All about software drivers

Written on 4:23 PM by Unknown

In computing, a device driver or software driver is a computer program allowing higher-level computer programs to interact with a hardware device.

A device driver simplifies programming by acting as an abstraction layer between a hardware device and the applications or operating systems that use it. The higher-level application code can be written independently of whatever specific hardware device it will ultimately control, as it can interface with it in a standard way, regardless of the underlying hardware.

Every version of a device, such as a printer, requires its own hardware-specific specialized commands. In contrast, most applications utilize devices (such as sending a file to a printer) by means of high-level device-generic commands such as PRINTLN (print a line).

Whether its HP drivers or Sony drivers, the device-driver accepts these generic high-level commands and breaks them into a series of low-level device-specific commands as required by the device being driven. Furthermore, drivers can provide a level of security as they can run in kernel-mode, thereby protecting the operating system from applications running in user-mode.

Most hardware manufacturers recommend you download the latest official (non beta) drivers on a regular basis to keep your computer running correctly. DriversSoftware.com has 3000 companies and 300,000 drivers listings for nearly every imaginable piece of hardware