Application Software

Software applications work through the operating system to gain access to the hardware.

There are two types of application software

* User Application Programs ( Specially written softwares)

These are custom-written by the user, or a software house under contract, to perform specific job.

*Application Packages (Generic Packages)

These are prewritten programs purchased 'off the shelf' by the user.

Advantages of applications packages:

• Save time, effort and expense of programming
• Tried and tested - good quality and 'error free'
• On-line help facilities for ease of use

Disadvantages of application packages:

• May not meet the special needs
  

- Packages are designed to meet the needs of different users and they may not be exactly suitable. However many packages can be modified or customized to meet special needs.

• Continuity of support and guarantee
  

- It is useful to have a programs maintenance agreement so that upgrades and later versions can be provided as well as help if things go wrong.

A software application carries out tasks that the user is interested in doing such as:

* Writing a letter
* Creating Graphs
* Sending an email
* Downloading a webpage

Application can be classified under three main categories:

* General purpose software
* Specialist software
* Tailor made/Bespoke Software

SOFTWARE

What is a software?

Software refers to the program that we run on our computer systems.

Software is made up of series of instructions which tell the hardware to do something useful e.g. to print a document, save a file or display a webpage.

Software Categories

There are two main categories of a computer software. They are:

1. System Software - controls the performance of the computer system or provides commonly used facilities. E.g. :

* The Operating System
* A compiler
* Utility programs
* Drivers

2. Application Software - programs that you use to do work on the computer like typing a letter, calculating budget and so on. E.g. :

* Word Processing
* Spreadsheet
* Database
* Graphics packages
* Presentation Software/Authoring Tool
* Web Browsers

More details on Application Software