WHAT HARDWARE?
• Hardware represents the physical and tangible components of a computer i.e. the
components that can be seen and touched.
• Some example of Hardware are as follow: Input devices -- keyboard, mouse etc.
• Output devices -- printer, monitor etc.
• Secondary storage devices -- Hard disk, CD, DVD etc.
• Internal components -- CPU, motherboard, RAM etc.
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE
• Hardware and software are mutually dependent on each other. Both of them must
work together to make a computer produce a useful output.
• Software cannot be utilized without supporting hardware.
• Hardware without set of programs to operate upon cannot be utilized and is useless.
• To get a particular job done on the computer, relevant software should be loaded into
the hardware
• Hardware is a one-time expense.
• Software development is very expensive and is a continuing expense.
• Different software applications can be loaded on a hardware to run different jobs.
• If hardware is the 'heart' of a computer system, then software is its 'soul'. Both are
complimentary to each other.
WHAT 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.
TYPES OF SOFTWARE
• System Software.
• Application Software.
SYSTEM SOFTWARE
• The system software is collection of programs designed to operate, control, and
extend the processing capabilities of the computer itself. System software are
generally prepared by computer manufactures.
• 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 hardware and the end users.
• Some examples of system software are Operating System, Compilers, Interpreter,
Assemblers etc.
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 a Microsoft's notepad
for writing and editing 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 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
Zig Ziglar
A goal properly set is halfway reached.