Computer software

Computer software, or just software, is the collection of computer programs and related data
that provide the instructions telling a computer what to do. The term was coined to contrast to the
old term hardware (meaning physical devices). In contrast to hardware, software is intangible,
meaning it "cannot be touched".[1] Software is also sometimes used in a more narrow sense,
meaning application software only. Sometimes the term includes data that has not traditionally
been associated with computers, such as film, tapes and records.[2]

Examples of computer software include:

• Application software includes end-user applications of computers such as word

processors or Video games, and ERP software for groups of users.
• Middleware controls and co-ordinates distributed systems.
• Programming languages define the syntax and sematics of computer programs. For
example, many mature banking applications were written in the COBOL language,
originally invented in 1959. Newer applications are often written in more modern
programming languages.
• System software includes operating systems, which govern computing resources. Today
large applications running on remote machines such as Websites are considered to be
system software, because the end-user interface is generally through a Graphical user
interface (GUI), such as a web browser.
• Testware is software for testing hardware or a software package.
• Firmware is low-level software often stored on electrically programmable memory
devices. Firmware is given its name because it is treated like hardware and run
("executed") by other software programs.
• Shrinkware is the older name given to consumer bought software, because it was often
sold in reatail stores in a shrinkwrapped box.
• Device drivers control parts of computers such as disk drives, printers, CD drives, or
computer monitors.
• Programming tools help conduct computing tasks in any category listed above. For
programmers, these could be tools for debugging, or reverse engineering older legacy
systems in order to check source code compatibility.
 A Carrot, An Egg, And A Coffee Bean
You will never look at a cup of coffee the same way again.

A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not
know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as if
as soon as one problem was solved a new one arose.

Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots
came to a boil. In the first, she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and the last she placed ground coffee
beans. She let them sit and boil, without saying a word.

In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled
the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl.

Turning to her daughter, she asked, "Tell me, what do you see?"

"Carrots, eggs, and coffee," she replied.

She brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. She then asked her to
take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg. Finally, she asked her to sip
the coffee. The daughter smiled, as she tasted its rich aroma. The daughter then asked. "What does it mean,
mother?"

Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity - boiling water - but each reacted
differently. The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it
softened and became weak.

The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior. But, after sitting through the boiling
water, its inside became hard.

The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water, they had changed the water.

"Which are you?" she asked her daughter. "When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a
carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean?"

The carrot seemed strong, but with pain and adversity, it wilted and became soft and lost its strength?

The egg that started with a malleable heart, but changed with the heat. It had a fluid spirit, but after a death, a
breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, it hardened and stiffened? Its shell still looks the same, but on the
inside it became bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and hardened heart.

The coffee bean actually changed the hot water, the very circumstance that brought the pain. When the water got
hot, the bean released the fragrance and flavor.

Are you like the bean? When things are at their worst, do you get better and change the situation around you?

When the hour is the darkest and trials are at their greatest, do you elevate to another level?

How do you handle adversity? Are you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean?