iGCSE ICT HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE

1.1 hardware and software
• define hardware as consisting of physical components of a computer system
• identify internal hardware devices (e.g. processor, motherboards, random access memory
(RAM), read-only memory (ROM), video cards, sound cards and internal hard disk drives)
• identify external hardware devices and peripherals (such as monitors, keyboards, mice,
keyboards, printers as input and output devices and external storage devices in general)
• define software as programs for controlling the operation of a computer or processing of
electronic data
• identify the two types of software – applications software and system software
• define applications software (e.g. word processing, spreadsheet, database management
systems, control software, measuring software, applets and apps, photo-editing software, videoediting
software, graphics manipulation software)
• define system software (e.g. compilers, linkers, device drivers, operating systems and utilities)