Utility & Application Software

Question 1

What is utility software

Answer 1

Software that is designed to manage, maintain & control
Utility is like a toolbox to help us optimise & maintain our computer systems

Question 2

What are Disk Utilities

Answer 2

Designed to maintain the performance of a computers disk drive

Question 3

What are the 3 disk utilities

Answer 3

File compressors
Backup
Disk defragmenter

Question 4

What is the role of file compressors

Answer 4

Compresses files to reduce their size & decompresses them for later access

Question 5

What is the role of backup utilities

Answer 5

Backing up files can be slow as a manual process
Backup utilities allow you to automate the backup process

Question 6

What is the role of disk defragmenter

Answer 6

Overtime a disks drive becomes fragmented, which slows down file access
This utility reorganises the data for quicker access (but only required on a HDD when using Windows file systems)

Question 7

What is the use of utility software

Answer 7

• Cleaning up files
• Software updates
• Backing up data
• Security checks

Question 8

What is another use of utility software

Answer 8

To gather data to clean up the system & speed up the performance by searching for junk data and removing it to free up storage space

Question 9

Factors that affect the performance of utility software

Answer 9

• Amount of memory available on the digital device for utility software
• bandwidth (the amount of data that can be sent from one point to another in a certain period of time)
• Memory failures

Question 10

What are network utilities

Answer 10

Designed to maintain good network traffic & keep networks secure

Question 11

What are the 2 network utilities & their functions

Answer 11

Firewalls - Prevent unauthorised access by monitoring & blocking suspicious traffic

Antivirus - Prevents computers from receiving viruses & detects & removes viruses that have already infected a system

Question 12

What other 2 utilities are there & what is their function

Answer 12

Registry cleaners - Designed for Windows systems to remove old, redundant registry entries. This can help improve system performance

System profilers - Display a detailed breakdown of the system, including hardware & software. This can help with deciding where a system needs upgrading & diagnosing problems with the system

Question 13

What is application software & what is the use of it

Answer 13

Enables users to interact with their digital devices to perform many different functions
They are constructed using computing programming code

Question 14

What are the 3 different types of application software

Answer 14

• Productivity software
• Graphics software
• Communications Software

Question 15

What is the use of Productivity software

Answer 15

These are applications like word processors, desktop publishers & spreadsheets that are used in office environments to support business tasks & improve efficiency

Question 16

What is the use of Graphics software

Answer 16

These applications are used to edit photos or create original artwork

Question 17

What is the use of Communications software

Answer 17

These applications make communicating quicker & easier. They include instant messaging, email, & VOIP software

Question 18

What are the factors affecting the choice, use & performance of application software

Answer 18

Functionality - how well the software works without disrupting workflow
Compatibility - whether the software the matches existing systems
User friendliness - How easy the software is to use
Price - whether the software is affordable for most people/within budgets
Usability - how well the software can be understood, learned & used

Question 19

What is open source software

Answer 19

The source code is available to read & modify
It is collaborative effort where programmers contribute to the programming of the source code
It is also free

Question 20

What are the pros & cons of open software

Answer 20

Pros
- Most are free to use
- Support & fixes are provided by the community, often via forums
- Usually compatible with other proprietary utility software

Cons
- Support with fast response may not be available when needed, as it relies on goodwill
- Can be copied & modified by individuals with a malicious intent
- There may be indirect costs involved in paying for support & training

Question 21

What is proprietary software

Answer 21

The source code is privately owned by the software company
*E.g. Microsoft, Apple, Sage
Proprietary operating systems, software specifications & code are kept a secret within a company to avoid copies being made & to stop modifications being made by anyone other than the company’s designated programmers
They need to be purchased

Question 22

What are the pros & cons of proprietary software

Answer 22

Pros
- Support (e.g. for setup & troubleshooting) is provided by the software creators
- It may have more features than open source software

Cons
- The software company may be slow to provide updates & bug fixes
- Software is usually very generic, with limited customisation due to copyright or complexity issues
- It can be costly

Question 23

When choosing software what should users consider

Answer 23

Ease of use - familitary is paramount
Reliability - ensuring software works as intended
Capability - that the software can do the job

Question 24

When looking at performance what should users consider

Answer 24

• The maturity of the software, as stable versions of software can be more efficient given there has been time for bugs to be resolved
• Compatible with other devices interfaces or systems (interoperability)
• Support of dedicated hardware for complex tasks

Question 25

What are all the image file types

Answer 25

JPG
PNG
GIF
BMP

Question 26

What are JPGs features*

Answer 26

Good compression lossy so files cannot be decompressed

Question 27

What are PNGs features

Answer 27

Uses lossless compression to save high quality images in a low file size also allow transparency

Question 28

What are GIFs features

Answer 28

Small file size but low quality die to the limited number of colours. Can display basic transparency & animation

Question 29

What are BMPs features

Answer 29

An uncompressed file format, so image quality is extremely high but file size is very large

Question 30

What are all the video file types

Answer 30

MP4
MOV
AVI
MKV

Question 31

What are MP4s features

Answer 31

Supports high quality video while still compressing file size.
Works on a wide variety of devices and software

Question 32

What are MOVs features

Answer 32

Designed for use with Apple QuickTime software, but it can be played using other software. Can it provide high quality but can also be compressed. Good for streaming

Question 33

What are AVIs features

Answer 33

Uncompressed so is very high quality but very large file size not good for streaming.

Question 34

What are MKVs features

Answer 34

Supports high quality video playback but is not well supported by some devices, e.g. iPads cant play .mkv files

Question 35

What are the 3 implications of file types

Answer 35

Compatibility
Quality
File size

Question 36

Why is compatibility important when choosing file types & why might it be an issue?

Answer 36

Some file types only work with certain software

Issue
May need to purchase new software
Sharing files with others who do not have the required software

Question 37

Why is quality important when choosing file types & why might it be an issue?

Answer 37

Different image, video & audio file types provide different levels of quality

Issue
Choice will depend on intended use of the files
e.g. is high quality the importance or small file size?

Question 38

Why is file size important when choosing file types & why might it be an issue?

Answer 38

The file type affects the file size - some types are very efficient in the way they store data whereas others use lots of storage space

Issue
File size may have implications for storing, transmitting or displaying files