PROGRAMS

Everything a computer does is done by the use of a program.

A program is a set of instructions to a computer and the most basic set of instructions is the Operating System (OS). Every computer must have an OS and a company called Microsoft is wildly successful because almost all home computers use an OS written by Microsoft. Windows 95/98/2000 are examples of Operating Systems. Most other programs work with the OS, not the computer itself, to get something accomplished. That's why it's important to know what OS you have BEFORE you buy a new program, such as a game or a home finance program. Something written for DOS 3.30 may or may not work in a Win98 computer and something written for Win2000 most probably won't work at all in a computer running Windows 95. On the other hand, one of the advantages of the virtual monopoly that Microsoft has on operating systems is that almost everyone reading this is probably using a version of MS Windows (probably Windows 98) and almost everything that is written for a PC will probably work under that operating system. Just don't try using anything written for an Apple (Macintosh) - that won't work at all!

Most people try to separate programs into categories, or types, and the most common separation is into Operating Systems, Applications, Utilities and Games.

• You've already had the example of Windows98 as an Operating System.
• Applications would generally be business, hobby or finance programs such as MS Word, Paint Shop Pro, Excel, Quicken, or Lotus Notes.
• Games is a pretty self explainatory category;
• and an example of a Utility might be an anti-virus program or a program that will log on to the Internet and sync you computer's internal clock to the atomic time clock at the National Bureau of Standards.

For more information about how files are categorized, see "How To..., Lesson #6, Windows Explorer"

In order for your computer to use a program, it must be installed (stored) somewhere that your computer can get to, usually on your hard drive, but it could also be on a floppy diskette, a CD-ROM disc, or even another computer if you're connected to a network.

Adding a program to your computer is pretty easy, but there are a few things to need to know and to look out for, so we'll make that a separate lesson which is in How To..., Lesson #13, "Buying and Installing new software".

Programs are written by -Guess Who?-.....Programmers! So then the question becomes, who are programmers? Well, Bill Gates is a programmer. He also founded a company called Microsoft and is now the richest human on the planet. But that's probably not the most accurate example. Mr. Gates' company employs thousands of programmers and they make a good living but very few of them will become extremely rich. I would suppose most programmers are people who enjoy a challenge. Learning how to program is about the same as learning a foreign language - some people have an aptitude for it and some don't - but anyone can learn how to do it if they want to and are willing to work at it. Once you learn a programming language, what you can accomplish is limited only by your imagination. Bottom line is that programs are written by people - folks just like you and me - and that means that most of the programs work and do what they're supposed to do .....but sometimes some of them don't. Expect good, maybe even excellent - but not perfection.

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