Computer - Software

Software is a set of programs, which is designed to perform a well-defined function. A

program is a sequence of instructions written to solve a particular problem.
There are two types of software −
 System Software
 Application Software

System Software
The system software is a collection of programs designed to operate, control, and extend the
processing capabilities of the computer itself. System software is generally prepared by the
computer manufacturers. These software products comprise of programs written in low-level
languages, which interact with the hardware at a very basic level. System software serves as
the interface between the hardware and the end users.
Some examples of system software are Operating System, Compilers, Interpreter,
Assemblers, etc.

Here is a list of some of the most prominent features of a system software −

 Close to the system
 Fast in speed
 Difficult to design
 Difficult to understand
 Less interactive
 Smaller in size
 Difficult to manipulate
 Generally written in low-level language

Application Software
Application software products are designed to satisfy a particular need of a particular
environment. All software applications prepared in the computer lab can come under the
category of Application software.
Application software may consist of a single program, such as Microsoft's notepad for
writing and editing a simple text. It may also consist of a collection of programs, often called
a software package, which work together to accomplish a task, such as a spreadsheet
package.

Examples of Application software are the following −

 Payroll Software
 Student Record Software
 Inventory Management Software
 Income Tax Software
 Railways Reservation Software
 Microsoft Office Suite Software
  Microsoft Word
 Microsoft Excel
 Microsoft PowerPoint

Features of application software are as follows −

 Close to the user
 Easy to design
 More interactive
 Slow in speed
 Generally written in high-level language
 Easy to understand
 Easy to manipulate and use
 Bigger in size and requires large storage space
 Introduction to Operating System
The Operating System is a program with the following features −
 An operating system is a program that acts as an interface between the software and
the computer hardware.
 It is an integrated set of specialized programs used to manage overall resources and
operations of the computer.
 It is a specialized software that controls and monitors the execution of all other
programs that reside in the computer, including application programs and other
system software.
The objectives of the operating system are −
 To make the computer system convenient to use in an efficient manner.
 To hide the details of the hardware resources from the users.
 To provide users a convenient interface to use the computer system.
 To act as an intermediary between the hardware and its users, making it easier for the
users to access and use other resources.
 To manage the resources of a computer system.
 To keep track of who is using which resource, granting resource requests, and
mediating conflicting requests from different programs and users.
 To provide efficient and fair sharing of resources among users and programs.

Characteristics of Operating System

 Memory Management − Keeps track of the primary memory, i.e. what part of it is in
use by whom, what part is not in use, etc. and allocates the memory when a process or
program requests it.
 Processor Management − Allocates the processor (CPU) to a process and de-
allocates the processor when it is no longer required.
 Device Management − Keeps track of all the devices. This is also called I/O
controller that decides which process gets the device, when, and for how much time.
 File Management − Allocates and de-allocates the resources and decides who gets
the resources.
 Security − Prevents unauthorized access to programs and data by means of passwords
and other similar techniques.
 Job Accounting − Keeps track of time and resources used by various jobs and/or
users.
 Control Over System Performance − Records delays between the request for a
service and from the system.
 Interaction with the Operators − Interaction may take place via the console of the
computer in the form of instructions. The Operating System acknowledges the same,
does the corresponding action, and informs the operation by a display screen.
 Error-detecting Aids − Production of dumps, traces, error messages, and other
debugging and error-detecting methods.
 Coordination Between Other Software and Users − Coordination and assignment
of compilers, interpreters, assemblers, and other software to the various users of the
computer systems.
 WINDOWS Operating System
An operating system with a graphical user interface (GUI). Graphical User Interface (GUI) is
a user interface based on graphics (icons and pictures and menus) instead of text; uses a
mouse as well as a keyboard as an input device)
Versions
 Windows 98
 Windows Me
 Windows NT
 Windows 2000
 Windows XP
 Windows Server 2003
 Windows Vista
 Windows 7
 Windows 10
 Windows server 2016
 Windows 11
Getting started with WINDOWS 7
1. Switch on the power supply.
2. Switch on the CPU and Monitor.
3. Windows 7 splash screen will be displayed as shown below:

Desktop and its elements

• In Windows operating system the basic working platform is the desktop.
• It is also the opening screen of the Windows operating system.
The desktop contains: Taskbar and Icons
Taskbar: Taskbar is usually a narrow strip present at the bottom of the screen.

Icons
 Icons are small pictures/images representing applications.
 Each icon has a label telling the name of the application it represents.
Lists the contents of floppy disk, hard disk, CD-ROM drive, and mapped
network drives.

Locates shared resources on the entire network to which the computer is

connected

Stores deleted files, folders, graphics, and Web pages until you empty the bin

Opens the browser Google chrome

Windows Explorer Windows Explorer is a file manager application used to view and
manage drives, folders, and files. Windows Explorer can be opened by clicking on Start > My
Computer or using the short cut key Windows + E .
Working with files and folders- Folders are the basic organizational building blocks of any
computer system. Without folders it would be virtually impossible to keep track of all the
files that are found on even the smallest system. New folders can be created just about
anywhere, but three methods are shown below.
To create a New Folder on Desktop –

 Right click anywhere on an open area of the desktop. Select New and then click Folder. A
new folder with the default name New Folder will be created on the desktop. Either accept the
default name New Folder (bad idea) by hitting the enter key or type a new name for the folder
(good idea) and then hit enter on the keyboard.

• Either accept the default name New Folder (bad idea) by hitting the enter key or type
a new name for the folder (good idea) and then hit enter on the keyboard.

To open a folder

• Double click the folder with mouse or

• Right click the folder and click open tab from the right context menu.

To Rename a folder
 • Locate and select the folder to be renamed.

• Right click the folder

• Select rename from the popup menu

To Copy and Paste a folder

• Locate and select the folder .

• Right click on it
• Choose copy
• Choose the Destination location to
copy the folder
• Choose paste

To delete a file or folder

• Locate and select the file or folder
• Choose delete.

The deleted file is moved to the Recycle bin.

• If you want the deleted file back you can open the recycle bin folder and
restore the deleted file.
• If you want file to be completely deleted without getting stored in the
Recycle Bin then choose the file and Press Shift + Del keys in the
keyboard. This will erase the file even without storing the file in the
Recycle Bin.
Structure of a Window
• A rectangular area on the desktop that is used by an application is called
a Window.
• Although the contents of every window are different, all windows share
some things in common.
• For one thing, windows always appear on the desktop—the main work
area of your screen.
• In addition, most windows have the same basic parts:

Creating Notepad and saving in the prescribed folders:

Notepad is a very basic text-editing program that
comes as an included application on Windows
operating systems. Notepad is just a text editor, so
images are not compatible.

Open Notepad. On Windows 7, open your Start Menu

and type “Notepad” in the search box. Select Notepad
to open the application. You can also navigate to the
"Accessories" folder in the Start Menu and select
Notepad from the list of applications
Explore the Notepad user
interface. Once Notepad is
open, you will see a simple
screen with a limited set of
text editing options. Notice
menu options for File, Edit,
Format, View, and Help.

Open the File Menu. You will see a

drop down list with New, Open,
Save, Save As, Page Setup, and
Print. These are the basic options
for word editing. Select “New” to
create a document.
 Whenever you save a file with either
Save or Save As, Windows will
automatically save the file in .txt
format, which will launch it in Notepad.
 You can choose to save Notepad documents in HTML by
choosing Save As and selecting All Files from the list of choices,
then saving the file with .htm or .html as its extension. Type your
HTML code directly into your document as if you would plain
text.
 In order to properly save a document in HTML, you will need to
have Word Wrap enabled. You will
find instructions on how to enable
this feature a little later.
 
Format your page Setup. Navigate to Page Setup from
the File menu. You will see just a few simple
formatting options. Choose your desired paper size,
orientation, and header and footer options from this
menu.