This chapter presents an overview of the major types of software you depend on as you work with computers and access computer networks. It discusses their characteristics and purposes and gives examples of their uses. Before we begin, let’s look at an example of the changing world of software in business.

System software consists of programs that manage and support a computer system and its information processing activities. For example, operating systems and network management programs serve as a vital software interface between computer networks and hardware and the application programs of end users.