1.2.2 Applications Generation

Question 1

What is application software?

Answer 1

A software designed to perform tasks for users of the computer

Question 2

What is a specific application?

Answer 2

Types of applications designed to perform one particular task e.g hospital appoitnments, payrolls. It is something that matches users requirements exactly.

Question 3

What is an ‘off-the-shelf’ software ?

Answer 3

A specific application that can be purchased to perform one particular task for a variety of situations

Question 4

What is a general purpose application?

Answer 4

Software designed to allow user to produce or use the computer to find solutions to a variety of problems.

Question 5

What are software suites?

Answer 5

A general purpose software supplied as a couple packages that are designed to allow communication between them.

Question 6

What is a utility software?

Answer 6

Very small program that is designed for one purpose, usually concerned with computer’s maintenance.

Question 7

Name the 5 utilities.

Answer 7

Antivirus 
Device Drivers 
Disk Defragmentation 
File Managers/ Explorers 
Archieving  
Auto update 
Backup

Question 8

What is a device driver?

Answer 8

A particular software that tells the OS on how to communicate with the device connected.

Question 9

What is disk defragmentation?

Answer 9

A technique that brings all files together to avoid gaps and speed up the hard disk drive.

Question 10

What is a file explorer?

Answer 10

A software that is used to manipulate files. It can cut,copy,delete,rename,etc.

Question 11

What is archieving?

Answer 11

Moving old files for later use.

Question 12

What is an open source program ?

Answer 12

Programs distributed with the code or a readeable form, so that the user is able to edit it or tailor it.

Question 13

Example of an Open Source Program ?

Answer 13

MySQL or LINUX

Question 14

What can we always question about open source programs?

Answer 14

Their quality, reliability and time delays

Question 15

What is a closed source program?

Answer 15

A program distributed only as an executable form, so only original author can edit it.

Question 16

Differences between Open and Closed Source?

Answer 16

Open:
Avaiable for external parties to modify
Can spread costs as some do it for free
Lacks formal development and testing, unreliable
No deadlines for development and often has quick fixes rather than full solutions
People who dont fully understand the code can change solution making it inefficient
Closed:
Only avaiable to original author
Developemtn fully funded by company
Tested fully and only released when reliable
Technical solutions are fully understood
Has formal deadlines and timescales with solutons being accountable to the company

Question 17

What is a source code?

Answer 17

program written in high level language that the user can understand, but one that cant be run without translation

Question 18

What is an object code ?

Answer 18

The binary code(machine code) produced by the translator from source code

Question 19

What is an executable code?

Answer 19

Complete program in binary that can be run without any further translation.Made by linking pieces of object code.

Question 20

What is machine code?

Answer 20

Language that a computer can understand, using binary digits. It is machine specific.

Question 21

What is assembly language?

Answer 21

A low level language that uses mneumonics to represent opcode of instructions.has a one to one realtionship with machine code.

Question 22

What is immediate code?

Answer 22

Like code translated half way. It cannot be run until it is further translated but it isnt machine specific and can be run cross platform.

Question 23

What do translators do ?

Answer 23

Change high-level language into low level language.

Question 24

What is the process of translation?

Answer 24

Source code goes into object code
Object code is linked with other pieces and library routines to create an executable
Executable is loaded into RAM and run.

Question 25

Characteristics of a COMPILER translator?

Answer 25

Scans whole program program first and only then translates into object code
Can’t be run during conversion
Doesnt need translation again unless error encountered in executable code
Hard to pinpoint errors since they all come up at the end

Question 26

Why does a compiler take up a lot of computer resources?

Answer 26

Since all of it needs to be loaded at once (source code + immediate code), while an interpreter holds one line in RAM at a time

Question 27

Characteristics of interpreter?

Answer 27

Converts firstly into immediate code then into object code
Each line is translated and executed seperately
Stops with errors
Less memory used one line stored at a time in RAM
Easier to correct
Code needs to be translated each time before executing
Can implement breakpoints

Question 28

Characteristics of an assembler?

Answer 28

Converts assembly code into machine code

uses mneumonics to stand for instructions

Question 29

What is a system software?

Answer 29

Software needed to run computer’s hardware and applications.
E.g OS,translator,Libraries,utilities

Question 30

Features of Off The Shelf Software?

Answer 30

• Cheaper than specific applications
• May contain unwanted features or miss essentials
• Ready to install
• Well documented, tested

Question 31

Features of Specific Application?

Answer 31

• More expensive than ots
• Custom features
• Longer time to develop
• May contain errors

Question 32

Whats Freeware?

Answer 32

Software that is given for free however users do not have access to source code.

Question 33

What is a Linker?

Answer 33

A program that combines all object files,including relevant libraries,into one executable .

Question 34

What is a Loader?

Answer 34

A program that loads the executable into the RAM from secondary storage and updates the OS that program can be executed.