Software, the operating system and interrupts
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The teaching part (1 min) is free to watch. A free account opens the whole lecture: 5 practice questions, 2 real past-paper questions with the answers explained, the mistakes that lose marks, the full-marks tip, a one-card summary and a quick quiz.
What this lecture covers
- The software behind the screen
- Two types of software
- Which type?
Read the transcript of the teaching part
Last time
Before we start: last time, in Network hardware, you learned these points. Here they are again on one card. Keep them in mind, because today builds on them.
The software behind the screen
When you touch an app, a lot happens that you never see. Software is the set of programs that tell the hardware what to do. Some of it is for you, like a game. Some of it keeps the computer running, and the most important of those is the operating system.
Two types of software
System software provides the services the computer needs to run and manage its hardware. It provides a platform that application software can run on. Application software lets the user carry out a specific task. To classify software, ask: does it help the user, or does it help the computer?
Which type?
System software includes the operating system, utility software, device drivers and translators. Application software includes a word processor, a web browser, a game, a spreadsheet and photo editing software. Give the type of software, never a brand name.
How often it comes up
The whole chapter: Automated Systems, Number Systems, Types of Software and Interrupts.
Chapter 4.1: Software and the OS
- Software, the operating system and interrupts 6 min
Also for IGCSE Computer Science 0478
Which topics come up most in IGCSE Computer Science 0478 past papers, counted from every paper since 2004: Paper 1 topic frequency, Paper 2 topic frequency.