Each hardware component of a computer interfaces with other components and also with computer software through the transmission and receipt of electronic impulses. Some of the more common components of a microcomputer are the CPU, the monitor, the disk drives, the keyboard, and the mouse. It does this by providing a series of instructions to the hardware components of the computer and translating human instructions into a series of machine-readable code. It is through the User that commands, data and programs are supplied to the computer. Ultimately, the user receives back information that is a product of a series of computer processes.
Users determine requirements, provide software programs, and input data into the computer.
Computer software translates requirements and data into a format that the hardware can assimilate and process. The hardware electronically processes the data, based specifically on instructions that specify user requirements and then passes the results back to the software. The software then translates what it has received from the hardware into a human-readable format prior to passing it back to the user. The main purpose of a computer is to service the needs of the people who are using it. A series of related instructions makes up an application program.