How Software and Hardware Communicate With Each Other

The way the software and hardware are able to communicate and produce an output that we can use is by use of the binary system. The binary language is a machine language that uses only two digits, a 1 or a 0. When we press a key on the keyboard, which is the hardware in this case, an electrical pulse is sent through traces and wires on the motherboard or inside the computer case. The way that the binary data is transmitted is by electrical current. The digit 1 means on and the 0 means off, so when the bit and bytes are received in the CPU through the lines it can communicate with the hardware and it can carry out what ever command it had received.This process of data communication between the software and hardware is possible through instructions that were written into the software. Once the hardware sends a set of data the software reads it and then performs an action for which it was designed to do. An example would be Microsoft Word. When you hit a key on the keyboard the electrical pulse of the key is sent and then the letter shows up on the monitor in a form that humans can read. Without the software the hardware (computer) would sit on the desk and just be a pretty ornament, because it would not have any instructions (software) to tell it how to do, what it does. The software doesn’t necessarily need to be installed into the CPU in order for the hardware to operate properly, however it does need to be running in the correct port on the case at the time of using the hardware.The software data that is the CPU’s memory is located on the hard disk, which is usually for most computers, the C drive. Depending on what the hardware is used for, will determine where exactly the data will be stored on the machine and it will be different for different types of data. If the keyboard or mouse for example is used during the startup process then the software will need to be in the startup BIOS. If the data wasn’t in the startup BIOS, which has a very small amount of electricity to operate it, then the mouse and keyboard would not be able to be used at the time we need it the most and that is just getting the computer to turn on.