Question

Define the three overarching domains that contain application software, system software and hardware layers along with the layers of abstraction in each, and explain in detail how each of these layers, whether software or hardware, interacts with the others. Explain your answer in 3-5 sentences.(4 points)

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Answer 1

The three overarching domains are **Application Software**, **System Software**, and **Hardware**, each comprising several layers of abstraction.

1. **Application Software** refers to programs designed to perform specific tasks for users, often built on top of system software. It interacts with system software through APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) to leverage lower-level services like file handling and memory management.

2. **System Software** includes operating systems and utilities that manage hardware resources and provide an environment for applications to run. It acts as a bridge between application software and hardware, handling resource allocation, process scheduling, and input/output management, ensuring that applications can run efficiently on the underlying hardware.

3. **Hardware** encompasses the physical components of a computer system, such as the CPU, memory, and storage devices. It provides the necessary interfaces for system software to control these resources. The hardware, through its instruction set, processes commands from both system and application software, enabling their operations.

The layers work in concert: application software relies on system software to communicate with hardware, while system software abstracts the complexities of the hardware, allowing application developers to focus on higher-level functionalities without worrying about low-level operations.