Computer software is composed of words called languages. These languages are foreign to us, but are not like English, Spanish or Japanese, but have there own structure.
Each programming language has its own structure the same as foreign languages do. For example, we make most words plural by adding 's' or 'es'. Sometimes we drop a letter and add 'ies' and sometimes words are always plural as with feet, children and deer.
The purpose of software is to give the computer a list of instructions or commands to perform a task. Printing a document is a task. Adding a group of numbers is a task. A program is a combination of many tasks like a to-do list.
Let's say your to-do list says:Laundry
- Groceries
- Pick up dry cleaning
- Make dinner
A software program starts reading at the top of the list. It reads the instruction, branches out to perform the task, and then returns to the point where it branched out from. Next, the program drops down to the next line and reads the instruction, branches out to perform that task. When finished, it returns to the branching point, reads the next instruction and so on.
When the program branches out to perform a task, it does not always go to the same place. If the task is to add a group of numbers, the place it branches to would be different from a task to print a document. In order to add a group of numbers, the software needs a storage place (like a calculator) to add the numbers. To print a document, it sends a message directly to the printer to print the data.
There are hundreds of programming languages, and many have specific functions. HTML is the language of the internet. Java can be uses alone or with something else. Some languages are; C, C++, Java, Basic, Visual Basic, COBOL, XML Purl and many more.
After a program has been written, it needs to be compiled. A compiler is a software program that reads the coded words and translates the words into "machine language" a language that computer processors understand. A program only needs to be compiled once.
Computer software has made a major impact in our every day lives, even though we cannot actually see "software", we only see its results. There is very little we do without it, not even a phone call!
