A method and system are disclosed which allow software to communicate with a computer at run-time. The communication provided enables the software to execute at optimal speed on different computers. More particularly, software queries a computer at run-time to determine its hardware resources. Once the software knows the hardware resources available, the software optimizes its code performance in accordance therewith. Alternatively, the invention enables the software to specify the hardware resources to be used by the computer. This allows software developers to configure a computer to act as if it actually had the resources specified by the software.