Lesson 2

Computer Software

COMPUTER SOFTWARES

UTILITY PROGRAMS/SOFTWAREAPPLICATION PROGRAMS/SOFTWARESYSTEM SOFTWARE

UTILITY PROGRAMS

Utility programs are special programs that either enhance existing functions or provide services not provided by other system software programs.

UTILITY PROGRAMS

Backup: - It makes a duplicate of every file on your hard disk, diskettes or any other removable storage medium.

File Defragmentation: - Fragmentation is the scattering of portions of files about the disk in non adjacent areas, thus greatly slowing access to the files. Defragmentation utilities (defragger) finds all the scattered files on your hard disk and reorganize them as contiguous files.

Disk repair:- It will check your hard disk for defects and make repairs on the spot or mark the bad areas.

Virus Protection/Antivirus programs : - A virus consists of hidden programming instructions that are buried within an application or system program. They copy themselves to other programs causing problems. Antivirus software is a utility program that scans hard disks, diskettes, and memory to delete viruses, examples include, Norton Antivirus, McAfee VirusScan, Webscan etc.

UTILITY PROGRAMS

UTILITY PROGRAMS

Uninstaller : - It removes applications from the hard disk your computer

File/data compression : - They remove redundant element, gaps and unnecessary data from the computer storage space so less space is required to store or transmit data e.g. WINZIP

Disk scanner : - It maintains integrity of your hard disk and improves performance.

Data recovery:- It is used to resurrect or undo or undelete a file or information that has been accidentally deleted.

APPLICATION SOFTWARE

This is software that has been developed to perform useful work on specific tasks or to solve a particular problem. Application software maybe either custom or packaged.

APPLICATION SOFTWARE

Custom : - This is software designed and developed for a particular customer. This is a kind of software that you could hire a computer programmer or software creator to develop for you. Such software would not be readily done with the standard off the shelf packaged software available from a computer store.

Packaged : - This is the kind of off-the shelf program designed for sale to the general public; examples include word processing programs, spreadsheets, game software etc.

APPLICATION SOFTWARE

There are five types of application software• Entertainment software• Home/Personal software• Educational reference software• Productivity software• Specialty software

APPLICATION SOFTWARE

a) Entertainment Software : - These are software mainly used for entertainment purposes e.g. games, music, video etc.

b) Home/Personal Software : - They are software used for home use they include home repair software, Home decoration software, cookery software, gardening, travel planning etc. The Jenny Craig Cookbook, Completely interactive Cookbook are examples of software cookbooks. Visual Home software lets you design a floor plan, create three dimensional rooms of various shapes, and choose the wallpaper and the furnishings.

APPLICATION SOFTWAREc) Educational or Reference Software : - These are the software that

supplements learning examples include encyclopedias, phone books, mailing lists, maps and reproductions of famous art, tutorial CDs.

d) Productivity software : - The productivity software are used to make users more productive at performing particular tasks. They consist of programs found in most offices, many houses, campuses, personal computers and on large computers etc.

The most common kinds of productivity tools include:• Word processing software• Spreadsheet software• Database software• Financial software• Software for cyberspace• Integrated software and suites

Productivity software

Word processing software : - It allows you to use computers to create, edit, format print, and store text among other things. Examples are MS Word, word and WordPerfect for Macintosh computers.

Spreadsheets : - It allows users to create tables and financial schedules by entering data into rows and columns arranged as a grid on a display screen. It also allows users to create analytical graphical charts to present data e.g. MS excel Lotus-1-2-3 and Quattro Pro.

Database software : - A database is a computer based collection of interrelated files. Database software is a program that controls the structure of a database and access to the data

The principal features of a database include; organization of a database, data retrieval and display, sort, calculate and format etc. They include MS Access, Oracle, and MySQL etc.

Productivity softwareFinancial software : - It includes personal-finance managers, to

entry level accounting programs to business financial-management packages.

Personal finance:- They are used to keep track of income and expenses, write checks, do online banking and plan financial goals. They include Quicken and Microsoft Money. They include a calendar and a calculator.

Business Financial-managementThey include tax programs e.g. TaxCut and TurboTax which make

complex c calculations and check for mistakes etc. Some programs go beyond financial management, tax and accounting management e.g. Business Plan Pro, Management pro, Performance Now can help you set up your business from scratch.

Lastly we have the investment packages such as StreetMart and Online Xpress.

Productivity software

Software for Cyberspace: Communication, Email, Web Browsers

Communication Software : - Transmission software manages the transmission of data between computers. The sending and receiving of data is through a MODEM and telephone line.

A Modem is an electronic device that allows computers to communicate between each other over telephone lines. It translates the digital signals of the computer to analog signals that can travel over a telephone lines to another modem that converts the analog signals into Digital signals which the computer can understand. The programs for communication include Crosstalk, QuickLink and ProComm Plus

Productivity software

Communications software offers the following:i) Online connections: You can connect to online services e.g. American Online,

Microsoft Network, and to networks that that are used locally (within an office).

ii) File transfer You can download files from the other end of the communication

line into your computer’s hard disk or upload files from your computer and transfer it elsewhere.

iii) Fax Support You can send and receive faxes from one system to another.iv) Remote Access You can access your files at home from anywhere via a modem

using your portable computer.

Productivity software

v) Automatic dialing services You can set your software to answer for you if someone tries

to call your computer, or to dial some numbers automatically and redial after a certain time if the a line is busy.

vi) Use of financial services You can lookup for airline schedules and make reservations,

follow and engage in stock trading and even o some home banking and bill paying

Electronic Mail Software Electronic mail software enables users to send letters and files

from one computer to another. They include Eudora, Microsoft Outlook, and Lotus CC: Mail, and Pegasus Mail.

Productivity software

Web Browsers A web browser enables you to go through and view websites.

They are software used to access the web after you are online with an internet service provider. You can move from page to page by clicking on or using a mouse to select an icon or by typing in the correct address. They include Microsoft’s Internet explorer, and Netscape’s Navigator/communicator.

Web Search Toolsi) Directories They are indexes classified by topic Directory information is

collected and ranked by people.ii) Search engines They allow you to find specific documents through keyword

searches, eg www.google.com, www.altavista.com, etc.

Productivity software

e) Specialty Software They are software designed to assist the user in performing a

particular task. They include:– Desktop Publishing– Presentation graphics– Project management – Computer Aided Design– Drawing and painting – Groupware and – Multimedia authoring

Specialty Software1. Desktop publishing :- It involves using a microcomputer and mouse,

scanner, laser or inkjet printer, and DTP software for mixing text and graphics to produce high quality output for commercial printing. Professional DTP programs include QuarkXpress and PageMaker. Some word processing programs e.g. Word and WordPerfect have some qualities of DTP.

DTP has the following features: * Mix of text with graphics

* Varied type and layout styles (font, type styles)* Use of files from other programs: DTP Program integrates files from Word, CorelDraw/Adobe illustrator and photographs.

2. Presentation Graphics Software: - They are part of presentation software, which uses graphics and data/information from other software tools to communicate or make presentation of data to others. They include Microsoft PowerPoint, WordPerfect presentation etc. They are electronically displayed output as 35-millimeter slides. They (programs) often come with slide sorters, which group together a dozen or so slides in miniature.

Specialty Software3. Project Management Software:- It is a program that is used to plan,

schedule, and control people, costs and resources required to complete a project on time. They include Harvard Project Manager, Microsoft Project, suretrack Project Manager, and ManagerPro.

Two important tools are used• Gantt Chart- It uses lines and bars to indicate the duration of a series of

tasks. The time scale may range from minutes to years. The chart shows you if the tasks are completed as scheduled

• PERT Chart- It stands for Program evaluation review Technique. It shows not only timing but also relationships among the tasks of a project. The relationships are represented by lines that connect boxes describing the tasks.

4. Computer Aided Design:- They are software for the design of products, structures, civil engineering drawings and maps. They help architects to design buildings, engineers design cars, planes, roadways, and bridges etc, examples of CAD programs for beginners are Autosketch and Corel CAD.

Specialty Software

5. Drawing and Painting:-• Drawing: A drawing program is graphics software that allows

users to design and illustrate objects and products; they include CorelDraw, adobe Illustrator, and Macromedia Freehand.

• Painting: They are graphics programs that allow users to simulate painting on screen. They include MetaCreations’ Painter, Adobe Photoshop, Corel Photoshop, and JASC’s PaintShop Pro.

6. Groupware :- Also known as collaboration software is used on a network and allows users in the same building or even continents away working on the same project to share ideas and update documents. It improves productivity by keeping you continually notified about what your colleagues are thinking and doing and they about you. E.g. Lotus Notes, Microsoft Exchange, Novell’s GroupWise, and Netscape’s communicator

Specialty Software

7. Multimedia Authoring software :- It enables users to create multimedia applications that integrate text, images, sound, motion, and animation. The authoring tools allow you to sequence and time the occurrence of events, determining which graphics, sound, text and video files shall come into action at what point. They include Macromedia Authorware, Macromedia Director, and Asymetrix IconAuthor, Asymetrix Toolbook etc

DRAWBACKS OF NEW SOFTWARE• Bloatware or featuritis:-It means software that has a lot of

features that computer users don’t understand how to use them /It is software that is crowded with features. E.g. when Ms Office 1997 came in the market, Supplanting office 1995, it contained 4500 commands, far more than the few dozen or even few hundred that most people use.

ETHICS AND INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

- Intellectual property consists of the products of the human mind. Such property must be protected by copyright; exclusive legal right that prohibits copying it without permission of the copyright holder. There are three ways of protecting intellectual property;

• patents:-e.g. an invention• copyrights:-e.g. a song or book• trade secrets:-formula/method of doing business

- Plagiarism, piracy &ownership of Images And sounds

Software and network Piracy

Software Piracy:- It is the unauthorized copying of copyrighted software. E.g. to copy a program from one diskette to another

Network Piracy:- It is using electronic networks for unauthorized distribution of copyrighted materials in digital form.

Plagiarism:- It is the expropriation of another writer’s text, findings, or interpretations and presenting it as one’s own

Public Domain Software, Freeware, and Shareware

Public Domain software:- It is software that is not protected by copyright and thus may be duplicated by anyone at will.

Freeware:- It is a software that is available free of charge. It is distributed free of charge usually through the internet or computer users group.

Shareware:- It is a copyrighted software that is distributed free of charge but requires that users to make contributions in order to continue using i.e. the WinZip.

Software and network Piracy

Entertainment softwareHome/Personal softwareProductivity softwareEducational reference softwareSpecialty software

SYSTEM

SOFTW

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APPLIC

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S/SO

FTWA

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UTILITY

PRO

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S/SO

FTWA

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Word processing softwareSpreadsheet softwareDatabase softwareFinancial software

Software for cyberspace

Integrated software and suites

Personal finance.Business Financial-management

Communication

Email

Web Browsers

Online connectionsFile transferFax SupportRemote AccessAutomatic dialing servicesUse of financial services

DirectoriesSearch engines

Computer Aided Design

Presentation graphics

Project management

Desktop Publishing

Drawing and painting

Groupware & Multimedia authoring

Gantt ChartPERT Chart

DrawingPainting

Backup Data recovery File Defragmentation Disk repair Virus Protection/Antivirus programs Uninstaller File/data compression Disk scanner

( custom or

packaged)

CO

MPU

TER

SOFTW

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ES

Adobe Frame Maker Adobe InDesign Adobe PageMaker Corel Ventura iStudio Publisher Microsoft Office Publisher PageStream (used to be "Publishing Partner") QuarkXPress Ready,Set,Go Scribus Serif PagePlus Fatpaint

Operating System

Language processors AssemblerInterpreters

Compiler

GUI- Graphical user interface. E.g. windows CUI- Character user interface E.g. DOS