Hardware refers to the physical parts of a computer that can be seen and touched, while software is simply a collection of programs, data and procedures that perform various tasks on the computer system. Software can be seen but is not tangible. Keep Learning. Computer Software, on a programmable Computer, is the computer program that performs a particular task: a computer can exist in a single form but perform different tasks by using different software. By way of example: A set of knitting needles and a ball of wool is knitting hardware but a knitting pattern is knitting software, if that makes sense. Nov 13, 2018 What are the differences between hardware and software? Updated: by Computer Hope Computer hardware is any physical device used in or with your machine, whereas software is a collection of code installed onto your computer's hard drive.
- Distinguish Between Computer Hardware And Software
- Describe The Difference Between Computer Hardware And Software
- Distinguish Between Computer Hardware And Software Pdf
Distinguish Between Computer Hardware And Software
For example, the computer monitor used to view this text, or the mouse used to navigate a website are considered computer hardware. Software is a program, such as an operating system or a web browser, that is able to instruct a computer's hardware to perform a specific task. Unlike hardware, software has no physical form.
When you're trying to solve a problem with a computer or any piece of technology for that matter, the first thing you should try to do is determine if the problem is with the hardware or with the software.
How you make that determination depends on the problem you're experiencing, but it often involves ruling out one or the other via testing.
Regardless of how you get to that answer, there is often much confusion when it comes to hardware vs. software. It gets even more confusing when firmware is brought into the mix.
Here's more on how each of these 'wares' differs, something you need to know if you plan on doing even the simplest of troubleshooting on any of your myriad of tech devices:
Hardware Is Physical: It's 'Real,' Sometimes Breaks, and Eventually Wears Out
Hardware is 'real stuff' that you can see with your eyes and touch with your fingers.
Unfortunately, being a physical item, you can also sometimes smell it as it dies a fiery death, or hear as it physically decays in its last motions.
Since hardware is part of the 'real' world, it all eventually wears out. Being a physical thing, it's also possible to break it, drown it, overheat it, and otherwise expose it to the elements.
Here are some examples of hardware:
- Laptop
- Desktop computer
- Printer
While a smartphone is a piece of hardware, it also contains software and firmware (more on those below). Hardware devices are also comprised of other hardware devices; a tablet or computer, for example, contain individual components like a motherboard, a processor, memory sticks, and more.
While it's not always this easy, using one of your five senses (except taste... please don't taste any part of your computer system) is often your best way to tell if the hardware is the cause of a problem. Is it smoking? Is it cracked? Is it missing a piece? If so, the hardware is probably the source of the problem.
As sensitive as we've made hardware out to be in what you've just read, one great thing about hardware is that it can usually be easily swapped out. The software you lose may be irreplaceable, but most hardware is 'dumb' — the replacement often being as valuable as the original.
See this list of computer hardware devices for more on some of the common parts of a computer system and what they're used for.
Software Is Virtual: It Can Be Copied, Changed, and Destroyed
Software is everything about your computer that isn't hardware.
Here are some examples of software:
Describe The Difference Between Computer Hardware And Software
- Operating systems like Windows 10 or iOS
Since software is information and not a physical thing, there are few barriers to it existing. For example, one physical hard drive might take two pounds of materials to create, meaning 3,000 hard drives would take 6,000 lbs of materials. One software program, on the other hand, can be duplicated 3,000 or 300,000 times, over as many devices, but be taking up essentially no more physical resources.
Software exists to interact with you, the hardware you're using, and with hardware that exists elsewhere. For example, a photo sharing software program on your PC or phone works with you and your hardware to take a photo and then communicates with servers and other devices on the internet to show that photo on your friend's devices.
Software is also extremely flexible, allowing it to be continuously updated and modified. While you certainly wouldn't expect your wireless router to 'grow' another antenna or your smartphone to get a bigger screen as it charged on your nightstand, expect your software to regularly gain features and grow in size as its updated.
Another great thing about software is its potential to last indefinitely. So long as the software is copied to newer hardware before the current device fails, the information itself could exist as long as the universe does. Equally amazing is that software can be destroyed. If there are no copies, and the software is deleted, it's gone forever. You can't run to the store and pick up a replacement for information that never existed anywhere else.
Troubleshooting a software problem is usually more complex than working through a hardware one. Hardware issues are often times straightforward — something is broken or not and may need to be replaced. The steps required to solve a software problem depend on what information you're given about the issue, what other software is running, what hardware that software is running on, etc.
Most software issues start with an error message or another indication. It's here that you should start your troubleshooting process. Search for the error or symptom online and find a good troubleshooting guide that will work you through the problem.
Firmware Is Virtual: It's Software Specifically Designed for a Piece of Hardware
While not as common a term as 'hardware' or 'software,' 'firmware' is everywhere — on your smartphone, your PC's motherboard, even your TV remote control.
Firmware is just a special kind of software that serves a very narrow purpose for a piece of hardware. While you might install and uninstall software on your computer or smartphone on a regular basis, you might only rarely, if ever, update the firmware on a device and you'd probably only do so if asked to by the manufacturer, probably to fix a problem.
What About Wetware?
Wetware refers to life — you, me, dogs, cats, cows, trees — and is usually only used in reference to the technology related 'wares' we've been talking about, like hardware and software.
This term wetware is still used most often in science fiction but it's becoming an increasingly popular phrase, especially as human-machine interface technology progresses.
You may have heard the words hardware and software before and wondered what the difference was. The hardware is all the tangible computer equipment, such as the keyboard and mouse. The software is what makes the hardware work or lets you get things done, such as writing documents with Microsoft Word or playing a Solitaire game.
Think of computer hardware as being like your television set and the shows that you watch as being like the software.
Hardware you’ll find on your computer
The hardware on your computer consists of
A central processing unit (CPU), which is the very small, very high-tech semiconductor chip that acts as the brains of your computer. The CPU is stored in a computer tower along with the other nuts and bolts of your computer.
A monitor, which displays images on its screen, such as the Microsoft Windows desktop or a document in a software program.
A keyboard, which is similar to a typewriter keyboard. In addition to typing words, you can use a keyboard to give the computer commands.
A mouse, which you also use to give your computer commands. You move the mouse around your desk with your hand, which moves a pointer around on-screen. Using this pointer, you can click items like buttons that cause an action or click the screen and drag the mouse to select text or an object to perform an action on it (such as deleting it or making the text bold).
Peripherals, such as a printer, speakers, webcams, and microphones. These items may or may not come with your computer when you buy it, but your computer does come with slots (called ports) where you plug in various peripherals.
Software that runs stuff on your computer
Software (also known as programs or applications) is installed on your computer hard drive, which resides in the computer casing (either in your laptop or, for a desktop computer, in the computer tower).
Here are a few basics about software:
Distinguish Between Computer Hardware And Software Pdf
You use software to get your work done, run entertainment programs, and browse the Internet. For example, Quicken is a financial management program you can use to balance your checkbook or keep track of your home inventory for insurance purposes.
Some programs come preinstalled on your computer; you can buy and install other programs as you need them. For example, there is always an operating system on a computer, because it runs all the other programs.
Some programs are included with your operating system, such as Solitaire, an electronic version of the old favorite card game, which comes with Windows 10. Skype, a program that enables you to make online phone calls using your computer, is a popular program that you can find on the Internet and install on your computer yourself.
You canuninstall programs you no longer need. Uninstalling unwanted programs helps to free up some space on your computer, which helps it perform better.
Some software programs called utilities exist to keep your computer in shape. An antivirus program is an example of a utility used to spot and erase computer viruses from your system. Your operating system (such as, Windows 10 Home Premium, which also includes some utilities, like the Windows Defender program. Windows Defender protects your computer from unwanted intrusion by malicious programs called spyware.