software
Definition
Intangible component of a computer system that imparts intelligence to otherwise useless pieces of metal and silicon called hardware. It consists of carefully-organized instructions and code, that programmers write in a language the hardware can understand and act upon. Software is divided commonly into two main categories: (1) System software: controls the basic (and invisible to the user) functions of a computer and comes usually preinstalled with the machine. See also BIOS and Operating System. (2) Application software: handles multitudes of common and specialized tasks a user wants to perform, such as accounting, communicating, data processing, word processing. It is often bought separately by the user, and is usually the reason people buy computers.
software is in the Computer Hardware, Software, & Security subject.
software appears in the definitions of the following terms:
platform independent,
shrinkwrapped software,
internet relay chat (IRC),
beta test,
application program,
web based application,
intellectual property,
assistive technology,
secure system,
socket
and
software appears in these other terms:
data extraction software,
software defined network,
integrated software,
software reliability,
computer aided software engineering (CASE),
blocking software,
software contract,
software documentation,
proprietary software,
software support
and
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