Computer System: 3 Kinds of Wares

   Software - gives a computer instructions or data and is anything that can be stored electronically. A collection of Software is called Software Bundle or Suite.

   Types of Software:

a.     Application Software – allows users to accomplish one or more specific (non-computer related) tasks. Includes industrial automation, business software, educational software, medical software, databases, and computer games.
b.     System Software – helps run the computer hardware and computer system. Includes operating systems, device drivers, diagnostic tools, servers, windowing systems, utilities and more.
c.      Programming Software – provides tools to assist a programmer in writing computer programs, and software using different programming languages in a more convenient way. Includes text editors, compilers, interpreters, linkers, debuggers, and so on.

   Hardware - the physical components that make up a computer system. Gathers data from software to know what to do.

   Some Computer Hardware:

   a.     Motherboard - holds the CPU, main memory and other parts, and has slots for expansion cards
   b.     Power Supply - a case that holds a transformer, voltage control and fan. Main source of electricity of the Computer.
   c.      Random Access Memory – main memory for data storage.
   d.     Central Processing Unit - carries out the instructions of a computer program.
   e.     Video Card - a card which generates feeds of output images to a display. (wiki)
   f.       Hard Disk Drive - a data storage device used for storing and retrieving digital information using rapidly rotating disks called platters coated with magnetic material. (wiki)
   g.     Optical Drive - a disk drive that uses laser light or electromagnetic waves within or near the visible light spectrum as part of the process of reading or writing data to or from optical discs. (wiki)
   h.     Sound Card - an internal computer card that facilitates the input and output of audio signals to and from a computer under control of computer programs. (wiki)
   i.        LAN Card - a card used to connect to the internet and is used to provide wireless Internet access to computer users at home or in roaming networks. (ask)

   Firmware – the Boundary between the hardware and software. It is the combination of persistent memory and program code and data stored in it.