Chapter 2

Application Software
Learning Objectives
2.1 Identify Types and Uses of Business Productivity Software
2.2 Identify Types and Uses of Personal Software
2.3 Assess a Computer System for Software Compatibility
2.4 Compare Various Ways of Obtaining Software
2.5 Discuss the Importance of Cloud Computing
2.6 Install, Uninstall, and Update Software
Learning Objective 2.1
• Identify Types and Uses of Business Productivity Software
Identify Types and Uses of Business Productivity
Software
Making Business Work—Office Application Suites
• Include several applications designed to work together
• Enable collaboration
• Save files in multiple formats
Making Business Work—Word Processing
• Creates, edits, and formats documents
– Formats text
– Spelling and grammar checkers
– Graphics – insert and format images
– Text organizational tools – tables and
lists
– Page layout – headers, footers, page
numbers, and margins
– Mail merge – generate mail labels or form
letters for lists of people.
Making Business Work—Spreadsheet Application
• Creates electronic worksheets composed of
rows and columns
– The intersection of a row and column is
a cell
– A statistical analysis tool
– Creates charts or graphs
– Sorts, filters, and rearranges data
– Can be customized
Making Business Work—Presentation Software
• Creates electronic presentations that
enable the displaying of facts, figures, and
ideas on slides
– Creates, edits, and rearranges slides
that contain:
▪ Text
▪ Video and animation
▪ Slide transitions
▪ Graphics
▪ Audio
– Design templates
Making Business Work—Database Application
(1 of 2)
• Creates and manages a collection of related records organized into one
or more tables
– Record—contains information about a single entry
– Field—single piece of information in a record
Making Business Work—Database Application
(2 of 2)
• Additional database features
– Produces forms for easy data entry
– Generates reports to display selected information
– Creates queries to extract records that meet specific criteria
Making Business Work—Personal Information
Manager
• A personal information manager (PI M)
manages your email, calendar, contacts,
and tasks, all in one place
– Shares calendars
– Facilitates scheduling meetings
Making Business Work—Other Types of Business
Software (1 of 3)
• Financial Software
– Helps keep track of expenses and taxes
– Tracks invoicing, payroll, and inventory
– Generates reports and graphs
– Helps in decision making
Making Business Work—Other Types of Business
Software (2 of 3)
• Document Management System (DMS)
– Files are stored on a server or the web,
making them more accessible and
secure
• Project Management Software
– Helps to complete projects while
keeping within budget, staying on
schedule, and collaborating with
others
Making Business Work—Other Types of Business
Software (3 of 3)
• Customer Relations Management system (C RM)
– System for maintaining customer information and
connections
– Can be cloud-based or locally hosted
Learning Objective 2.2
• Identify Types and Uses of Personal Software
Identify Types and Uses of Personal Software
Making it Personal—Office Applications (1 of 2)
• Individuals can choose between commercial and open-source software
– Commercial Software
▪ Expensive
▪ Sold as suites or individual applications
– Open-Source Software
▪ No fee
▪ Source code is published and made available to the public
▪ Anyone can copy, modify, and redistribute it without paying fees
Making it Personal—Office Applications (2 of 2)
• Personal Software
– Word processing
– Spreadsheet application
– Database application
– Presentation software
– Personal information management
(PI M) application
Making it Personal—Online Alternative Suites
• Free websites that offer easy-to-use
interfaces with word processing, spreadsheet,
presentation, and communication applications
– Access through a browser
– No installation necessary
– Access and edit files from anywhere
– Collaborate and share files
Making it Personal—Finance and Tax Preparation
• Track a bank account
• Monitor an investment
• Create and balance a budget
• File income taxes
Making it Personal—Entertainment and Multimedia
(1 of 2)
• Video and Photo Editing Software
– Edit, crop, and straighten an image
– Adjust contrast and color
– Apply a special effect
• Media Management
– Keeps track of and plays
music, TV shows, and
videos on a computer
Making it Personal—Entertainment
and Multimedia (2 of 2)
• Video game players
– Average age 32 – 35 years old
– 20% are over 50
– 40% are female
Making it Personal—Educational and Reference
Software
• Trip planning, family, and health
▪ Trip planning
▪ Genealogy
▪ Monitor exercise, keep track of food intake and sleep patterns
• Home and landscape design
– Build a deck
– Plant a garden
– Remodel a kitchen
– Web apps
– Programs can run in a browser
– No need to install
Learning Objective 2.3
• Assess a Computer System for Software Compatibility
Assess a Computer System for Software
Compatibility
Will It Run? Your System Specs
Will It Run? System Requirements
• Minimum hardware and software specifications the computer must meet to run the program
• System requirements for software described on the package or software webpage
• A system may need to be upgraded to meet these requirements
• As software becomes more sophisticated, the system requirements increase
Learning Objective 2.4
• Compare Various Ways of Obtaining Software
Compare Various Ways of Obtaining Software
Where to Get It—Licensing
• End-user license agreement (EULA)—agreement between the user and the software publisher
• Proprietary License
– Grants a license
– Ownership remains with the software publisher
– Found on most commercial software
– Most restrictive in terms of distribution and installation
• Open-source License
– Grants ownership
– Source code must be freely available
– Can be modified and redistributed
Where to Get It—Free or Fee (1 of 2)
• Retail: User pays fee to use software for unlimited time
– Microsoft Office, Adobe Photoshop, or TurboTax
• Subscription: Requires a monthly or yearly fee
– Microsoft Office or Adobe Creative Cloud
• Freeware: Can be used at no cost for unlimited time
– Apple iTunes or 7-Zip
Where to Get It—Free or Fee (2 of 2)
• Shareware: Allows you to try before you buy
– Microsoft or Adobe
• Donationware: Developers accept donations
– FileZilla
• Freemium: Basic mobile apps
Where to Get It—Sources of Software
• Desktop application—computer program installed on a computer requiring a computer operating system
– When installed, a desktop application may place many files on a system
– Changes might be made to the operating system settings
– Applications can be complex and designed to do many different things
• App—self-contained program usually designed for a single purpose
– Apps are much smaller than applications
– Do not require complicated installation
– Apps use far fewer system resources than applications and run on lower-end systems and mobile devices
• Web apps—run in browsers and are platform-neutral
– Web apps typically do not require any installation
– Using web apps ensures that the most current version of the program is used
Learning Objective 2.5
• Discuss the Importance of Cloud Computing
Discuss the Importance of Cloud Computing
Cloud Computing (1 of 4)
• The cloud refers to the Internet
• Cloud computing takes processing and storage off a desktop and puts it in the cloud
• Companies are known as Cloud Service Providers (CSP)
– Amazon
– Google
– Salesforce

• Services delivered through the cloud:

– Infrastructure-as-a-Service
– Platform-as-a-Service
– Software-as-a-Service
Cloud Computing (2 of 4)
• Infrastructure-as-a-Service (I aaS)
– The use of servers in the cloud
▪ Reduces the cost for hardware, software, and personnel
Cloud Computing (3 of 4)
• Platform-as-a-Service (P aaS)
– Provides an environment to develop, test, and deploy custom web apps
▪ Facilitates collaboration between developers
Cloud Computing (4 of 4)
• Software-as-a-Service (SaaS)
– The delivery of applications over the Internet
▪ Most visible to users (access to email and Facebook)
Learning Objective 2.6
• Install, Uninstall, and Update Software
Install, Update, and Uninstall Software (1 of 2)
Install, Update, and Uninstall Software (2 of 2)
• Install
– Copies files to a computer that may alter settings and create new files
• Update
– Edits software already installed to add features, fix a bug, improve compatibility, or
increase the levels of a game
• Bug—flaw in the programming.
• Patch or hotfix—addresses individual problems as they are discovered
• Service pack—more extensive, planned update that addresses multiple problems or adds
multiple features
• Uninstall
– Properly removes files, folders, and settings associated with a program
Questions