Definitions
The ACM Computing Curricula 2005 [1] defined
"computing" as follows:
and it defines five sub-disciplines of the
computing field: Computer Science, Computer
Engineering , Information Systems , Information
Technology, and Software Engineering . [2]
However, Computing Curricula 2005 [1] also
recognizes that the meaning of "computing"
depends on the context:
The term "computing" has sometimes been
narrowly defined, as in a 1989 ACM report on
Computing as a Discipline : [3]
The term "computing" is also synonymous
with counting and calculating. In earlier times,
it was used in reference to mechanical
computing machines.
History of computing
The history of computing is longer than the
history of computing hardware and modern
computing technology and includes the history
of methods intended for pen and paper or for
chalk and slate, with or without the aid of
tables.
Computing is intimately tied to the
representation of numbers . But long before
abstractions like the number arose, there were
mathematical concepts to serve the purposes
of civilization. These concepts include one-to-
one correspondence (the basis of counting),
comparison to a standard (used for
measurement), and the 3-4-5 right triangle (a
device for assuring a right angle ).
The earliest known tool for use in computation
was the abacus , and it was thought to have
been invented in Babylon circa 2400 BC. Its
original style of usage was by lines drawn in
sand with pebbles. Abaci, of a more modern
design, are still used as calculation tools
today. This was the first known computer and
most advanced system of calculation known
to date - preceding Greek methods by 2,000
years.
Computer
A computer is a machine that manipulates
data according to a set of instructions called
a computer program. The program has an
executable form that the computer can use
directly to execute the instructions. The same
program in its human-readable source code
form, enables a programmer to study and
develop the algorithm . Because the
instructions can be carried out in different
types of computers, a single set of source
instructions converts to machine instructions
according to the central processing unit type.
The execution process carries out the
instructions in a computer program.
Instructions express the computations
performed by the computer. They trigger
sequences of simple actions on the executing
machine. Those actions produce effects
according to the semantics of the
instructions.
Computer software or just "software", is a
collection of computer programs and related
data that provides the instructions for telling a
computer what to do and how to do it.
Software refers to one or more computer
programs and data held in the storage of the
computer for some purposes. In other words,
software is a set of programs, procedures,
algorithms and its documentation concerned
with the operation of a data processing
system. Program software performs the
function of the program it implements, either
by directly providing instructions to the
computer hardware or by serving as input to
another piece of software. The term was
coined to contrast with the old term hardware
(meaning physical devices). In contrast to
hardware, software "cannot be touched". [4]
Software is also sometimes used in a more
narrow sense, meaning application software
only.
Application software, also known as an
"application" or an "app", is a computer
software designed to help the user to perform
specific tasks. Examples include enterprise
software , accounting software , office suites,
graphics software and media players. Many
application programs deal principally with
documents . Apps may be bundled with the
computer and its system software, or may be
published separately. Some users are satisfied
with the bundled apps and need never install
one.
Application software is contrasted with
system software and middleware, which
manage and integrate a computer's
capabilities, but typically do not directly apply
them in the performance of tasks that benefit
the user. The system software serves the
application, which in turn serves the user. [5]
Application software applies the power of a
particular computing platform or system
software to a particular purpose. Some apps
such as Microsoft Office are available in
versions for several different platforms; others
have narrower requirements and are thus
called, for example, a Geography application
for Windows or an Android application for
education or Linux gaming . Sometimes a new
and popular application arises that only runs
on one platform, increasing the desirability of
that platform. This is called a killer
application.
System software, or systems software, is
computer software designed to operate and
control the computer hardware and to provide
a platform for running application software.
System software includes operating systems,
utility software , device drivers , window
systems, and firmware. Frequently
development tools such as compilers, linkers,
and debuggers are classified as system
software.
A computer network, often simply referred to
as a network, is a collection of hardware
components and computers interconnected by
communication channels that allow sharing of
resources and information. [6] Where at least
one process in one device is able to send/
receive data to/from at least one process
residing in a remote device, then the two
devices are said to be in a network.
Networks may be classified according to a
wide variety of characteristics such as the
medium used to transport the data,
communications protocol used, scale,
topology , and organizational scope.
Communications protocols define the rules
and data formats for exchanging information
in a computer network, and provide the basis
for network programming . Well-known
communications protocols are Ethernet , a
hardware and Link Layer standard that is
ubiquitous in local area networks , and the
Internet Protocol Suite, which defines a set of
protocols for internetworking, i.e. for data
communication between multiple networks, as
well as host-to-host data transfer, and
application-specific data transmission formats.
Computer networking is sometimes considered
a sub-discipline of electrical engineering,
telecommunications , computer science ,
information technology or computer
engineering , since it relies upon the
theoretical and practical application of these
disciplines.
The Internet is a global system of
interconnected computer networks that use
the standard Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP)
to serve billions of users that consists of
millions of private, public, academic, business,
and government networks, of local to global
scope, that are linked by a broad array of
electronic, wireless and optical networking
technologies. The Internet carries an
extensive range of information resources and
services, such as the inter-linked hypertext
documents of the World Wide Web (WWW)
and the infrastructure to support email .
A user is an agent, either a human agent
(end-user) or software agent, who uses a
computer or network service. A user often has
a user account and is identified by a
username (also user name), screen name
(also screenname), nickname (also nick), or
handle, which derives from the identical
Citizen's Band radio term.
In hacker-related terminology, users are
divided into "lusers" and "power
users". [ citation needed ]
In projects where the system actor is another
system or a software agent, there may be no
end-user. In that case, the end-users for the
system is indirect end-users.
The term end-user refers to the ultimate
operator of a piece of software, but it is also
a concept in software engineering, referring to
an abstraction of that group of end-users of
computers (i.e. the expected user or target-
user). The term is used to distinguish those
who only operate the software from the
developer of the system, who knows a
programming language and uses it to create
new functions for end-users.
Computer programming in general is the
process of writing, testing, debugging, and
maintaining the source code and
documentation of computer programs . This
source code is written in a programming
language , which is an artificial language often
more restrictive or demanding than natural
languages , but easily translated by the
computer. The purpose of programming is to
invoke the desired behavior (customization)
from the machine. The process of writing
high quality source code requires knowledge
of both the application's domain and the
computer science domain. The highest-quality
software is thus developed by a team of
various domain experts, each person a
specialist in some area of development. But
the term programmer may apply to a range of
program quality, from hacker to open source
contributor to professional. And a single
programmer could do most or all of the
computer programming needed to generate
the proof of concept to launch a new "killer"
application.
A programmer, computer programmer, or
coder is a person who writes computer
software . The term computer programmer can
refer to a specialist in one area of computer
programming or to a generalist who writes
code for many kinds of software. One who
practices or professes a formal approach to
programming may also be known as a
programmer analyst. A programmer's primary
computer language ( C , C++ , Java, Lisp ,
Python , Smalltalk , etc.) is often prefixed to
the above titles, and those who work in a web
environment often prefix their titles with web.
The term programmer can be used to refer to
a software developer, software engineer,
computer scientist , or software analyst.
However, members of these professions
typically[ citation needed ] possess other
software engineering skills, beyond
programming; for this reason, the term
programmer is sometimes considered an
insulting or derogatory oversimplification of
these other professions. [citation needed ]
The computer industry is made up of all of
the businesses involved in developing
computer software , designing computer
hardware and computer networking
infrastructures, the manufacture of computer
components and the provision of information
technology services including system
administration and maintenance.
The software industry includes businesses
engaged in development , maintenance and
publication of software . The industry also
includes software services, such as training ,
documentation , and consulting .
Sub-disciplines of computing
Computer engineering is a discipline that
integrates several fields of electrical
engineering and computer science required to
develop computer hardware and software. [7]
Computer engineers usually have training in
electronic engineering (or electrical
engineering ), software design , and hardware-
software integration instead of only software
engineering or electronic engineering.
Computer engineers are involved in many
hardware and software aspects of computing,
from the design of individual microprocessors,
personal computers, and supercomputers , to
circuit design. This field of engineering not
only focuses on how computer systems
themselves work, but also how they integrate
into the larger picture. [8]
Software engineering (SE) is the application
of a systematic, disciplined, quantifiable
approach to the design, development,
operation, and maintenance of software , and
the study of these approaches; that is, the
application of engineering to software. [9][10]
[11] In layman's terms, it is the act of using
insights to conceive, model and scale a
solution to a problem. The first reference to
the term is the 1968 NATO Software
Engineering Conference and was meant to
provoke thought regarding the perceived
" software crisis" at the time. [12][13][14]
Software development, a much used and more
generic term, does not necessarily subsume
the engineering paradigm. The generally
accepted concepts of Software Engineering
as an engineering discipline have been
specified in the Guide to the Software
Engineering Body of Knowledge (SWEBOK).
The SWEBOK has become an internationally
accepted standard ISO/IEC TR 19759:2005.
[15]
Computer science or computing science
(abbreviated CS or Comp Sci) is the scientific
and practical approach to computation and its
applications. A computer scientist specializes
in the theory of computation and the design
of computational systems. [16]
Its subfields can be divided into practical
techniques for its implementation and
application in computer systems and purely
theoretical areas. Some, such as
computational complexity theory, which
studies fundamental properties of
computational problems, are highly abstract,
while others, such as computer graphics ,
emphasize real-world applications. Still others
focus on the challenges in implementing
computations. For example, programming
language theory studies approaches to
description of computations, while the study
of computer programming itself investigates
various aspects of the use of programming
languages and complex systems, and human-
computer interaction focuses on the
challenges in making computers and
computations useful, usable, and universally
accessible to humans .
"Information systems (IS)" is the study of
complementary networks of hardware and
software (see information technology ) that
people and organizations use to collect, filter,
process, create, and distribute data. [17][18]
[19][20][21] The study bridges business and
computer science using the theoretical
foundations of information and computation to
study various business models and related
algorithmic processes within a computer
science discipline. [22][23][24][25][26][27][28]
[29][30] Computer Information System(s)
(CIS) is a field studying computers and
algorithmic processes, including their
principles, their software and hardware
designs, their applications, and their impact
on society [31][32][33] while IS emphasizes
functionality over design. [34]
Information technology (IT) is the application
of computers and telecommunications
equipment to store, retrieve, transmit and
manipulate data, [35] often in the context of a
business or other enterprise. [36] The term is
commonly used as a synonym for computers
and computer networks, but it also
encompasses other information distribution
technologies such as television and
telephones. Several industries are associated
with information technology, such as
computer hardware , software , electronics ,
semiconductors, internet , telecom equipment ,
e-commerce and computer services. [37][38]
A system administrator, IT systems
administrator, systems administrator, or
sysadmin is a person employed to maintain
and operate a computer system and/or
network. The duties of a system administrator
are wide-ranging, and vary widely from one
organization to another. Sysadmins are
usually charged with installing, supporting and
maintaining servers or other computer
systems, and planning for and responding to
service outages and other problems. Other
duties may include scripting or light
programming , project management for
systems-related projects, supervising or
training computer operators, and being the
consultant for computer problems beyond the
knowledge of technical support staff.
See also
Computing portal
Computer Science portal
Index of history of computing articles
List of computer term etymologies
Scientific computing
Electronic data processing
100 Computing Lessons relating to National
Curriculum in England & Wales - new
curriculum for computing September 2014
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1968/69 NATO Software Engineering
Reports" . Brian Randell's University
Homepage . The School of the Computer
Sciences, Newcastle University. Retrieved
2008-10-11. "The idea for the first NATO
Software Engineering Conference, and in
particular that of adopting the then practically
unknown term "software engineering" as its
(deliberately provocative) title, I believe came
originally from Professor Fritz Bauer ."
15. ^ "ISO/IEC TR 19759:2005" . Retrieved
2012-04-01.
16. ^ "WordNet Search - 3.1" .
Wordnetweb.princeton.edu. Retrieved
2012-05-14.
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Science education for majors of other
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20. ^ Coy, Wolfgang (June 2004). "Between
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but to open the disciplines for collaborative
work. We must learn to build bridges, not to
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21. ^ Jessup, Leonard M.; Joseph S. Valacich
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416
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Information Systems grew out of the need to
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Sarah; Westall, James (March 2004). "Ï„´ÎµÏ‡Î½Î·:
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1. "People from other fields are saying they
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ISSN 1937-4771 . "In 1988, a degree
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(CIS) was launched with the objective of
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33. ^ CSTA Committee, Allen Tucker, et alia,
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ISSN 0001-0782 . "Though the other
components' connections to the software and
their role in the overall design of the system
are critical, the core consideration for a
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35. ^ Daintith, John, ed. (2009), "IT", A
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38. ^ On the later more broad application of
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appropriate to describe the convergence of
technologies with application in the broad field
of data storage, retrieval, processing, and
dissemination. This useful conceptual term
has since been converted to what purports to
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2013..
External links
Free on-line dictionary of computing
open-access repository of publications -
Department of Computing - Imperial College
London
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"In a general way, we can
define computing to mean any
goal-oriented activity
requiring, benefiting from, or
creating computers. Thus,
computing includes designing
and building hardware and
software systems for a wide
range of purposes; processing,
structuring, and managing
various kinds of information;
doing scientific studies using
computers; making computer
systems behave intelligently;
creating and using
communications and
entertainment media; finding
and gathering information
relevant to any particular
purpose, and so on. The list is
virtually endless, and the
possibilities are vast."
After two centuries of arguing about its
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