The System Software
is the Operating
System, drivers and
utility programs
Application
Software
The Application Software
is the software that we
use e.g. Microsoft Word,
MS Paint, Microsoft
Publisher
User Interface
A user interface is the software
that enables somebody to give
instructions to a computer or
device e.g. Mobile Phone,
Macintosh OS
The User Interface
tends to be part of
the operating
system
Management
Memory
One of the most
vital resources that
the operating system
needs to manage is
memory.
The amount of memory that you
have in your computer is limited.
And so, like any limited resource, it
needs to be managed. This is the
task of the memory manager which
is part of the operating system.
As you start using an application, the
operating system will load extra
modules into memory as they are
required. If you don't use some of the
features of the application for a while,
the operating system will remove them
from memory to try to free up space.
While you are doing your
work, your data will be
stored in memory. When
you have finished your task
and closed the application,
the operating system will
remove it from memory.
Peripheral
(Hardware)
A computer is a mix of hardware
and software. Software has to
interact with the hardware in
order to receive data from input
devices and to send its result to
output devices.
Every piece of hardware comes with
software called a 'device driver', for
example, the printer will have a print
driver, a mouse will have its own
mouse driver. A device driver acts as
the go-between for other software
to 'talk' to the hardware.
For instance a word-processor will send text and
images to a printer by sending instructions and
data through the printer's device driver. A music
player will send music to the sound card by
means of the sound card's device driver and so
on.
Most device drivers are loaded into memory
by the operating system during booting. But
some are loaded by the operating system
when a piece of hardware is connected to the
computer. For instance inserting a memory
stick will cause the operating system to load
the right USB driver and a message appears
telling you that the device is ready to use.
Utility Program Types
Security
Antivirus
A computer virus is a
program that is designed
to copy itself over and
over again and to attach
itself to other programs.
Viruses do not damage
the hardware. They affect
the data and programs
stored on the computer.
Spyware
Protection
Spyware is software, that once
installed on your computer, can
monitor and collect information
about your web surfing habits
and the web pages that you visit.
Spyware is normally harmless but it can
interfere with your control of the computer. It
can install additional software which redirects
the web browser to sites that it wants you to
visit. It can also change the computer settings
which can result in slow connection speeds
and it can prevent you from accessing secure
internet services.
Key loggers are a form of spyware. The purpose
of a key logger is to monitor and store a record
of every keystroke made on the computer. This
data may then be sent to a remote server
without your knowledge. It is specifically looking
for user names and passwords used for things
such as bank accounts, credit card numbers etc.
Firewalls
A firewall is a utility program or
hardware device that filters the
information coming through the
Internet connection into your
computer or into a company's
network. Its main aim is to try to
stop any attempts by intruders
to enter your system through the
internet connection.
Disk Organisation
Formatting
Disk formatting is
the initial part of the
process for preparing
a hard disk or other
storage medium for
its first use.
As part of the disk formatting process
'partitions' are created. These are what
you or I know as 'drives'. A disk might
be partitioned into multiple drives, for
example, C:, D:, E:, S: etc.
Each partition or drive will have a different purpose. C:
might be where the application files are stored. D: might
be the drive used for external storage media, e.g. USB
stick, S: might be the shared drive on your school
network.
Defragmentation
(Defragging)
When you try to run an application, a
large number of files often need to be
accessed. Instead of always being stored
next to each other on the hard disk
platters, the files can become scattered,
sometimes ending up at opposite ends of
the disk. The hard disk then has a lot of
work to do in order to locate everything
that is needed to run your application.
File Transfer
One of the basic things you
need to be able to do is to
create, move, copy and delete
files on the computer system.
If you were to use a command line ui to
do this, you would type the instructions
directly into MSDOS. For example, the
command for copying a file looks like C:>
copy myfile.txt newfile.txt
System
Maintenance
System Information
and Diagnosis
By using a 'system
information' utility. The
operating system keeps a
record of all the hardware and
details of the operating system
such as make, clock speed,
number of processors, version
numbers and so on.
This is very useful for people when they
need to know the details of the system,
perhaps to see if an application they are
considering getting will be compatible.
System
Cleanup
Tools
Over time parts
of the system can become
cluttered with old
installation details,
temporary files, dead
shortcuts, etc.
A good disk cleanup tool will
search for and delete files
which are no longer needed.
One of the benefits of doing
this is that large amounts of
storage space is released.
This can then be used for
other programs or files.
A system cleanup tool will
search the computer for settings
which are no longer needed or
for programs which are slowing
down the computer. Running
this utility regularly can help to
improve the performance and
speed up the boot-up time so
that the computer starts up
much faster.
Automatic
Updating
Automatic Updating Software is
software that automatically searches
the internet for updated versions or
patches for critical software such as the
operating system or the web browser.
If an update is found, it will be
automatically downloaded and installed
and you will be prompted to restart your
machine in order to apply the patch.
Automatic updates help to ensure that your
system is protected from possible threats or
security loopholes that could be exploited by
malicious programs or people in order to gain
access to your system. Automatic updates
can also be applied to fix any known software
bugs in the system.
Security
Key
Terms/Ideas
Multi-tasking
Operating System
Personal computers can
multi-task very well, especially
for the type of things that
most of us want to do.
For example, reading emails, writing
letters, working on spreadsheets,
listening to music, surfing the web and
watching videos.
However, there comes a
time when only a *really*
powerful computer will
do the job in hand.
Reasons to use a Multitasking Operating
System: -You are an engineer or scientist and
want to run a very complicated simulation -You
are a weather scientist and want run a forecast
-You are a financial person and want to work on
thousands of stock market share movements
-You work in a bank and want to handle
customer accounts. -You are an architect and
want to see your full design -You work at an
University as an academic along with hundreds
of other academics -You are a film animator
and want to work in 3D
Most personal computers can't
handle these kind of tasks. Instead,
a mainframe or supercomputer is
required for this kind of work.
But a supercomputer or
mainframe costs millions to buy
and maintain. There is no way that
such an expensive machine could
be used by just a single person.
To make it economic, this computer has to
be shared. This means it needs a multi-user
operating system which means more than
one user is logged on and can use the
computer at the same time.
Single User
Operating System
This type of operating system
only has to deal with one
person at a time, running one
user application at a time.
An example of a this kind of
operating system would be found
on a mobile phone. There can only
be one user using the mobile and
that person is only using one of its
applications at a time.
Functions of the
operating system
Providing a
user interface
Managing the
computer's
memory
Managing
the hardware
OS Interfaces
Command line
A Command Line Interface
allows the user to interact
directly with the computer
system by typing in commands.
You cannot just type in any
kind of instruction, because
the computer will only react
to a definite set of words.
GUI
A GUI provides you with the
functionality to create and
manage the windows that you
use on your screen. It also
provides you with features
such as icons on your desktop,
buttons and scrollbars.