hardware and
the attached devices and maintains a balance between them and the CPU.

3. File Management: The operating System manages the files, folders and
directory systems on a computer. Any data on a computer is stored in the form of
files and the operating system keeps information about all of them using File
Allocation Table (FAT). The FAT stores general information about files like
filename, type (text or binary), size, starting address and access mode The file
manager of the operating system helps to create, edit, copy, allocate memory to
the files and also updates the FAT.

II. Language Processors - We know that computer understands instructions in

machine code, i.e. in the form of 0s and 1s. It is difficult for us to write computer
program directly in machine code. The programs are written mostly in high-level
languages, i.e. BASIC, C++, Python etc.

A program written in any high-level programming language (or written in

assembly language) is called the Source Program or Source Code. The source
code cannot be executed directly by the computer. The source code must be
converted into machine language to be executed.

The program translated into machine code is known as Object Program or Object
code. The special translator system software that is used to translate the program
written in high-level language (or Assembly language) into machine code is called
language processor or translator program.

The language processors can be any of the following three types- Assembler,
Compiler and Interpreter.

Assembler -The Assembler is used to translate the program written in Assembly

language into machine code.

Compiler- The language processor that translates the complete source program
as a whole in one go into machine code is called compiler. Some of the examples
are C and C++ compilers. If there are any errors in the source code, the compiler
specifies the errors at the end of compilation with line numbers. The errors must
be removed before the compiler can successfully recompile the source code
again.

Interpreter - The language processor that translates a single statement of source

program into machine code and executes it immediately before moving on to the
next line is called an Interpreter.

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If there is an error in the statement the interpreter terminates its translating
process at that statement and displays an error message. Only after removal of
the error, the interpreter moves on to the next line for execution.

III. Utilities
A utility software is one which provides certain tasks that help in proper
maintenance of the computer. The job of utility programs is to keep the computer
system running smoothly.

Nowadays many utility software are part of the operating system itself. Even if
there is no utility software on your computer, the computer works but with the
right kind of utility software loaded, the computer becomes more reliable and
even its processing speed increases.

Some of the commonly use utility software are- antivirus, Disk defragmenter,
backup, compression etc.

1. Antivirus - An antivirus is utility software which detects and removes computer

viruses. If the software is not able to remove the virus, it is neutralized. The
antivirus keeps a watch on the functioning of the computer system. If a virus is
found it may alert the user, flag the infected program or kill the virus.

2. Backup Utility - This utility is used to create the copy of the complete or partial
data stored in a disk or CD on any other disk. In case the hard disk crashes or
some other system failure occurs, the files can be restored using backup software.

3. Compression Utility - This utility is used to compress large files. Compression is

useful because it helps reduce resources usage and the file transmission on the
network becomes easier.

4. Disk Cleaner - This utility scans for file that have not been accessed/used since
long. Such files might be occupying huge amount of memory space. In that case
the Disk Cleaner utility prompts the user to delete such files so as to create more
space on the disk. If the files are important, the user might take a backup before
deleting them.

5. File Management Tools - This utility helps the user in storing, indexing,
searching and sorting files and folders on the system. The most commonly used
tool is the Windows Explorer and Google Desktop.

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Application Software

An application software is bought by the user to perform specific applications or

tasks, say for example making a document or making a presentation or handling
inventory or managing the employee database.

An application software can be of two types –

General Purpose Application Software and
Customized Application software.

General Purpose Application Software- Some of the application software is made

for the common users for day to day applications and uses. These are also
referred as Office Tools. The users may use them in the manner they want. Some
of the popular types of general purpose application software are discussed below:

1. Word Processor: Word processor is a general purpose application software

used to create documents. It allows us to create , edit and format documents.

2. Presentation Tools: Presentation tools is a general purpose application

software that lets us create presentations on any topic. We can not only create a
presentation and add slides into that but also can use different types of
background, fonts, animations, audio, video, etc.

3. Spreadsheet Packages: Spreadsheet is a general purpose application software

that lets us create and store data in tabular form. All common mathematical and
statistical formulae can be used on the numeric data. Popular examples of
Spreadsheet software are Calc (Open Office) and Microsoft Excel.

4. Database Management System: Database Management System is general

purpose application software that lets us create computer programs that control
the creation, maintenance, and the use of database for an organization and its
end users. We can not only store data but can also manage data in a database.
We can also import and export the data to many formats including Excel, Outlook,
ASCII, dBase, FoxPro, Oracle, SQL Server, ODBC, etc.

Customized Software
Such type of software is customer specific. It is made keeping in mind the
individual needs of the user and so are also referred as Domain Specific Tools.
Such software cannot be installed and used by any other user/customer since the
requirements may differ. Some examples of customized software are discussed
below:

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1. Inventory Management System & Purchasing System: Inventory Management
System is generally used in departmental stores or other organizations to keep
the record of the stock of all the physical resources.

2. School Management System: School Management System (sometimes called a

School Information System or SIS) is a system that manages all of a school's data
in a single, integrated application. Having all of the information in a single system
allows schools to more easily connect data together.

3. Payroll System: Payroll Management System software is used by all modern

organizations to keep track of employees of the organization who receives wages
or salary. All different payment amounts are calculated by the payroll software
and the record is maintained.

4. Financial Accounting: Financial accounting System is used to prepare

accounting information, maintain different accounts ledger, and account books. It
also helps an organization to make budget.

5. Hotel Management: Hotel management software refers to management

techniques used in the hotel sector. These can include hotel administration,
accounts, billing, marketing, housekeeping, front office or front desk, food and
beverage management, catering and maintenance.

6. Reservation System: Reservation System is software used to book (reserve) air

flights, railway seats, movie tickets, tables in a restaurant, etc.

7. Weather Forecasting system: This software makes it possible to forecast the

weather for days and even months in advance. The detailed weather reports can
also be generated.

Open Source Concepts

Software are mainly categorised into the following categories based on their
licenses:
1. Proprietary
2. Shareware
3. Freeware
4. Open source
5. Free Software

Proprietary - We pay a supplier for a copy of the software which these days may
be supplied on physical media (disks) or downloaded from the Internet. We get
the permission to use the software on one or sometimes more than one

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machines. Examples of this type of software include Microsoft Office and
Microsoft Windows.

Shareware - Shareware is basically a software for trial purpose that the user is
allowed to try for free, for a specified period of time. It is usually downloaded
from the Internet. When the trial period ends, the software must be purchased or
uninstalled.

Freeware - Freeware software is free of cost and is usually bundled up with some
operating system or any other software. Examples of freeware include Microsoft
Internet Explorer which comes bundled up with any Microsoft operating system.
The author of the freeware software is the owner of the software, though people
may use it for free. The source code is not available, so no modifications can be
done. Freeware should not be mistaken with Open Source Software or Free
Software.

Open source Open Source Software (OSS)- is the software which gives the users
freedom to run/use the software for any purpose and in any manner. They can be
used, modified and even redistributed. In simple terms it can be freely used but it
may not be free of charge. The source code is freely available to the customer.
Python, Tux Paint etc are examples of Open Source Software.

Free Software - This type of software is freely accessible and can be freely used,
modified, copied or distributed by anyone. And no licence fee or any other form
of payment need to be made for a free software. The source code is also
accessible in case of free softwares.