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| For other uses, see Software (disambiguation)."Scientific software" redirects here.For the company, see Scientific Software (company).AbiWord word processing software.Computer software is a general term used to describe a collection of computer programs, procedures and documentation that perform some task on a computer system.Terminology
The term "software" is sometimes used in a broader context to describe any electronic media content which embodies expressions of ideas such as film, tapes, records, etc.Computer software is so called to contrast with computer hardware, which encompasses the physical interconnections and devices required to store and execute (or run) the software.In computers, software is loaded into RAM and executed in the central processing unit.At the lowest level, software consists of a machine language specific to an individual processor.Software is an ordered sequence of instructions for changing the state of the computer hardware in a particular sequence.Software may also be written in an assembly language, essentially, a mnemonic representation of a machine language using a natural language alphabet.Assembly language must be assembled into object code via an assembler.The term "software" was first used in this sense by John W.In computer science and software engineering, computer software is all computer programs.The theory that is the basis for most modern software was first proposed by Alan Turing in his 1935 essay Computable numbers with an application to the Entscheidungsproblem.Types
Practical computer systems divide software systems into three major classes: system software, programming software and application software, although the distinction is arbitrary, and often blurred.System software helps run the computer hardware and computer system.It includes operating systems, device drivers, diagnostic tools, servers, windowing systems, utilities and more.The purpose of systems software is to insulate the applications programmer as much as possible from the details of the particular computer complex being used, especially memory and other hardware features, and such as accessory devices as communications, printers, readers, displays, keyboards, etc.Programming software usually provides tools to assist a programmer in writing computer programs and software using different programming languages in a more convenient way.An Integrated development environment (IDE) merges those tools into a software bundle, and a programmer may not need to type multiple commands for compiling, interpreter, debugging, tracing, and etc.IDE usually has an advanced graphical user interface, or GUI.Typical applications include industrial automation, business software, educational software, medical software, databases, and computer games.Businesses are probably the biggest users of application software, but almost every field of human activity now uses some form of application software.Program and library
A program may not be sufficiently complete for execution by a computer.In particular, it may require additional software from a software library in order to be complete.Thus, programs may include standard routines that are common to many programs, extracted from these libraries.See also: Software architecture
Users often see things differently than programmers.Platform software
Platform includes the firmware, device drivers, an operating system, and typically a graphical user interface which, in total, allow a user to interact with the computer and its peripherals (associated equipment).Platform software often comes bundled with the computer.On a PC you will usually have the ability to change the platform software.Application software
Application software or Applications are what most people think of when they think of software.Application software is often purchased separately from computer hardware.Applications are almost always independent programs from the operating system, though they are often tailored for specific platforms.Most users think of compilers, databases, and other "system software" as applications.User software tailors systems to meet the users specific needs.User software include spreadsheet templates, word processor macros, scientific simulations, and scripts for graphics and animations.Even email filters are a kind of user software.Users create this software themselves and often overlook how important it is.Operation
Computer software has to be "loaded" into the computer's storage (such as a hard drive, memory, or RAM).Once the software is loaded, the computer is able to execute the software.This involves passing instructions from the application software, through the system software, to the hardware which ultimately receives the instruction as machine code.Data movement is typically from one place in memory to another.Moving data, especially large amounts of it, can be costly.Computations include simple operations such as incrementing the value of a variable data element.More complex computations may involve many operations and data elements together.Instructions may be performed sequentially, conditionally, or iteratively.In some languages this is known as an "if" statement.When more than one computer processor is used, instructions may be executed simultaneously.In this case, a conditional instruction is executed to copy text from data in a 'document' area residing in memory, perhaps to an intermediate storage area known as a 'clipboard' data area.If a different menu entry such as "Paste" is chosen, the software may execute the instructions to copy the text from the clipboard data area to a specific location in the same or another document in memory.Depending on the application, even the example above could become complicated.The field of software engineering endeavors to manage the complexity of how software operates.This is especially true for software that operates in the context of a large or powerful computer system.Consequently, large areas of activities (such as playing grand master level chess) formerly assumed to be incapable of software simulation are now routinely programmed.Kinds of software by operation: computer program as executable, source code or script, configuration.Quality and reliability
Software reliability considers the errors, faults, and failures related to the creation and operation of software.See Software auditing, Software quality, Software testing, and Software reliability.License
Software license gives the user the right to use the software in the licensed environment, some software comes with the license when purchased off the shelf, or an OEM license when bundled with hardware.Other software comes with a free software licence, granting the recipient the rights to modify and redistribute the software.Software can also be in the form of freeware or shareware.Patents
The issue of software patents is controversial.Some believe that they hinder software development, while others argue that software patents provide an important incentive to spur software innovation.See software patent debate.Ethics and rights for software users
Being a new part of society, the idea of what rights users of software should have is not very developed.Some, such as the free software community, believe that software users should be free to modify and redistribute the software they use.They argue that these rights are necessary so that each individual can control their computer, and so that everyone can cooperate, if they choose, to work together as a community and control the direction that software progresses in.Others believe that software authors should have the power to say what rights the user will get.This page was last modified 03:32, 4 January 2008.All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.Adobe Photoshop Elements 6 and the new line of Creative Suite 3 by Adobe, ranging from Adobe Photoshop CS3 to the Adobe CS3 Master Collection.Bestsellers in Children's SoftwareUpdated hourly1.Fortunately, we have all the software you need to finish and file your returns without all the headaches.January 5
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