Topic 4 - AQA a level Computer Science

What is hardware?

What is Software?

What is system software?

• Makes the computer run and keeps it healthy

• Allows the user to utilize the computer for their needs

• Operating systems, Utility Programmes, Libraries and Translators

• Games, browsers, word processing software, photo editing software

What is application software?

• Makes the computer run and keeps it healthy

• Allows the user to utilize the computer for their needs

• Operating systems, Utility Programmes, Libraries and Translators

• Games, browsers, word processing software, photo editing software

What does the operating system do?

• Manages the processor, memory, peripherals and security

• Provide a user interface to the hardware

• Provide Utility Programmes, Libraries and Translators

• Provide Games, browsers, word processing software, photo editing software

What is processor management?

• Ensures that the running of the processor goes smoothly and performs as it should

• Allocating and managing the memory used by processes

• Uses device drivers to translate the code from the application code, to code that can be understood by the hardware

• Determine which programmes need processing and handling interrupts

What is memory management?

• Ensures that the running of the processor goes smoothly and performs as it should

• Allocating and managing the memory used by processes

• Uses device drivers to translate the code from the application code, to code that can be understood by the hardware

• Determine which programmes need processing and handling interrupts

What is peripheral management?

• Ensures that the running of the processor goes smoothly and performs as it should

• Allocating and managing the memory used by processes

• Uses device drivers to translate the instructions from the peripherals, and co-ordinates the inputs and outputs of them

• Determine which programmes need processing and handling interrupts

What is Utility Software?

• Programmes that convert the code from applications to the code understood by the hardware

• Ready compiled programmes that are pre-written functions that can be run within a programme

• Programmes that optimise the performance of the computer (e.g word processors, excel, photo editors)

• Programmes that optimise the performance of the computer and provide firewalls and virus checkers (e.g disk defragger & file management)

What are libraries?

• Programmes that convert the code from applications to the code understood by the hardware

• Ready compiled programmes that are pre-written functions that can be run within a programme

• Programmes that optimise the performance of the computer (e.g word processors, excel, photo editors)

• Programmes that optimise the performance of the computer and provide firewalls and virus checkers (e.g disk defragger & file management)