4.1 - software types + interrupts 🧮

Question 1

what categories can software be grouped into?

Answer 1

system and app software

Question 2

what are the general features of system software?

Answer 2

they deal with hardware management and resource allocation, provide a platform for other software + HCIs, and are required for device ops to be unproblematic

Question 3

what are the general features of app software?

Answer 3

they run various device applications, can be executed as desired, and can come either as a Microsoft 365-type suite or a single app (like a mobile game)

Question 4

what are some examples of system software w/ functions?

Answer 4

compilers (translate HLL code into machine-readable binary), drivers (specifically required for devices to communicate w/ hardware), utility software like disk defragmenters and antimalware suites, and OSes (manage basic device functions)

Question 5

what are some examples of app software?

Answer 5

word processors like Microsoft Word and Apple Pages, DAWs like Logic Pro and Audacity, web browsers like Edge and Safari, and mobile games like Fortnite and Honkai Star Rail

Question 6

what type of utility software runs in the background to check for malware on a device and must be updated thoroughly?

Answer 6

antimalware suites

Question 7

how does disk defragmentation software improve HDD performance?

Answer 7

it rearranges fragments of file data stored on an HDD resulting from changes to files over time into contiguous sectors to reduce the movements the disk’s R/W head needs to retrieve any (thus increasing HDD access speeds)

Question 8

how many versions of a file need to be stored for maximum security?

Answer 8

3 (a working version on internal storage, a locally backed-up version created w/ backup software on nearby external storage, and a remotely backed-up version on cloud storage)

Question 9

what were screensavers originally intended for?

Answer 9

protecting older CRT and plasma displays from getting permanently burnt after a set amount of time w/ the same image being displayed on them (not much of a problem w/ newer OLED displays)

Question 10

what are screensavers often used for these days?

Answer 10

device customization, security systems, and activating some background tasks

Question 11

what basic device functions do OSes deal with?

Answer 11

HCIs/UIs, security systems, multitasking, running apps, user account management, memory management, and IHRs

Question 12

what UI types are there?

Answer 12

GUIs that make use of WIMPs, menu-driven interfaces (like those on dumb TVs), CLIs (text-based command line interfaces), voice-activated UIs (like those that come with HomePods), and realtime UIs

Question 13

what category do touchscreen actions like pinching and rotating fall into?

Answer 13

post-WIMP

Question 14

what are CLIs best suited for?

Answer 14

people who need direct communications with a device like analysts and technicians

Question 15

what are GUIs best suited for?

Answer 15

people who don’t need much knowledge about the workings of a device (that’s most of us!)

Question 16

what does an OS’s memory management do?

Answer 16

it manages the device’s RAM, allows data to be moved between it and secondary storage, keeps track of all memory locations, and carries memory protection actions

Question 17

what does an OS’s security management do?

Answer 17

it carries OS/antimalware definition updates out as soon as they become available, makes use of user access levels involving access rights and whatnot, and allows for data recovery in the event it gets lost + anti-intrusion protection

Question 18

what does an OS’s hardware management do?

Answer 18

it communicates w/ all I/O devices via drivers, manages them by queue control + buffers, prioritizes different hardware/peripheral resources, and performs file data conversions via drivers

Question 19

what does an OS’s file management do?

Answer 19

it creates file name conventions like “houkai.txt” and “kazuha.mp3”, performs specific tasks like file creation and deletion, maintains the structures of device directories, maintains access control mechanisms like password protection, and ensures file memory allocation

Question 20

how does device multitasking work?

Answer 20

the CPU repeatedly gives a single program limited time to use its energy to allow for switching between programs while also creating an impression of multitasking

Question 21

when can a device be said to be “booting up”?

Answer 21

when it loads the OS’s bootstrap into RAM and its motherboard starts up with the loading of the BIOS as a result

Question 22

what is BIOS an example of?

Answer 22

firmware (low-level programs that’re stored on a device’s EEPROM and require that to be flashed so they can be updated)

Question 23

what are interrupts and how can they be created?

Answer 23

signals sent from hardware or software to a microprocessor so it can stop whatever it’s doing to perform an interrupt service routine (ISR), be that through I/O processes, timing signals, etc.

Question 24

what are buffers and how do they work along with interrupts?

Answer 24

they’re temporary data storage areas in device memory that allow for stuff like downloads to be more continuous without frequently freezing - they also work along with interrupts to allow standard device functions to go on while preventing the microprocessor from idly waiting for something to happen