Deck 1: The Nature of Software

Question 1

How do software characteristics differ from hardware characteristics?

Answer 1

Software is developed,not manufactured.Software does not wear out.Most software is custom built,not assembled out of components.
Final Exam Question

Question 2

How does software differ from the artifacts produced by other engineering disciplines?

Answer 2

Software is both a product and a vehicle for delivering a product.As a product,software is an information transformer.As a vehicle for delivering a product,software serves as a basis for computer control,communication,and creation of other programs.

Question 3

Explain what is wrong with the notion that computer software does not need to evolve over time.

Answer 3

Computer software must be revised as errors are discovered and corrected.Software must be updated to accommodate changes in the computing environment.Many times a customer will request changes to add new functions to an existing product or to accommodate changes in the business environment.Sometimes an older system will need to be reengineered to provide benefits to the user in a modern context.The bottom line is that software that does not evolve will eventually become unusable.