System Technologies Basic Concepts of System Software 1

System Technologies: Basic Concepts of System Software 1

Software According to Wikipedia (2013): "refers to the non-tangible components of computers, known as computer programs " 2

Different types of software System Software Application Software 3

What is Application Software? According to Wikipedia (2013): " Application software is all the computer software that causes a computer to perform useful tasks beyond the running of the computer itself. A specific instance of such software is called a software application, application program, application or app. " 4

What is system software? System software is a set of software designed to control and operate the hardware components of the computer and allow the application programmes to operate. It also provides a platform for application software to be able to run. 5

What does system software include? Device Drivers Utility Software Operating System User Interface 6

CONFUSION The operating software IS NOT the system software. The operating system is PART of the system software that controls and operates the computer. 7

What is an Operating System? The OPERATING SYSTEM is a form of system software that manages and controls all activities taking place in the computer while creating a platform to communicate with the computer. 8

FACTS The operating system is the most important program that runs on a computer. All general-purpose computers must have an operating system to be able to run any other programs. The operating system is usually referred to as the OS. 9

General role of an operating system The general role of the operating system is to manage and control all activities taking place in the computer. 10

What is the role of the operating system? Provides a user interface I/O management (Input/output management) Process management Manages system memory File management & Security Manages networking capabilities 11

The O/S provides a user interface The OS provides a user interface to the user to enable the user to communicate with the computer and other application software on the computer. Users Application Software Operating System 12 Hardware

The O/S provides a user interface What is a "User interface "? The user interface is the relation between a user and a computer program. It is a set of commands through which the user communicates with a program. It is how you interact with the computer. This is a function of an operating system that will allow users to be able to have access to- and operate the computer. 13

The O/S provides a user interface Two types of interfaces Command-based user interface A user interface that requires text commands to perform activities. E. g. Dos Graphical user interface (GUI) A user interface that makes use of icons/menus to send commands to the computer system. E. g. Windows, Linux 14

The O/S provides a user interface Graphical user interface (GUI) 15

FACTS The GUI is called "user-friendly" because the graphical representation of commands is much easier to understand than having to type text. Without the operating system you will not be able to use any other applications eg. spreadsheet software or games. 16

What is the role of the operating system? Provides a user interface I/O management (Input/output management) Process management Manages system memory File management & Security Manages networking capabilities 17

I/O Management This refers to the communication between an information processing system and any other device or human interaction. Input is the data received by the system and output is the data sent from it. Known input devices are a keyboard or a mouse, where the most common output devices are a monitor or a printer. Other devices such as a network card can act as an input and/or output device. 18

I/O Management The operating systems goals with I/O management is to : • Acknowledge any devices that are connected to the computer and then name these devices in a uniform manner. • Allow users access to all the devices in a uniform manner. • Handle and recover any errors with the connection of these devices to the computer. • Maintain a level of security to and from these devices. 19

I/O Management The operating system also provides a form of hardware independence with any I/O devices: The operating system provides hardware independence for application software. This means that the application software interacts with the operating system, and the operating system interacts with the hardware. When any hardware is changed, the instructions in the operating system are changed on how to communicate with those changed hardware devices. The application software then does not need to be changed. 20

What is the role of the operating system? Provides a user interface I/O management (Input/output management) Process management Manages system memory File management & Security Manages networking capabilities 21

Process management The operating system manages the way processing takes place in the computer. It allocates the amount of time each process or task get access to the CPU. Some processing tasks that the O/S can operate: Multitasking: more than one program can run at the same time Multithreading: when more than one process within one program can get access to the CPU at the same time. Time-sharing: allows more than one person to use a computer system at the same time 22

What is the role of the operating system? Provides a user interface I/O management (Input/output management) Process management Manages system memory File management & Security Manages networking capabilities 23

Memory Management The operating system controls how memory is accessed and maximizes the available memory and storage. The operating system is responsible for managing all system memory (RAM) which is currently in use by programs. This ensures that a program does not interfere with memory already in use by another program. Each program must have independent access to memory otherwise there will be errors while trying to access the memory. 24

FACTS The operating system is the very first program that is loaded into the memory when the computer is turned on. 25

What is the role of the operating system? Provides a user interface I/O management (Input/output management) Process management Manages system memory File management & Security Manages networking capabilities 26

File management The operating system ensures that: files on secondary storage (hard drives) are available when needed (this has been discussed in a previous lesson about file management in the 1 st term) that the files are protected from access by unauthorized users 27

Security The operating system allows access to system resources and security by making use of: Protection against unauthorized access Logins and passwords 28

What is the role of the operating system? Provides a user interface I/O management (Input/output management) Process management Manages system memory File management & Security Manages networking capabilities 29

Manages networking capabilities The operating system also contain features and capabilities that will help the users to connect to a computer network. 30

Manages networking capabilities 31

Manages networking capabilities Operating systems can allow a computer/user to access the resources of a remote computer to support the same functions as itself, if those resources were connected directly to the local computer. Example: using your laptop in your bedroom and printing a document on a printer that is connected to the computer in the study. 32

General role of an operating system The general role of the operating system is to manage and control all activities taking place in the computer. 33

What is the role of the operating system? Provides a user interface I/O management (Input/output management) Process management Manages system memory File management & Security Manages networking capabilities 34

Complete worksheet 1 35

Types of operating systems Standalone • These operating systems are usually used on one device like a pc or laptop Network Embedded • These operating systems are used when more than one pc or device connects in a network to communicate • These operating systems are already installed in the device (built into the firmware) such as a cell phone, tablet or i-pad. These operating systems do not have to be installed after purchase, it already is installed. 36

Examples of types of operating systems Standalone • Windows XP • Windows Vista • Windows 7 • Windows 8 • Mac OS X • Ubuntu 13. 04 (Linux) Network Embedded • Windows Server • UNIX • Net. Ware • Red Hat Linux • Mac OS X Server • Novell Netware • Palm OS • Windows Embedded • Windows Mobile • Embedded Linux 37

Types of operating systems for PC’s and mobile pc’s (laptops) Windows Apple OS X Linux Google Chrome OS 38 Unix

Types of operating systems for mobile devices Windows mobile i. Os Android QNX Blackberry 39

Other Mobile Operating Systems Firefox OS Sailfish OS Symbian Tizen 40

Apple operating systems Propitiatory software Not available from Microsoft i. Os (Embedded operating system for mobile devices) i. Pod Touch i. Pad i. Phone 41 Apple TV

Apple operating systems Mac OS X (stand alone pc’s) introduced as Mac OS X and renamed OS X in 2012 42

Apple operating systems Mac OS X (stand alone pc’s) The most recent release being OS X 10. 9, referred to as Mavericks. Prior to 10. 9 were: 10. 8 - Mountain Lion, 10. 7 - Lion, 10. 6 - Snow Leopard, 10. 5 - Leopard, 10. 4 - Tiger, 10. 3 - Panther, 10. 2 - Jaguar, 10. 1 - Puma, 10. 0 - Cheetah. 43

Apple operating systems Mac OS X server Installed on Mac Mini and Mac Pro computers 44

Linux Developed by Linus Torvalds in 1991 Can be installed and used on standalone pc’s, network devices or embedded devices Open-source product Example: Red Hat Linux 45

Unix Multitasking, multi-user, open source computer operating system Usually installed in a network environment Linux and Unix is based on the same principles 46

Tux the penguin is known as the mascot of Linux 47

Android is based on the Linux kernel. Open source with proprietary components. Designed for touchscreen mobile devices such as smartphones and tablet computers. Initially developed by Android, Inc. , which Google backed financially and later bought in 2005 48

Android has different versions : 49

Windows • Proprietary software owned by the Microsoft Company. 50

Windows • The most recent versions of Windows : Personal Computers – Windows 8. 1 Embedded devices – Windows Embedded 8 Servers – Windows Server 2012 R 2 Mobile devices – Windows Phone 51 8

The new Windows 8. 1 Start screen 52

Complete worksheet 2 53

What is system software? System software is a set of software designed to control and operate the hardware components of the computer and operate the application programmes. It also provides a platform for application software to be able to run. 54

What does system software include? Device Drivers Utility Software Operating System User Interface 55

Utility programs oa ls a e ar ware s am soft r g ro stem p y sy lit Uti m of for Utility programs help to … the computer analyze configure optimize 56 maintain

Utility programs help manage, maintain and control computer resources. These programs are available to help you with the day-to-day chores associated with personal computing and to keep your system running at peak performance. 57

Examples of Utility programs Virus detection and recovery utilities Backup software Scandisk Disk defragmenter Compression software Spam and pop-up blocker utilities File management 58

Virus-detection and recovery utilities Anti-virus software that was designed to prevent, detect and/or remove malicious computer viruses. Anti-virus software also includes computer security including protection from all social engineering techniques. 59

Anti-virus software Examples of anti-virus software 60

Back-up software It is very important to have a back-up of important files on a computer in case your computer crashes. Windows utilities has back-up software included in the system software. There are two types of file backup that are supported: 1. normal backup, stores everything selected for backup. 2. incremental backup stores only files that are changed after a previous backup 61

Back-up software 62

Scandisk Scan. Disk checks and repairs file systems errors on a disk drive like a hard drive. 63

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Disk defragmenter is designed to increase access speed by rearranging the folders and files stored on a disk to occupy adjacent storage locations. Defragmenting a disk minimizes head travel of the hard drive, which reduces the time it takes to read and write files to the disk Disk Defragmenter also reduces system start-up times. 65

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Compression software File compression software makes it easier for us to save our files and folders, also to organize and manage them. File compression software takes large files and folders that take a lot of hard disk space and reduces them to smaller, easier-to-manage archives. It gives you the ability to transfer compressed files to CDs, DVDs and flash drives for easy backups which takes less space. No information is lost. 67

Compression software 68

Spam and Pop-up Blocker Utilities Wikipedia(2013): “Pop-up ads or pop-ups are often forms of online advertising on the World Wide Web intended to attract web traffic or capture email addresses. ” Pop-up blocker utilities became available to stop these adverts popping-up while users are making use of the internet. Internet Explorer also has this feature to stop pop-ups. 69

File management Most operating systems include a file management utility to be able to open, create, edit, view, print, rename, move, copy, delete, search/find, and/or modify file properties and permissions. Windows Explorer is the file management software included. 70

File management Disk Clean-up is a feature of file management included in system software. This utility frees up disk space on a computer's hard drive 71

What does system software include? Device Drivers Utility Software Operating System User Interface 72

What does system software include? Device drivers are software/programs that allow higher-level computer programs to interact and control hardware components connected to the computer. The device drivers convert the basic input/output instructions of your operating system to messages that the devices/hardware components can understand and/or interpret. 73

What does system software include? Many device drivers are included in the system software. It needs to be updated every 3 -6 months to be able to have the latest device drivers available. 74

Complete worksheet 3 75