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Learn how the operating system and applications work together to make your computer run smoothly.
[MUSIC]
0:00
Software is a collection of coder programs
that run on your computer.
0:04
Software is considered soft because you
can change it all the time.
0:09
You know those app updates you get?
0:13
Well, that's a developer changing their
software.
0:15
Other examples of software are Internet
browsers, operating systems, and
0:18
even desktop applications like Word or
Pages.
0:22
Most software falls into two major
categories, application software and
0:26
system software.
0:30
Application software is probably the most
familiar to you because you
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probably use applications all the time.
0:36
When you fire up Word, Spotify, or
0:38
your Internet browser you're firing up
application software.
0:40
System software is a little different.
0:45
It's designed to operate and control the
computer's hardware and
0:47
provide a platform for running application
software.
0:51
These include operating systems, utility
software, and device drivers.
0:54
The languages that are used in system
software are usually more
0:59
directly accessing the physical hardware
of the machine.
1:02
As a general purpose user, you might take
system software for
1:06
granted because it runs in the background.
1:09
But this software is the foundation for
1:11
all other software you'll run on your
computer.
1:13
Within application software there's
special programs used to process code,
1:16
called programming software.
1:20
These are editors, debuggers, compilers,
and linkers used to translate and
1:22
combine computer programs into
executables, which end up as binary.
1:27
Some software products combine several of
these into one product, which is
1:33
then called an integrated development
environment, or IDE for shorts.
1:37
These programming tools can come in many
forms, but the tool you'll most commonly
1:42
use here on Treehouse is a robust text
editor and terminal called Workspaces.
1:46
So, how do you write software?
1:53
I thought you'd never ask.
1:55
You have to program it, of course
1:57
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