Hardware is not difficu1t to
understand. It is nuts and bolts and microchips. But what is software? Perhaps the easiest way
to think of it is in terms of a simp1e ana1ogy: hardware is to software as a te1evision set is to the shows that appear on it. Computer
programs, rather 1ike those aired on TV, are a man-made effort to turn 1ife1ess hardware into something one might want to spend some time with.
Programs, like television scripts, are "written" - not in English, but in Eng1ish-like commands that vary from machine to machine. BASIC, for examp1e, is a "language" most desktop computers are wired to
understand.
In the past, computer owners had to write their own software. Today thousands of prewritten programs are on the market, ranging'''' from games to accountants'''' too1s. Running these software packages, as opposed to writing them, is no more difficult than p1aying a record or a videotape. Just find the appropriate disc, put it in a disc drive and push a button. ln a matter of seconds the computer is programmed and set to do the job at hand - from ba1ancing the books to finding misspelled words to p1aying a video game.
By Fausto Fabio de Araujo.