At its most basic level, a computer is composed of physical hardware on which software runs. Multiple layers of software are built upon various layers of hardware. Layers manage interactions and complexity in the computing system. System software manages a computing device's resources so that software can interact with hardware. Application software communicates with the user and the system software to accomplish its purpose. Students compare and describe how application software, system software, and hardware interact. For example, students could compare how various levels of hardware and software interact when a picture is to be taken on a smartphone. Systems software provides low-level commands to operate the camera hardware, but the application software interacts with system software at a higher level by requesting a common image file format (e.g., .png) that the system software provides.
Standard detail
Depth 2Parent ID: C9031784A6384198994DBF77F0B9042BStandard set: Level 3A: Grades 9-10 (Ages 14-16)
Original statement
Quick facts
- Statement code
- Standard ID
- 2E72ECD3D2F2457889E630B487A0D8CC
- Subject
- Computer Science
- Grades
- 09, 10
- Ancestor IDs
- C9031784A6384198994DBF77F0B9042B3CDEAFA7E70D40478A635C40A1FB1A21
- Source document
- CSTA K-12 Computer Science Standards (Revised 2017)
- License
- CC BY 4.0 US