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Cambridge (CIE) IGCSE Your notes

Computer Science
Types of Software & Interrupts
Contents
System Software & Application Software
The Purpose & Functionality of Operating Systems
Hardware, Firmware & the Operating System
Interrupts

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System Software & Application Software

Your notes
System Software & Application Software
Software can be broken down in to two categories, system and application software

What is system software?

System software is software essential for the operation of the computer system
It gives users a platform to run applications and carry out tasks
Examples of system software include:
The operating system
Utility software

Utility software
Utility software is software designed to help maintain, enhance and troubleshoot/repair a computer
system
Designed to perform a limited number of tasks

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Interacts with the computers hardware, for example, secondary storage devices
Some utility software comes installed with the operating system Your notes
Examples of utility software and their function are:
Defragmentation (maintain)
Compression (enhance)
Encryption (enhance)
Task manager (troubleshoot/repair)
What is application software?
Application software (abbreviated 'apps') is software chosen by a user to help them carry out a
specific task
Installed on top of system software and is user chosen to best suit induvial requirements
Common categories of application software include:
Productivity - get things done efficiently (word processors, spreadsheets & presentation)
Communication - stay connected (email, browser, messaging)
Entertainment - Watch movies, play games or listen to music

Examiner Tips and Tricks

Do not use brand names when talking about software, it is ok to talk about software categories or
software types but brand names do not get awarded marks
e.g. word processors instead in Microsoft Word

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The Purpose & Functionality of Operating Systems

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What is an operating system?
An operating system (OS) is software that manages computer hardware and provides a platform for
running applications
It provides an interface between the user and the hardware in a computer system
It hides the complexities of the hardware from the user, for example:
A user does not need to know 'where' on secondary storage data is kept, just that it is saved for
when they want it again
An operating systems main functions can be divided in to eight key areas

File Management
What is file management?
File management is a process carried out by the operating system creating, organising, manipulating
and accessing files and folders on a computer system
The OS manages where data is stored in both primary and secondary storage
File management gives the user the ability to:
Create files/folders
Name files/folders
Rename files/folders
Copy files/folders
Move files/folders
Delete files/folders
The OS allows users to control who can access, modify and delete files/folders (permissions)
The OS provides a search facility to find specific files based on various criteria

Handling Interrupts
What is interrupt handling?
Interrupt events require the immediate attention of the central processing unit

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In order to maintain the smooth running of the system, interrupts need to be handled and processed in
a timely manner
Your notes
For example, if a user clicks cancel on a file conversion process, a signal is sent from the mouse,
interrupts the processor, and the operating system will trigger the cancellation routine
User Interface
What is a user interface?
A user interface is how the user interacts with the operating system
Examples of user interfaces include:
Command Line Interface (CLI)
Graphical User Interface (GUI)
Menu
Natural language (NLI)

What is a command line interface?

A Command Line Interface (CLI) requires users to interact with the operating system using text based
commands
CLIs are more commonly used by advanced users
Examples of CLIs are MSDOS (Microsoft Disk Operating System) and Raspbian (for Raspberry Pi)

What is a graphical user interface?

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A Graphical User Interface (GUI) requires users to interact with the operating system using visual
elements such as windows, icons, menus & pointers (WIMP)
Your notes
GUIs are optimised for mouse and touch gesture input
Examples of GUIs are Windows, Android and MAC OS

What is a menu interface?

A menu interface is successive menus presented to a user with a single option at each stage
Often performed with buttons or a keypad
Examples include
Chip and pin machines
Vending machines
Entertainment streaming services

What is a natural language interface?

A natural language interface (NLI) uses the spoken word to respond to spoken or textual inputs from a
user
Examples include
Virtual assistants - Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, Siri
Search engines
Smart home devices

Advantages and disadvantages of user interfaces

Interface Advantages Disadvantages

Command line Uses less system resources Requires users to remember

(CLI) commands
Useful for automation of tasks
Typing errors are common
Commands are often faster to type than
navigating menus Less intuitive than GUI

Graphical (GUI) Intuitive and user-friendly Uses more system resources

Requires no previous knowledge to use Can be slower to find and
execute commands

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Information is visual, making it easier to Can be frustrating when doing

understand repetitive tasks
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Menu Simplicity Limited flexibility
Efficiency Accessibility issues

Natural language Can be used by people with disabilities Not always reliable
(NLI)
Intuitive Privacy concerns

Peripheral Management & Device Drivers

What is peripheral management?
Peripheral management is a process carried out by the operating system managing the way
peripherals (hardware) interact with software
The OS allocates system resources to peripherals to ensure efficient operation
Peripheral management makes plug-and-play (PnP) functionality possible, automatically detecting
and configuring new peripherals without the need for manually installing device drivers or power
cycling the system

What is a device driver?

A device driver is a piece of software used to control a piece of hardware
Peripherals require device drivers in order to be used by the operating system
The OS has generic device drivers built in which makes basic compatibility possible and enables
plug-and-play (PnP)
In order for hardware to be used to its maximum capacity, often a separate device driver must be
downloaded from the manufacturer
Device drivers are OS specific and are regularly updated

Memory Management & Multitasking

What is memory management?
Memory management is a process carried out by the operating system allocating main memory (RAM)
between different programs that are open at the same time

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The OS is responsible for copying programs and data from secondary to primary storage as it is
needed
Your notes
Programs and data require different amounts of RAM to operate efficiently and the OS manages this
process
RAM is allocated based on priority and fairness, for example, system applications (essential) may have
a higher priority than user applications
The OS dynamically manages the memory, adjusting allocation as needed to maintain optimal system
performance
Memory management makes multitasking possible
What is multitasking?
Multitasking is a process made possible by the OS simultaneously managing system resources
(memory, CPU etc) to give a user the perception of being able to use multiple programs at the same
time
The OS splits tasks and allocates system resources based on a priority
The CPU can only execute one instruction at a time, it can can execute billions of them in one second.
This makes it appear that multiple programs are running at the same time

Providing a Platform for Running Applications

Operating systems provide a platform on which application software can run, this is mainly by
allowing software access to system resources
For example, if a computer game has intensive graphics and online play, the operating system will grant
it access to the GPU and the network card

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Your notes

Organisation of application layer, operating system components, and input/output

Providing System Security

What is system security?
Operating systems provide various security features such as password-protected system accounts, a
firewall, virus scanning and file encryption
Password-protected system accounts are a very common feature in operating systems

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System accounts can also be restricted from performing certain actions, e.g. editing network settings,
installing unapproved software, changing the account settings of other users
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User Management
What is user management?
User management is a process carried out by the operating system enabling different users to log onto
a computer
The OS is able to maintain settings for individual users, such as desktop backgrounds, icons and colour
schemes
A system administrator is able to allocate different access rights for different users on a network

Worked Example
Ella uses her computer to create artwork for a magazine
Ella makes use of system software.
One type of system software is the operating system.
Identify and describe two functions of an operating system [6]
How to answer this question
Break down the 6 marks, 1 mark each for identifying a function of the operating system. For each
function you need to make 2 points about how they work
Answer
Memory management
Allocates memory to programs currently in use
Gets data from RAM
Stores data in RAM
File management
Creating/editing/renaming files
Creating/editing/renaming folders
Movement of files/folders

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Hardware, Firmware & the Operating System

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Hardware, Firmware & the Operating System
How does application software, the operating system and
hardware communicate?
Application software talks to the operating system, this allows it to interact with the hardware
The hardware processes and sends the information to the operating system which talks directly to the
applications software
This process is repeated while application software is in use

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Your notes

What is firmware?
Firmware is embedded directly in to the hardware of a device, to make them function
When a computer is turned on, it has to explore the ROM for its initial boot-up instructions, these are
contained in a Bootstrap loader
The initial process is handled by the basic input/output system (BIOS) which is known as firmware
Once start-up is complete, instructions are sent to RAM to be processed by the operating system

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This layer ensures that hardware devices e.g. keyboard and mouse are available and can be
communicated directly by the operating system
Your notes
Firmware translates between the hardware and the software

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Interrupts
Your notes
Interrupts
What is an interrupt?
An interrupt is a signal for the CPU to stop what it is currently doing and do something else as a higher
priority
The CPU is in a continuous loop of carrying out the fetch-decode-execute cycle, however there are
occasions when this needs to be interrupted

How is an interrupt generated?

An interrupt can be generated by hardware and software:
Hardware - this is caused by a hardware device such as a hardware failure
Software - this occurs when an application stops or requests services from the OS
Interrupts are added to an area called the interrupt service routine
The interrupt service routine holds instructions that will need to be fetched, decoded and executed to
complete the commands of the interrupt
The contents of the registers within the CPU cannot be lost by an interrupt, so contents are copied to a
reserved area in RAM called a stack
Contents are added to the top of the stack, which will save them for later retrieval when the interrupt is
complete
The interrupt will be executed instead of the original instructions

What are examples of hardware interrupts?

Hardware
power button may have been pressed
moving the mouse
clicking an icon to open a new program
keyboard presses e.g. ctrl, alt, delete

What are examples of software interrupts?

Software

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a program is not responding

division by zero Your notes
two processes trying to access the same memory location

Examiner Tips and Tricks

The main focus of interrupts is the importance of the interrupt service routine and the role it plays in
moving current instructions to the stack so that they can be interrupted BUT continue again
afterwards

Worked Example
Describe the purpose of an interrupt in a computer system
[4]
Answer
Four from:
Used to attend to certain tasks/issues
Used to make sure that vital tasks are dealt with immediately
The interrupt/signal tells the CPU/processor (that its attention is required)
A signal that can be sent from a device (attached to the computer)
A signal that can be sent from software (installed on the computer)
The interrupt will cause the OS/current process to pause
The OS/CPU/ISR will service/handle the interrupt
They have different levels of priority
After the interrupt is serviced, the (previous) process is continued
It enables multi-tasking to be carried out on a computer
A valid example of an interrupt e.g. ‘out of paper’ message for a printer

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