GCSE Computing/Software

= What you need to know = Candidates should be able to:

(a) explain the need for the following functions of an operating system:
 * user interface,
 * memory management,
 * peripheral management,
 * multi-tasking,
 * security

(b) describe the purpose and use of common utility programs for:
 * computer security (antivirus, spyware protection and firewalls),
 * disk organisation (formatting, file transfer, and defragmentation),
 * system maintenance (system information and diagnosis, system cleanup tools, automatic updating)

(c) discuss the relative merits of
 * custom written software,
 * off the shelf software,
 * open source software,
 * proprietary software.