After you have mastered the material in this chapter, you will be able to: Describe several important trends occurring in computer software, give examples of several major types of application and system software, explain the purpose of several popular software packages for end user productivity and collaborative computing.
Chapter Computer Software Copyright © 2006, The McGrawHill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved 4-1 Learning Objectives Describe several important trends occurring in computer software Give examples of several major types of application and system software Explain the purpose of several popular software packages for end user productivity and collaborative computing Copyright © 2006, The McGrawHill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved 4-2 Learning Objectives Outline the functions of an operating system Describe the main uses of computer programming software, tools, and languages Copyright © 2006, The McGrawHill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved 4-3 What is Software? Definition: • Various kinds of programs used to operate computers and related devices Copyright © 2006, The McGrawHill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved 4-4 Case #1: Writing Software for Processes Microsoft’s Business Solutions Division: • Teams formed for different industries • Injected industry-specific codes directly into its core software platforms • Hired business technology professionals steeped in sector-specific knowledge Copyright © 2006, The McGrawHill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved 4-5 Case #1: Writing Software for Processes Microsoft’s New Strategy: • Creating accelerators aimed at business processes common to companies in a given industry • Inserting industry-enabling layers to serve the needs of a broad base of companies in a particular sector • Seeking partnerships with vendors that have deep industry roots Copyright © 2006, The McGrawHill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved 4-6 Case #1: Writing Software for Processes A common phrase among IT professionals is “The world views its data through Windows” Why does Microsoft dominate the desktop and networked software market? Visit its website at www.microsoft.com and review its broad range of software products and services to help with your answer Copyright © 2006, The McGrawHill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved 4-7 Case #1: Writing Software for Processes How successful will Microsoft be in competing with software vendors who specialize in vertical market applications like health care, retail, and specialty services? Why? Do you agree with Microsoft’s strategy to develop industry-specific partners to capitalize on opportunities in both large and small business sectors? Is there an advantage or a disadvantage to being one of Microsoft’s partners in this type of relationship? Explain Copyright © 2006, The McGrawHill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved 4-8 Case #1: Writing Software for Processes Does Microsoft’s entry into industryspecific applications signal the end for smaller industry-specific software developers? What changes in strategy by such developers are necessary to compete with Microsoft? Copyright © 2006, The McGrawHill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved 4-9 Types of Software Copyright © 2006, The McGrawHill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved - 10 Language Translator Programs • Assembler – translates the symbolic instruction codes of programs written in an assembler language into machine language instructions • Compiler – translates high-level language statements • Interpreter – compiler that translates and executes each statement in a program one at a time Copyright © 2006, The McGrawHill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved - 59 Programming Tools • Graphical Programming Interfaces • Programming Editors • Debuggers • CASE tools Copyright © 2006, The McGrawHill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved - 60 Case #3: Growth of Linux in Business Statistics: • Linux runs almost 15% of all servers • Growing at 23% per year • Over 10% of IBM mainframe sales run Linux • Only 1% of PCs use Linux but 30% of chief technologists were considering moving their companies’ PCs to Linux Copyright © 2006, The McGrawHill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved - 61 Case #3: Growth of Linux in Business How did Linux get into the mainstream? • Low-cost alternative in sagging economy • Intel loosened its relationship with Microsoft • IBM made an effort to be Linux-compatible • Fear of Microsoft gaining a stranglehold on corporate customers Copyright © 2006, The McGrawHill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved - 62 Case #3: Growth of Linux in Business Open Source: • Free • Stable • Easily fixed if bugs appear Copyright © 2006, The McGrawHill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved - 63 Case #3: Growth of Linux in Business Should businesses continue to switch to the Linux operating system on servers and mainframes? Why or why not? Should business and consumer PC users switch to Linux PC operating systems like Lindows and software suites like Sun’s Star Office? Why or why not? Copyright © 2006, The McGrawHill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved - 64 Case #3: Growth of Linux in Business Should the IT departments of companies like Merrill Lynch contribute their software improvements to the opensource community for products like Linux? Explain your reasoning Copyright © 2006, The McGrawHill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved - 65 Case #4: Using Java in Business Benefits: • Java can run on any hardware or operating systems • Easy to modify code as needs expand • Networking capabilities reduce the need for remote servers • Easy to integrate with middleware and databases Copyright © 2006, The McGrawHill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved - 66 Case #4: Using Java in Business What are the benefits of Java as a programming language for retail POS applications compared to other programming languages? What are the benefits of Java for the development of e-commerce portals for customers and suppliers like PartsEdge? Why companies like Mark’s Work Wearhouse frequently team Java with the Linux operating system? Copyrightâ2006,TheMcGrawưHillCompanies,Inc.Allrightsreserved - 67 Summary ã Computer software consists of applications software that directs the performance of a particular use of computers to meet the information processing needs of users, and system software that controls and supports the operations of a computer system as it performs various information processing tasks Copyrightâ2006,TheMcGrawưHillCompanies,Inc.Allrightsreserved - 68 Summary ã Application software includes general-purpose and application-specific categories • General-purpose application programs perform common information processing jobs for end users • Application-specific programs accomplish information processing tasks that support specific business functions Copyrightâ2006,TheMcGrawưHillCompanies,Inc.Allrightsreserved - 69 Summary ã System software can be subdivided into system management programs and system development programs • System management programs manage the hardware, software, network, and data resources of a computer system during its execution of information processing jobs • System development programs help IS specialists develop computer programs to support business processes Copyright © 2006, The McGrawHill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved - 70 Summary • An operating system is an integrated system of programs that supervises the operation of the CPU, controls the input/output and storage functions of the computer system, and provides various support services Copyrightâ2006,TheMcGrawưHillCompanies,Inc.Allrightsreserved - 71 Summary ã Programming languages require the use of a variety of programming packages to help programmers develop computer programs, and language translator programs to convert programming language instructions into machine language instruction codes Copyright © 2006, The McGrawHill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved - 72 Chapter End of Chapter Copyright © 2006, The McGrawHill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved - 73 ... How is Software Developed? • Custom Software – software applications that are developed within an organization for use by that organization • Commercial Off-the-shelf (COTS) Software – software. .. Copyright © 2006, The McGrawHill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved - 36 System Software • System Management Programs – programs that manage the hardware, software, network, and data resources of computer systems during the execution of various information processing... Off-The-Shelf software • Application Service Providers – companies that own, operate, and maintain application software and the computer system resources required to offer the use of the application software