System Software & Application

Software
System Software & Application Software
• Systems software provides the services that the computer requires, including
operating system and utility software
• E.g. allowing instructions to be processed by the CPU to allow word
processing software to process. Without systems software the system would
be useless
• Systems Software is made up of two core elements: the operating
system and utility software

Operating System

• This is a program designed to run other programs on a computer. It is

considered the backbone of a computer, managing
both software and hardware resources
• Operating systems are responsible for everything from the control and
allocation of memory to recognising input from external devices and
transmitting output to computer displays. They also manage files on computer
hard drives and control peripherals, like printers and scanners.
• Examples of Operating System: Windows, MAC, Linux

Utility Software
• Utility programs perform specific tasks related to computer functions,
resources, files and security. They help to configure the system, analyse how
it is working and optimise it to improve its efficiency. Some of these utilities
include:

• Security utilities:

•
o Anti-Virus - Scans the computer system and ensures that files are
quarantined so that they can be removed by the user
o Encryption - uses an algorithm to scramble (encrypt) a file according
to the key which is used to make the file unreadable; the key is needed
to decrypt the file back to its original form so it can be read
 o Firewall - monitors network traffic and blocks unauthorised access.
Criteria is set and if the data meets the criteria it is accepted otherwise
it is rejected

• Disk organisation utilities:

•
o System Clean-Up Tools – to search for and remove files no longer
needed, to reduce space and speed up access to the system
o Disk Defragmentation Tools - it is used to rearrange the parts of files
on the disk drive: when a file is saved to the disk, parts of the file might
be saved in different areas of the disk, these tools try to move all the
parts to the same area for quicker access

• Data compression utilities

o File Compression Software – to make files smaller so that they take
up less storage space and can be transmitted to other users more
easily
• File backup utilities
o Full Backup - stores all files and software on the system
o Incremental Backup - only backs up the files and software that have
been added since the last backup

Application Software
• This is designed to carry out a specific task the user would need for
completing a variety of tasks. These are the applications that the operating
system would process and allow end users to complete their vital day to day
tasks. Examples are:
• Word Processing Software
o This allows users to create written documents
o e.g. letters, reports etc
• Spreadsheet Software
 o This allows users to perform numerical calculations and function to
create automation for all mathematical elements
o e.g. budgeting, accounting, stock counts etc
• Presentation Software
o This allows users to create interactive and multimedia presentations to
show to an audience
o e.g. sales pitches, launching of products etc
• Multimedia Software
o This is used to create multimedia and interactive content for a number
of purposes, it explores text, audio, images, video, sound and
animations
o e.g. image manipulation, editing a video etc
• Web Browsers
o This allows the user to access the internet and use the world wide web

Exam Tip

• Make sure you use the names given above and not brand names e.g.
Microsoft as this will cost you marks

Distribution Methods
Freeware software is where:

• The user is not allowed to access the source code so, they cannot tailor the
software to their needs or fix any bugs in it
• The software is still covered by copyright and the user must get the owner’s
permission to do anything beyond using it

Free software is where:

• The user can access the source code so, they can tailor the software to their
needs and fix any bugs in it
• The source code could be studied for educational purposes
• The user can redistribute the software but this must be done under the same
terms as the original software

Shareware is software which:

• Gives a trial version of the software for a limited time with limited features free
of charge
• Requires the user has to pay fee if the full version is needed
• Is protected by copyright
• Is a type of software licence

There are many ethical considerations when distributing software:

• Accessibility of software
• Age appropriation
 • Copyright
• Distribution of malware
• Environmental impact of distribution media e.g. CDs
• Following guidelines of professional bodies e.g. ACM/IEEE/BCS
• Intellectual property theft
• Offensive materials
• Plagiarism
• Privacy of data
• Security of software

Exam Tip

• Make sure you apply your answer to the context given in the question

CIE IGCSE Computer Science

Revision Notes
IGCSEComputer ScienceCIERevision Notes4. Software4.1 Types of Software
and InterruptsThe Operating System

The Operating System

The Operating System
What does the Operating System do?
• Managing Files:

•
o The file manager controls all of the different files on the system, e.g.
text files, graphic files, and program files. It controls file
permissions such as the user's ability to see or open a file, write a file
or delete a file.It helps to organise and control files so that they are
as easy to use as possible for the user. It can help to protect the user
from accidental mistakes too

• Handling Interrupts:
o An interrupt is a signal from a device or software to the processor. This
will stop the processor temporarily from fulfilling this request
immediately, some examples could be:
o Software errors - e.g. files not found, or software not responding
o The user initiating Ctrl Alt Delete to lock, log off etc
o Files stop copying as the name of the file is already in the folder

•
o Once this interrupt is received by the CPU it either carries on or
completes the action desired
 o Whenever an interrupt is initiated the status of this task is saved to
the interrupt service routine.
o Once the interruption has been completed the system continues back
to normal before the interruption even happened

• Providing an Interface:
•
o Users must interact with the operating system through a user
interface. The user interface is a system which converts what the user
inputs to a form that the computer can understand and vice versa
o Many computer or database operating systems use complex
programming languages which are not easy to use
o A user interface is created to allow easier control of the operating
system by the system user. A good interface should be easy to use
o e.g.: consistent menu structures; consistent operations from actions
like clicking the right mouse button

• Managing Peripherals and Drivers:

•
o The overall intention of this is to handle all the devices that are
connected to the computer system. This includes input devices such as
a keyboard and mouse, it also includes output devices such as a
monitor and printer
o It communicates with the devices through software called drivers.
These translate the instructions by the device manager into one the
devices can understand Peripherals like a mouse, keyboard and printer
all need drivers so that they can communicate with the software

• Managing Memory:
•
o Memory management is in charge of the RAM. Programs
use RAM throughout their operation. Some programs will be large and
complex and use the RAM extensively whereas some are very small
programs and won’t use it as much
o Memory management checks all requests from programs are valid and
allocates accordingly. It will deallocate space and swap out data to
virtual memory. It will ensure overall that different programs can be
open at the same time

• Manage Multitasking:
•
o Multitasking allows for software tasks to be completed at the same time
to ensure multiple elements can be completed immediately, it uses a
system called time slicing which splits different tasks into small
segments
 o They can all be run one after the other, giving the element of multiple
tasks being completed at the same time, instead of waiting for one
operation to complete before moving on to the next task

• Providing a Platform for Running Applications:

•
o Application programs and the hardware will communicate through a
system within the operating system called an application programs
interface(API)
o This API is a library interface which will share data between software to
allow elements to process
o If any application is installed on the system, the Operating System will
manage this process, it will allocate memory space and will control the
application's data or devices, user access will also be managed

• Providing a System Security:

•
o System security is just about how the operating system can stay
protected and ensure that elements are monitored and actioned to
ensure the system is secure. Some areas of security are:

•
o
▪ Creating/Deleting users for the system
▪ Providing access level rights, e.g. administrator rights over
installing, modifying a system or accessing files or folders. This
is compared to standard rights of just accessing and using
software/files on the system.
▪ Auditing - this is keeping a log of file edits, deleted files, creation
of files etc
▪ Protecting from threats, viruses, worms, malware or remote
hacker attacks
▪ Security updates to fix patches in the operating system

• Managing User Accounts:

•
o Each user is provided with an account for access to the system. They
will be provided with their username and then will need to create a
password based on rules set out initially
o Each account will then be granted different levels of access, dependent
on needs and level of security. This will also monitor login activity and
even log users out if they have been inactive for a while

Hardware, Firmware & the OS

• Application Software must talk to the operating system, this will then allow it to
interact with the hardware
• The hardware will then process and send the information to the operating
system which then directly talks back to applications software in a continuous
loop

• Firmware

•
o This process is in between the Operating System and Hardware
o When a computer initially first loads up, it has to explore the ROM for
its initial boot-up instructions These are contained in a Bootstrap
loader
o The initial process is handled by the basic input/output system
(BIOS) which is known as firmware. This will provide some low-level
control for all devices
 o Once complete these are sent to RAM to be processed by the
operating system
o Overall this creates an extra layer which is to ensure that initially the
hardware devices e.g. keyboard are available and can be
communicated directly with the operating system
• E.g. - If you were to type on a word processing document, this would talk with
the operating system initially to request the key presses. It would send it to the
firmware to check whether the keyboard is available. Once the connection is
established with the hardware it communicates directly with the keyboard
back through firmware, the key instructions are passed up to the operating
system and finally displayed on the word processing software

Exam Tip

• Ensure you have the understanding of how the four areas work together. An
exam question would focus on how these four key areas would communicate.

CIE IGCSE Computer Science

Revision Notes
IGCSEComputer ScienceCIERevision Notes4. Software4.1 Types of Software
and InterruptsInterrupts

Interrupts
Download PDF
Test Yourself
Interrupts
• We know that computers use the fetch-decode execute cycle within the
CPU to run instructions over and over. However, while this is occurring other
devices may need to signal to the CPU to tell it to stop temporarily (interrupt)
so that it can do the dedicated specific task
• E.g. a user has initiated ctrl alt delete to run task manager or a user wants a
document printing
• Interrupts will need to ensure that the CPU can stop executing its current
program to run code for the overall interruption. Interrupts need to be added
to an area called the interrupt service routine

• Two types of interrupt:

•
o Hardware Interrupt - this is caused by a hardware device such as a
hardware failure e.g.
▪ pressing a key on the keyboard
▪ moving the mouse

•
o Software Interrupt - this occurs when an application stops or requests
services from the OS e.g.
 ▪ a program is not responding
▪ division by zero
▪ two processes trying to access the same memory location

• However, the CPU currently contains registers that are holding data currently
being handled: These include:

•
o Program Counter - The location of the next instruction which will need
to be fetched
o Current Instruction Register - holds the current instruction being
executed
o Memory Address Register - stores the location of where the data is
being stored in RAM or where in RAM the data will be sent
o Memory Data Register - stores the actual data from the location in
the RAM or that will be sent to RAM

• The interrupt service routine is simply added to a particular area where a

certain set of instructions are sent that will need to be fetched, decoded and
executed to complete the commands of the interrupt
• As a result, it’s clear that the current registers will need to be changed at this
point to accommodate the interrupt
• The interrupt will be executed instead of the original instructions
• When the interrupt is received the current values that were held in the
registers are copied back to the RAM in an area known as a stack
• These values are pushed onto the stack and are added to the top of
the stack frame, which will save them for later retrieval when the interrupt is
complete
• There is a possibility that an interrupt can also be interrupted which is known
as a division by zero. Due to the system in RAM with stack frames, the
current interrupt would be moved to the bottom of the stack frame to
complete the main interrupt initially

Exam Tipvious instructions can be accessed at the top of the stack frame to
continue processing afterwards.

There are common interrupt priorities for different categories, these are:

• Hardware

o Power supply may have failed

o Power button may have been pressed

• User

o Moving the mouse

o Clicking an icon to open a new program
o Keyboard presses e.g. ctrl, alt, delete

• Software
 o Illegal instruction encountered
o Overflow
o Login request
o Crashing

• Timer

o Data logging programs which reads sensors continuously

o Screen recording applications

• Input/output devices

•
o Signaling of data transfer been completed
o Printer ink supply notifications
o Input devices not responding

CIE IGCSE Computer Science

Revision Notes
IGCSEComputer ScienceCIERevision Notes4. Software4.2 Types of
Programming Language, Translators & IDEsHigh & Low Level Languages

High & Low Level Language

High & Low Level Languages
Low Level Languages
• Low Level Languages are languages that sit close to a
computer’s instruction set. These are basic instructions that the CPU will
understand
• For instance an assembly language which allows programmers to focus on
programming simple commands, which in turn is converted
into machine code This element is needed for the core hardware to be able to
work with the software
• These languages are written for specific processors to ensure they embed the
correct machine architecture
• Assembly Language - The code is written using mnemonics, abbreviated
text commands such as LDA (Load), STO(Store) Using this language
programmers can write human-readable programs that correspond almost
exactly to machine code.
• Machine code – is at the hardware level and is written in binary (1’s and 0’s)

Advantages Disadvantages
 It gives programmers complete control over the system Difficult to write and understand
components so it can control hardware components.

Efficient code can be written for the processor so it will Machine dependent and cannot be added
occupy less memory and execute faster to different specification machines

They provide direct manipulation of hardware which means More prone to errors
it will be more efficient
Communicates directly with hardware Knowledge of computer architecture is
key to program effectively

High Level Languages

• High Level Languages are programming languages which use English-like
statements which allow users to program with easy to use code, allow for
clear debugging and once programs are created they become easier to
maintain
• High level languages were needed more due to the development of processor
speeds and memory capacity increasing
• Examples of these languages are Python, C#, Java etc

Advantages Disadvantages

It is easier to read and write and the programmer is The user is not able to directly manipulate the
less likely to make mistakes hardware
Needs to be translated to machine code before
It is easier to debug so it will save time
running
The code is portable so can be used on any
The program may be less efficient
computer
One line of code can perform multiple commands
Exam Tip

• You will be asked about the advantages and disadvantages of high or low
level languages or you will be asked to compare and contrast between the
two types of language