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I can't understand the use of the definite article with the word "hardware". For example, a lecture in my computer science course reads:

Software is the general category of code which runs on the hardware

It was the very first phrase in the first lecture, so I think using the definite article to identify a previously mentioned thing is not the case here. Then I tried to google how those two words (software/hardware) are used and found an article. Here is a sentence:

The fundamental difference lies in their nature: hardware is the tangible, physical aspect of a computer system, while software is the collection of instructions and data that operate on the hardware

In the first sentence there is "the hardware". In the next one "hardware" is used both with no article and with the definite article. What is the grammar happening here? Does that mean a specific category of things or an invention (like "the human brain", "the computer" etc.)?

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    Welcome to ELL. I don’t think there is any “grammar happening here.” Instead, it seems to me likely that this is simply a case of the author’s writing casually—perhaps even a bit carelessly. I’d guess that they didn’t even notice, let alone carefully consider and explicitly choose, the inconsistency in their use/omission of the article.
    – Paul Tanenbaum
    Commented Jul 16 at 16:04
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    It's really just a stylistic choice whether to include the definite article in your cited context. Compare Fleas are parasites that live in [the] hair or Some sea creatures hide under [the] sand.
    – FumbleFingers
    Commented Jul 16 at 16:07
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    For reference, parallel post on ELU.
    – Andy Bonner
    Commented Jul 16 at 16:13
  • I'm intrigued by "the lecture… reads." All kinds of unusual things are more common in spoken usage than written. Is this a transcript?
    – Andy Bonner
    Commented Jul 16 at 16:15

2 Answers 2

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This is always the same thing which we repeat around here over and over:

"Software is the general category of code which runs on the hardware" [your system is made up of].

The specific hardware.

That said, hardware does not require the per se. It's a mass noun.

BUT: The hardware I use in my systems is [whatever]. There it's specific.

luggage, china [dishes], happiness, wealth

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  • Thank you for your answer. I had this guess about specificity, but it seemed not very intuitive to me.
    – Artem
    Commented Jul 16 at 18:23
  • @Arten Believe me, the is always specific.
    – Lambie
    Commented Jul 16 at 18:48
  • Honestly speaking, when it comes to the usage of articles in English, this "specific" case is the most difficult for my understanding. From my experience of learning the language at school, university etc., this rule has been well known and learned, but it is often hard to grasp how it really works in a particular sentence. The fact that my native language doesn't have articles makes the problem even worse.
    – Artem
    Commented Jul 16 at 18:59
  • @Artem Try this: ell.stackexchange.com/questions/256834/… but disregard the last bit.
    – Lambie
    Commented Jul 16 at 22:04
  • What about this piece from Wikipedia: "Software can be defined more narrowly as the instructions executed by the computer hardware, or more broadly including other concepts, tools, and methods needed to make an executable system on computer hardware, such as design documents, specifications, and testing suites". We have "the hardware" and "hardware" in the same sentence. What is the difference?
    – Artem
    Commented Jul 17 at 21:42
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I. Type of noun.
Both software and hardware are generally considered uncountable nouns.

II. When do you use the definite article with uncountable nouns..
The definite article, "the", is used with uncountable nouns when the noun is specific. For example,
"The chocolate is expensive in this shop".
Note : We are referring to the chocolate in a particular shop

III. How is hardware specific in OP's sentences?.
To rephrase it: Why is it "the hardware" in these sentences?

  1. Software is the general category of code which runs on the hardware.
    Here hardware means "the specific/ particular hardware" on which the software mentioned in the sentence runs..
    .
    2.The fundamental difference lies in their nature: hardware is the tangible, physical aspect of a computer system, while software is the collection of instructions and data that operate on the hardware.
    Here the first hardware refers to any hardware, but the second hardware refers to a specific hardware on which the software runs.

Another example:
Both hardware and software are necessary for a computer to function and produce meaningful output. For example, software interprets the hardware's switches as either 0 or 1, and then strings together thousands of these numbers to create billions of possible combinations.
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The rule is to use the definite article when the terms "software" and "hardware" are used in the same sentence and the hardware being discussed is the particular hardware that the software is operating on.

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