Docsity
Docsity
Prepare for your exams
Prepare for your exams

Study with the several resources on Docsity

Earn points to download
Earn points to download

Earn points by helping other students or get them with a premium plan

Guidelines and tips
Guidelines and tips
Sell on Docsity
Sell on Docsity
Docsity AI
Docsity AI
Log inSign up

Prepare for your exams

Study with the several resources on Docsity

Find documents

Prepare for your exams with the study notes shared by other students like you on Docsity

Search for your university

Find the specific documents for your university's exams

Docsity AINEW

Summarize your documents, ask them questions, convert them into quizzes and concept maps

Explore questions

Clear up your doubts by reading the answers to questions asked by your fellow students

Earn points to download

Earn points by helping other students or get them with a premium plan

Share documents
download point icon20 Points

For each uploaded document

Answer questions
download point icon5 Points

For each given answer (max 1 per day)

All the ways to get free points
Get points immediately

Choose a premium plan with all the points you need

Study Opportunities

Choose your next study program

Get in touch with the best universities in the world. Search through thousands of universities and official partners

Community

Ask the community

Ask the community for help and clear up your study doubts

Free resources

Our save-the-student-ebooks!

Download our free guides on studying techniques, anxiety management strategies, and thesis advice from Docsity tutors

Computer Software: Types, Installation, and Licensing, Cheat Sheet of Computer Science

University of Ontario Institute of TechnologyComputer Science

This unit outline provides a comprehensive overview of computer software, covering types, installation processes, and licensing. It discusses system software, application software, open source, proprietary, freeware, and shareware. The document also details ethical use of software licenses, system requirements for installation, disk preparation, and scanning. It includes activities to enhance understanding and practical application, making it a valuable resource for students learning about computer software management. Useful for university and high school students.

Typology: Cheat Sheet

2025/2026

Available from 11/08/2025

exam_guru
exam_guru 🇨🇦

6 documents

1 / 24

Toggle sidebar

This page cannot be seen from the preview

Don't miss anything!

bg1
Unit 4:COMPUTER SOFTWARE Unit 4 INSTALLATION
• Unit 4:COMPUTER SOFTWARE Unit 4 INSTALLATION
Key Unit Competency
By the end of the unit, you should be able to:
• Install Operating System and Other Application Software.
• Use disk management tools.
Unit Outline
• Types of computer software. • Installing operating system.
• Software license. • Installing device drivers.
• Software installation fundamentals. • Installing application software.
• Disk management.
Introduction
Having learnt about various computer hardware devices and software, it is important to
have some basic skills on how to install computer software and manage the hardware
and software resources. In this unit, we discuss various types of software classified
according to purpose and acquisition. Later, we demonstrate how to install operating
systems such as Microsoft Windows 10, device drivers and application programs.
4.1 Classification of computer Software
Generally, there are several ways of classifying computer software. In this book,
we shall discuss two ways of classifying software i.e. according to purpose and
acquisition.
Activity 4.1: Classification of Computer Software
1. Research as an individual from the internet and books on:
(a) The classification of computer software.
(b) Purpose of each category of software.
2. Present your findings in your group discussion.
4.1.1 Classification according to purpose
Computer software may be designed to manage hardware resources or to help the user
accomplish specific tasks. In this regard, computer software may be classified as system
software or application software.
4.1.1.1 System software
System software performs a variety of fundamental operations that avails computer resources
to the user. These functions include:
1. Booting the computer and making sure that all the hardware elements are working
properly.
2. Performing operations such as retrieving, loading, executing and storing application
programs.
pf3
pf4
pf5
pf8
pf9
pfa
pfd
pfe
pff
pf12
pf13
pf14
pf15
pf16
pf17
pf18

Partial preview of the text

Download Computer Software: Types, Installation, and Licensing and more Cheat Sheet Computer Science in PDF only on Docsity!

Unit 4:COMPUTER SOFTWARE Unit 4 INSTALLATION

  • Unit 4:COMPUTER SOFTWARE Unit 4 INSTALLATION Key Unit Competency By the end of the unit, you should be able to:
  • Install Operating System and Other Application Software.
  • Use disk management tools. Unit Outline
  • Types of computer software. • Installing operating system.
  • Software license. • Installing device drivers.
  • Software installation fundamentals. • Installing application software.
  • Disk management. Introduction Having learnt about various computer hardware devices and software, it is important to have some basic skills on how to install computer software and manage the hardware and software resources. In this unit, we discuss various types of software classified according to purpose and acquisition. Later, we demonstrate how to install operating systems such as Microsoft Windows 10, device drivers and application programs. 4.1 Classification of computer Software Generally, there are several ways of classifying computer software. In this book, we shall discuss two ways of classifying software i.e. according to purpose and acquisition. Activity 4.1: Classification of Computer Software
  1. Research as an individual from the internet and books on: (a) The classification of computer software. (b) Purpose of each category of software.
  2. Present your findings in your group discussion. 4.1.1 Classification according to purpose Computer software may be designed to manage hardware resources or to help the user accomplish specific tasks. In this regard, computer software may be classified as system software or application software. 4.1.1.1 System software System software performs a variety of fundamental operations that avails computer resources to the user. These functions include:
  3. Booting the computer and making sure that all the hardware elements are working properly.
  4. Performing operations such as retrieving, loading, executing and storing application programs.
  1. Storing and retrieving files.
  2. Performing a variety of system utility functions. System software can further be subdivided into four sub-categories namely:
  3. Operating systems.
  4. Firmware.
  5. Utility software.
  6. Networking software. (a) Operating systems An operating system refers to a type of system that software manages the hardware and control execution of application programs installed on the computer. To avoid conflicts, the operating system coordinates and schedules access to shared resources such as CPU, primary memory, storage devices, input devices, and output devices. Common examples of operating systems used on computers and portable devices include Android, Microsoft Windows, Linux, and Apple Macintosh. Examples of common operating systems include Linux and Macintosh (MacOS), and Microsoft Windows (e.g. 2000, XP, Vista, 7, 8, 10). (b) Firmware Firmware is software embedded in a computer hardware or a computer program in a read- only chip data that is stored on a hardware device’s read-only memory to provides instruction on how the device should operate. Unlike normal software, firmware cannot be changed or deleted by an end-user without the aid of special programs. For example, devices like microwaves, digital cameras, and scanners have firmware used to control their basic operations. (c) Utility software Utility software is a special program that performs commonly used services that make certain aspects of computing go on smoothly. Such services include sorting, copying, file handling, disk management etc. The two basic types of utility software are:
  7. System-level utility: These helps the user to work with the operating system and its functions. For example, a utility software tells the user when he/she enters a wrong command and gives suggestions how the error can be corrected.
  8. Application-level utility: These are utilities that make application programs run more smoothly and efficiently. Such utility programs are commonly purchased separately or may be part of an operating system. (d) Networking software This type of software is mostly used to establish communication between two or more computers by connection them using a communication channel like cables to create a computer network. Networking software enables the exchange of data in a network as well as providing data security. Network software may come as independent software or integrated in an operating system. An example of networking software is novel netware. 4.1.1.2 Application software Application software, also known as application packages (apps) are programs that are

may be classified into open source, proprietary, freeware, and shareware. 4.2.1 Open source software Open source refers to software whose source code (set of instructions) is madeavailable to users. The conditions and restrictions of open source EULA encourages the end-users to acquire the source code, modify and distribute modified versions of the original software. Examples of open source software include Linux operating system, OpenOffice, Mozilla Firefox, Thunderbird e-mail software, Apache web server, and MySQL database management system. 4.2.2 Proprietary software Proprietary software refers to commercial software whose source code is hidden from users. Modifications are only made by the software manufacturer. Proprietary software may be licenced for use at a fee or limited trial period. Examples of proprietary software that a user is required to pay for licence or use include Microsoft Windows, Microsoft Office, Adobe Acrobat Professional, Adobe Master Collection and CorelDraw. 4.2.3 Freeware Freeware is a category of software whose license allows for free of charge acquitition, use, making copies and distribution of copyrighted software for unlimited time. Unlike open source software, Freeware EULA does not allow users to modify or extend the softeware for sale as a commercial product. Examples of Freeware software include Adobe Reader, Google Talk, and AVG Free Antivirus. 4.2.4 Shareware Shareware is licensed commercial software that allow users to freely make and distribute copies of the software. The copyright holder for shareware may impose some conditions and restrictions in EULA that demand that, after testing the software, you pay to continue using it. Therefore, providing software as shareware is a marketing decision that does not change requirements with respect to copyright. Examples of shareware software include Winzip, Adobe Acrobat Professional Edition, Internet Download Manager (IDM) and CloneDVD. 4.2.5 Ethical Use of Software License The four categories of software licences discussed above impose legal, ethical and privacy conditions the user must agree with prior to acquisition and use. Unfortunately, some users engage in unethical behaviour such as piracy that violates software license agreement. The following are facts about piracy on copyright protected software:

  • Piracy is illegal: Copyright law and intellectual property rights protects software authors and publishers, just as patent law protects inventors.
  • Piracy is shameful act: Piracy can harm the image of an individual, community or country. If unauthorised copying proliferates in a society, the community losses integrity and incur legal liability.
  • Piracy is intellectual property theft: Unauthorised copying of software is a form of theft that

can deprive software developers of a fair return from products of their intellectual work. Caution: It is important that you carefully read the license agreement when you acquire software from the copyright owner. This will help you understand the conditions and restrictions of the license on what you can and cannot do with the software. Activity 4.3: Software License

  1. Research and then discuss with your classmate various categories of software installed in the computers in computer lab or school offices.
  2. Read terms and conditions in the licence agreement of Windows 10, Ubuntu Linux, and Office 2013. 4.3 Software Installation Fundamentals The number of computer programs installed on a computer is only limited to hardware specifications such as processor type, memory and storage capacity. Once a computer meets recommended specifications, software installations is mostly an automated process handled by a utility known as installer. This section demonstrate how to install Windows 10, drivers and Office 2013 on a standard PC. 4.3.1 System requirements Before installing computer software whether an operating system, device drivers or application software, there are minimum or recommended system specifications that should be considered in terms of:
  • Memory (RAM) capacity.
  • Free hard disk space.
  • Processor type and speed.
  • Graphics display. For example, the following are the minimum and recommended system requirements for installation of Microsoft Windows 10 on standard desktop and laptop PCs:
  • Processor type and speed: 1 Gigahertz (GHz) of CPU Speed or faster with support for PAE, NX, and SSE
  • Memory capacity: 1 Gigabyte (GB) of RAM on a 32-bit or 2 GB on 64-bit machine
  • Storage space: 16 GB free-disk space on 32-bit or 20 GB on 64-bit machine
  • Graphics card: Microsoft DirectX 9 graphics controller with WDDM driver Activity 4.4: Software Installation Requirements In groups, research on the internet minimum and recommended specification for installing the following:
  • Latest version of Microsoft Office
  • Latest release of Kaspersky Antivirus
  • Latest Ubuntu Linux

4.5 Disk Management Most operating systems come with Disk Management tools used for maintenance of storage media mounted on your computer. Some of the routine tasks performed by Disk Management include formatting, creating and deleting partitions, drive cleanup, disk scanning, system files checking, compression, de fragmentation of drive, backup and restoration. In this section, we go beyond drive formatting and partitioning discussed earlier to other disk management routines in Windows 10. 4.5.1 Disk Cleanup Disk cleanup is a maintenance utility used to free up space on a hard disk by deleting unnecessary files and Windows components that are no longer in use. This include temporary internet files, downloaded program files and files in the recycle bin. To cleanup disk, proceed as follows:

  1. Right click This PC on the desktop then click Manage to display Computer Management window.
  2. Click Disk Management on the left pane of Computer Management window to display the list of drives.
  3. Right click the drive you wish to cleanup, then click Properties. In the General tab of properties dialog box, click Disk Cleanup button.
  4. In the cleanup window that appears, select the files to be deleted then click OK to cleanup the storage media. Activity 4.6: Disk Cleanup
  5. Demonstrate how you would start disk cleanup utility in Windows 10, Linux or Android operating systems.
  6. In Windows 10, identify types of files and components that can be removed using cleanup

tool in order to save on hard disk space.

  1. Demonstrate and outline procedure for removing temporary files and Windows components on a hard disk. 4.5.2 Scanning disks To check storage media for errors, most operating systems comes with check disk utility. In Windows, ScanDisk utility allows the user to scan and repair files and physical errors on storage media. When errors are encountered, ScanDisk marks affected sectors to prevent the operating system from storing information on them. To check a disk for errors, proceed as follows:
  2. Click File Explorer on the Start menu to display the explorer window.
  3. Click This PC on the left pane of File Explorer to display the drives.
  4. Right click on the drive you wish to scan, and then click Properties.
  5. In the Properties window that appear, click on the Tools tab.
  6. Under Error Checking, click Check button shown in Fig.4.2.
  7. On the pop-up window that appears, click Scan drive. 4.5.3 System File Checker System File Checker (SFC) is a utility available in Windows 10 used to check for corrupted operating system files. The SFC utility scans all system files and repairs corrupted ones where possible. To run the system file checker in command prompt, proceed as follows:
  8. Right-click the Start button to display the context menu as shown in Fig. 4.3.

4.5.5 Disk Compression Disk compression is a management routine used to store files in compressed versions to save on disk space. When an Operating System (OS) attempts to save a file on a compressed disk, the compression utility intercepts the file and compresses it. Likewise when an OS attempts to open the file, the utility decompresses it first. To compress a storage media, proceed as follows:

  1. On the Start menu, click on File Explorer.
  2. In the File Explorer window, click on This PC to display installed drives.
  3. Right click on the drive to be compressed, then click Properties.
  4. Click the General tab, then select Compress this drive to save disk space check box as shown in Fig. 4.6.
  5. Click Apply to display the popup window shown in Fig. 4.6.
  6. Select compression option, then click OK to to close the pop-up window.
  7. Finally, click OK to compress the drive.

4.5.6 Disk Backup It is good practice to constantly keep copies (backup) of your important files on another drive to avoid loss of originals. Windows 10 has backup utility located under Settings menu used for backing up and restoring files. To use backup utility, proceed as follows:

  1. On the Start menu, click Settings to display Setting window.
  2. In the Settings window, click Update & security tab.
  3. In the Update & Security list that appear, click Backup.
  4. Click Add a drive under Automatically backup my files as shown in Fig. 4.7.
  5. Click more options to specify backup options. Backup will be scheduled to automatically run as per your specifications.

4.6 Installing Operating System Installation of an Operating System is a fundamental process that starts with identifying minimum or recommended system specifications discussed earlier. In this section, we demonstrate how to download and install Microsoft Windows 10 Operating System. To start with, we demonstrate how to download windows 10 and create a bootable DVD or flash drive. 4.6.1 Creating Windows 10 Installation Media To upgrade from previous versions of Windows, Microsoft has adopted a hybrid web and media-based installation of Windows 10. If you opt for installation media, you have to download Media Creation Tool from Microsoft’s website. Media Creation Tool provides users with better experience in Windows 10 download compared to common download procedure. To create an installation media, proceed as follows:

  1. Connect you computer to the Internet and use your favourite browser to visit Microsoft website. Navigate to Software Downloads, and search for Media Creation Tool.
  2. Once the download page is displayed, select either 32-bit or 64-bit button depending on the architecture of your machine. To know the architecture of your PC, read the manual that came with the machine or use diagnostic utilities.
  3. Download the tool onto your desktop or any location. Once the download is complete, select Create installation media for another PC on the screen shown in Fig. 4.9.
  1. The screen shown in Fig.4.10 lets you specify the language, architecture and Windows 10 version to be installed.
  2. In the screen that appears, choose USB flash drive to create bootable media on a memory stick. You’ll be required to insert a flash drive of with more that 3GB free space. If you prefer using a DVD, choose ISO file so that you burn the image onto DVD later.
  3. Click Next to start the download process. Once the download is complete, you may proceed to Windows 10 installation phase. In the next section, we take you through the general steps of installing Windows 10 on a typical desktop PC.
  1. On the Install Now window, click Install Now button to display the screen of Fig. 4.13. Under Which type of installation do you want, choose Upgrade if you have a version of Windows 7 or 8 installed on your computer. If you are installing Windows 10 for the first time, choose Custom, then click Next.
  1. In the next screen that appears shown in Fig. 4.14, select an existing partition or create a new one where Windows 10 is to be installed. Note that partitioning a drive is a sensitive task to be handled with care to avoid loss of programs or data.
  1. Next, sign in or create a Microsoft account when prompted as shown in Fig. 4.17. Microsoft account is important because it allows the user to access Windows 10 resources e.g. online emails, cloud, and Apps.
  2. The final steps is to let the installer configure Apps before the desktop shown on Fig. 4.18 is displayed. You are now ready to use Windows 10.

- Important: Once you install and activate Windows 10 on a device for the first time, the installer registers your hardware with Microsoft’s servers. You don’t have to enter the product key the next time you re-install Windows 10 on the same device. Activity 4.7: Software Installation

  1. In groups, demonstrate and outline steps on how to install various versions of Microsoft Windows and open source operating systems such as Ubuntu Linux.
  2. Configure the following Windows 10 desktop properties. In each case, outline the steps followed to carry out the task: (i) Change the background theme on the desktop. (ii) Set desktop icons to display This PC, Network and Recycle bin icons. (iii) Select icons that appear on the taskbar. Assessment Exercise 4.
  3. In reference to EULA, differentiate between open source software and proprietary software.
  4. Demonstrate step-by-step how to you would partition hard disk.
  5. Outline system requirements that need to be considered to install Windows 10 operating system.
  6. Explain why it is good practice to install genuine copy of an operating system. 4.7 Installing Device Drivers A device driver is a utility program that acts as an interface between a hardware device and the operating system. For a hardware device such as printer, keyboard or scanner to function properly, its drivers must be installed. Once you connect a new device such as a printer to a computer, the operating systems automatically detects the device and installs appropriate drivers. If no drivers found from Windows drivers list, you have to download or use drivers that came with the device. 4.7.1 Installing drivers automatically Automatic installation of drivers also known as plug-and-play means that once a new device is detected by the computer, Windows searches and automatically installs for appropriate drivers. The following are basic steps followed in the installation of plug-and-play devices:
  7. Connect the device to the computer.
  8. Windows 10 detects the new device and signals plug-and-play service to automatically install the device drivers.
  9. If appropriate drivers are found, the device is automatically installed without user intervention.
  10. The computer may restart to configure the new device. 4.7.2 Installing drivers manually Often computer and hardware manufacturers place the drivers on a storage media or provide them online for download. To manually install drivers, proceed as follows:
  11. Right click This PC on the disktop and select Manage. The Computer Management window shown in Fig. 4.19 is displayed.