What is Software: Definition and 997 Discussions

Software is a collection of instructions and data that tell a computer how to work. This is in contrast to physical hardware, from which the system is built and actually performs the work. In computer science and software engineering, computer software is all information processed by computer systems, including programs and data. Computer software includes computer programs, libraries and related non-executable data, such as online documentation or digital media. Computer hardware and software require each other and neither can be realistically used on its own.
At the lowest programming level, executable code consists of machine language instructions supported by an individual processor—typically a central processing unit (CPU) or a graphics processing unit (GPU). A machine language consists of groups of binary values signifying processor instructions that change the state of the computer from its preceding state. For example, an instruction may change the value stored in a particular storage location in the computer—an effect that is not directly observable to the user. An instruction may also invoke one of many input or output operations, for example displaying some text on a computer screen; causing state changes which should be visible to the user. The processor executes the instructions in the order they are provided, unless it is instructed to "jump" to a different instruction, or is interrupted by the operating system. As of 2015, most personal computers, smartphone devices and servers have processors with multiple execution units or multiple processors performing computation together, and computing has become a much more concurrent activity than in the past.
The majority of software is written in high-level programming languages. They are easier and more efficient for programmers because they are closer to natural languages than machine languages. High-level languages are translated into machine language using a compiler or an interpreter or a combination of the two. Software may also be written in a low-level assembly language, which has strong correspondence to the computer's machine language instructions and is translated into machine language using an assembler.

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  1. pairofstrings

    Language and Compiler built for Mathematics

    Hello, I want to know: 1. Compiler name built especially for doing full-fledged mathematics. 2. Langauge name built especially for doing full-fledged mathematics. 3. Integrated software development environment name built especially for doing full-fledged mathematics. 4. Language, compiler and...
  2. Svein

    Insights Reflections on Product Quality - Comments

    svein submitted a new PF Insights post Reflections on Product Quality Continue reading the Original PF Insights Post.
  3. A

    A Band structure silicene using siesta software

    I wants to plot band structure silicene with siesta software so that the K range is 0 to 1 but can not draw a graph in this rang. Can help me to fix the problem.
  4. qnach

    Optics/lens/LCD simulation software

    I was told in the industry people use ZeMax ASAP Code V ... to do design. However, I cannot find a trial version of them to practice. Is there anyother sofftware which are free?
  5. D H

    Insights Your Software is Never Perfect - Comments

    d-h submitted a new PF Insights post Your Software is Never Perfect Continue reading the Original PF Insights Post.
  6. kelvin490

    Different format of .dat files in different software

    I have generated some .dat files using Fortran on a cluster. I need to use WinSCP(https://winscp.net/eng/download.php) to access files in the cluster so sometimes I just use the WinSCP to open the .dat files generated. The data can be shown regularly like this one...
  7. T

    Software to animate a flow chart?

    I need to create some sort of animation to explain how water flows in a flow diagram under different conditions, and wonder what kind of software would be suitable for creating it? I'm keeping it very simple, like colored lines that are in some way animated to indicate how things flow and work...
  8. JaneJ

    Useful Tutorials for Organic Chemistry Software

    This is a post sharing some easy to follow tutorials for students majoring in organic chemistry. Hope people in related needs can benefit from this resource.1, ChemDraw Magic - an advanced video lasts less than 15 minutes on drawing molecules faster. As an introduction, the presenter drew Viagra...
  9. kq6up

    Avagadro Software and The Inversion Potential of Ammonia

    Would it be possible to get a 1 degree of freedom (the saddle line of the potential energy surface) potential energy curve from the inversion of Ammonia from the software Avagadro (I have just started playing with this software yesterday)? I am doing a physics paper for a graduate QM class, and...
  10. kolleamm

    Stargazing Software to adjust exposure? webcam, astrophotography

    I'd like to use a webcam and take images of the planets directly from my computer but I can't seem to find a software though that let's me adjust the exposure for the live video while it's streaming. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance
  11. Jameson

    MHB Adding Vectors with Head-to-Tail Addition: What Software to Use?

    I'm currently writing a test where my students will need to add two vectors using head-to-tail addition. I don't know how to draw vectors in LaTeX and the guides I've found have been quite tedious. I also considered doing it in Microsoft Paint, but it looks terrible. Any ideas on what software...
  12. Q

    I am 14 years old and made a chemistry software

    Hello everyone. I am a 14 year old student and am truly fascinated by chemistry. As I tried various software, they all had a very complicated UI (User Interface) and confused me a lot as a younger student. After searching a lot, I decided to make my own chemistry software. This is the final...
  13. H

    Free online antenna design software?

    I use this for my backyard hobby (amateur) design work; don't know how valid it is but has always seemed to be accurate. does anyone know if similar downloads for designing other antenna types beside yagi's. just want to have some fun, no specific application.
  14. l0st

    Is There Free Software Capable of Simulating Fusion in Large Atomic Systems?

    In a nutshell: is there any free software, which can take as input full description of a relatively large system (20-100 light atoms + photons), simulate its evolution over a period of time, and tell the probability of fusion over that time? If there's no such thing available, how close could...
  15. M

    In university lectures, what note-taking software do you use?

    Hi For keeping with full disclosure - I hope to use this information to determine the need for an idea I've had that would make the lives of maths/physics students easier. I have just two questions I hope you can answer... What software do you use for taking notes during lectures and...
  16. A

    Magnetic field modeling software?

    Does anyone know a good program, even a demo for modelling how magnetic fields influence each other? I'd like to run thru some exercises with actual numbers on wjhat kind of field patterns can be made by arranging magnets of same or different strength in different configurations. I should...
  17. ramzerimar

    Software for learning structural analysis and FEM?

    I'm in the third semester of mechanical engineering and I'm taking classes on engineering statics right now. Our professor said the he will give us a preview of finite element methods at the end of the semester. Which softwares would you recommend for learning basic structural analysis? I mean...
  18. fluidistic

    How can scientists trust closed source programs?

    I wonder how can scientists trust closed source programs/softwares. How can they be sure there aren't bugs that return a wrong output every now and then? Assuming they use some kind of extensive tests that figures out whether the program behaves as it should, how can they be sure that the...
  19. bpcaddy

    Automotive Crash Test Software for VW Rabbit Car 1981

    For my senior project i plan on litening a vw rabbit car. 1981. Any software that i could uuse to model the care and provide great data on how i could improve the safety after i cut it up to lighten it? Thinking adding roll bars or something.
  20. H

    I Software Designs Quantum Experiments

    Anton Zeilinger of the University of Vienna was trying to design experiments to produce certain quantum states and wasn't having much luck doing it. "I realized I was just guessing," he said. So why not have a program do that guessing. It can try a million guesses. So he did. While the...
  21. LtIvan

    Recommendation on a Circuit Simulator Software

    All I need is a basic circuit simulator. I've got the Quite Universal Circuit simulator. It works fine as a schematic designer but not as a simulator. I want something similar to Crocodile Technology. I have used Crocodile Technology on Yenka but I don't like how you can only use it in...
  22. W

    Uploading/Downloading Full Software Packages(100Mb +)

    Hi all, What kind of methods are there to upload/download large files (program files) , of more than, say 100Mb? Thanks.
  23. ujjwal3097

    Video editing software for presentations

    Can anyone tell me which video editing software is used in this video. I am doing some project and i need to show the presentation but i really liked what this video has in the background. Can anyone tell me about this software or another similar software for editing. video:
  24. berkeman

    Real-time PC performance monitoring software with a monitoring window / GUI

    I'm frustrated with several of my PCs' performance. The issue may be with their Internet connections, or with other processing issues. Is there some software package that I can run to give me a GUI window showing Internet bandwidth, memory usage, etc, to help me debug the sometimes slow...
  25. N

    How to control any software using batch?

    Dear Forum, I am trying to run a random software (such as skype), there is easy to run by mouse and click on the icon on the desktop. Now, I am trying to take advance by using CMD (command prompt). I am going to type some basic command to make skype run, but I do not know how to go into any...
  26. E

    Good Vibration Stability Mapping Software?

    Hello Physics Forum patrons! I am currently in search for some software and maybe hardware to analyze and map vibration/stability for rotating cutting tools (CNC milling). Being primarily a machine programmer and product designer, I have a very minimal understanding of vibration from a physics...
  27. chikou24i

    Drawing crystal structure software

    Hi, is there any software that I can use for drawing a crystal structure from atoms coordinates ?
  28. C

    Software design for Truck Crane Loader

    Hi everyone, I am starting the re-design of the PLC software for a preexisting Truck Crane Loader. I will receive the Weight Chart to see what the limits are and I was wondering how to exactly calculate the resulting weight on the Crane. The CRANE is already on place, it has two joints and a...
  29. RJLiberator

    Advice: Software: ROOT and course: Applied PDE

    Tomorrow I embark on a new semester and this semester I have the pleasure of learning applied partial differential equations and the software of "ROOT" ROOT: https://root.cern.ch/ So I am here to solicite advice. 1. In regards to ROOT, is there anything that can set me up better for a more...
  30. H

    Free Software for Drawing Cubes

    I'm drawing various fancy cubes. I'm using Octave, which is fine for generating the data but not so great on drawing cubes. (In case you're curious, I'm drawing projections of hypercubes.) Any help?
  31. O

    Free Software for Visualizing Data

    I just graduated, and one of my last classes in school was computational physics. We would write programs using C++ to simulate all sorts of physical situations, write a bunch of data to a text file, and then import that data into Mathematica, where we would use the data to create graphs...
  32. Q

    Mathematica Is there any way to improve my skills with Mathematica software

    Hi I am new at the mathematica software i would like to find way to improve my skils
  33. mollwollfumble

    I Numerical sign problem software?

    I'm an applied mathematician with lots of experience in classical physics but none in quantum physics. What's the simplest piece of code (eg C++ on Cygwin) that illustrates the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Numerical_sign_problem in quantum physics?
  34. R

    How can I set up remote assistance software without configuring firewall rules?

    Hello, I'm trying to find a way to allow people to send me remote assistance requests so I can control their computer but without having them first configure firewall rules on their end. The simplest solution seems to be to setup a vnc server on my end, configure my firewall rules appropriately...
  35. bucek

    Software for bingo statistics.

    hi. please help. `im searching for an android app for bingo statistics. there is a tv game for bingo. each week there is a game you choose 20 numbers (4 numbers in each row) from 75. if someone using one, would be thankfull to hear from you. thanks in advance
  36. D

    Design of deoxygenating system for offshore water injection

    Any ideas on how I could model a deoxygenating system and which software would be best to use to do so. Thanks
  37. N

    Mining Software | Popular Options for Design, Blasting, Hauling

    Hi, I’m from Vietnam, because I want to learn a mining software so I wonder what’s the most popular software for design mine, blasting, haul road…, ect. please help me
  38. S

    MHB Software for calculating eigenvalues and eigenfunctions of an integral operator

    Hi can someone direct me to a free software to calculate eigenvalues and normalized eigenfunctions of a linear integral operator. I am trying to solve a fredholm integral equation with degenerate kernel using it instead of linear equations thanks sarrah
  39. S

    Is there a software that finds an equation of a function?

    Like in the title, is there a software that allows you to draw a curve or even better, input a picture and select a curve on it, in order to get the equation of that curve as a function? Would be glad for help, I need it for my mathematics exploration on minimizing surface area of a vase-like...
  40. cemgega

    Need help to solve a problem in FEMM software

    Hi! I recently started using FEMM software to design magnetic field for my MSc thesis. I need some information to solve my problems. They about "Boundary Properties and BC types". My problem is axisymmetric and I'm designing a pair of a coil and a permanent magnet. I need to define boundaries...
  41. D

    What is the best software for signal acquisition and processing

    I'll be doing a project that will need to acquire and process signals coming from one or two antennas. What is, in your opinion, the best software to do this? I've used LabView before and it worked alright but it was a very simple project, this one is much more complex. Is LabView a good option...
  42. A

    How to Plot Number Lines with Software

    ... to visualize relative distances between two points of interest. Do any of the microsoft office applications do this? For example, I would like it to start with an origin of 0 on the left, show the number 5, then show the number 146. I just need a good program for plotting these types of...
  43. R

    What software do you use for creating good quality TABLES....

    ... in scientific papers? I'm having a real problem with Microsoft Word getting all the information I need onto the graph, it takes up too much room, example: My attempt a TABLE in Word: How I want it to look: So just wondering what you guys use, or how you would go about creating the...
  44. nsaspook

    News EPA says Volkswagen installed software to cheat on emissions

    http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-09-18/epa-says-volkswagon-software-circumvented-car-emissions-testing http://www3.epa.gov/otaq/cert/documents/vw-nov-caa-09-18-15.pdf This makes me wonder who else is cheating with ECU/ECM software.
  45. S

    Software package for modelling electromagnetic interaction

    Hello! I would like to ask about any software package, where interaction between a moving particle and a monolayer can be simulated. What i need to get is a spectral angular density distribution in the far-field zone within optical frequency range for a problem when a particle crosses a...
  46. J

    Software for drawing group lattice diagrams?

    Hi, I was wondering if there is code already available to draw group lattice diagrams if I already know what the subgroup structure of the group and its subgroups are. For example, it's easy to determine the subgroup lattice for cyclic groups simply using divisors via Lagrange's Theorem...
  47. A

    Who can work with comsol multiphysics software? (spherical quantum dot)

    hi who can help me with my problem in comsol multiphysics? i want to calculate a schrodinger equation for a spherical quantum dot under applied magnetic field, who can help me? anyone here have the program doing this? help me if you can. i don't know if there is another program for compute...
  48. A

    How Does Air Pressure Affect Curveball Distance in Different Ballparks?

    Hello everyone, It's my first time posting, so I hope everyone is doing well. I am looking for some help for a high school research paper/lab I'm currently working on. Basically, I am investigating how the varying air pressures of different baseball parks have an effect on the distance traveled...
  49. Math Amateur

    MHB Software for Graphing Polynomials in Two Variables

    Does anyone know any very simple to operate (intuitive) software for graphing polynomials in two variables. If the software allows you to plot two polynomials simultaneously then all the better ... Be a bonus if it allowed the finding of zeros also ... Peter
  50. B

    What Software? (Math Graph, Math Equation, and Text Editor)

    What software is used to create a text editor, math graph, and math equation such as below image? It seems the math graph is a vector illustration (not pixel), the math equation is not Latex, and they are integrated with the text editor. What software to create such as book?
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