Management information system ralp 7e ch04

• Do not develop proprietary application software unless doing so will meet a compelling business need that can provide a competitive advantage• Discuss how application software can supp

• When selecting an operating system, you must consider the current and future requirements for application software to meet the needs of the organization In addition, your choice

of a particular operating system must be consistent with

your choice of hardware.

• Identify and briefly describe the functions of the two basic kinds of software

• Do not develop proprietary application software unless doing so will meet a compelling business need that can provide a competitive advantage

• Discuss how application software can support personal, workgroup, and enterprise business objectives

• Identify three basic approaches to developing application software and discuss the pros and cons of each

• Choose a programming language whose functional characteristics are appropriate for the task at hand, taking into consideration the skills and experience of the programming staff

• Outline the overall evolution of programming

• The software industry continues to undergo constant change; users need to be aware of recent trends and issues to be effective in their business and personal life

• Identify several key issues and trends that have an impact on organizations and individuals

Table 4.1: Classifying Software by Type

and Sphere of Influence

Systems Software: Operating Systems

• Operating system (OS): a set of computer programs that controls the computer hardware and acts as an interface with application programs

• Kernel: ties all of the components of the OS together and regulates other programs; controls the most critical

processes

Operating Systems (continued)

• Activities performed by the operating system:

• Perform common computer hardware functions

• Provide a user interface and input/output management

• Provide a degree of hardware independence

• Manage system memory

Operating Systems (continued)

• Activities performed by the operating system:

• Manage processing tasks

• Provide networking capability

• Control access to system resources

• Manage files

Figure 4.2:

Operating system as interface between

application software and hardware

Operating Systems (continued)

• Common hardware functions

• Get input from the keyboard or some other input device

• Retrieve data from disks

• Store data on disks

• Display information on a monitor or printer

Operating Systems (continued)

• User interface and input/output management

• User interface: allows individuals to access and command the computer system

• Command-based user interface: requires that text

commands be given to the computer to perform basic

activities

• Graphical user interface (GUI): uses icons and menus displayed on screen to send commands to computer system

Operating Systems (continued)

• Application program interface (API): allows

applications to make use of the operating system

• Memory management: control how memory is accessed and maximize available memory and storage

Figure 4.3: Application Program Interface

Links Application Software to the

Operating System

• Processing tasks

• Multitasking: capability allowing more than one program

to run at the same time

• Time-sharing: allows more than one person to use a

computer system at the same time

• Scalability: ability of the computer to handle an increasing number of concurrent users smoothly

• Networking capability: features and capabilities of the OS

Operating Systems (continued)

Operating Systems (continued)

• Access to system resources

• Protection against unauthorized access

• Logins and passwords

• File management: ensures that files in secondary storage are available when needed and that they are protected from access by unauthorized users

Table 4.3: Popular Operating Systems Cross All Three Spheres of Influence

Current Operating Systems

• Microsoft PC operating systems

• Apple computer operating systems

• Linux

Workgroup Operating Systems

Enterprise Operating Systems

• z/OS

• MPE/iX and HP-UX

• Linux

Operating Systems for Small Computers

and Special-Purpose Devices

• Palm OS

• Windows Embedded

• Windows Mobile

Utility Programs

• Utility programs are used to:

• Merge and sort sets of data

• Keep track of computer jobs being run

• Compress data files before they are stored or transmitted over a network

• Perform other important tasks

Utility Programs (continued)

Utility Programs (continued)

• Network and Internet utilities

• Server and mainframe utilities

• Other utilities

Table 4.4: Examples of Utility Programs

Application Software

• Primary function is to apply the power of the computer to give individuals, workgroups, and the entire enterprise the ability to solve problems and perform specific tasks

• Application programs interact with systems software;

systems software then directs the computer hardware to perform the necessary tasks

Types and Functions of Application

Software

• Proprietary software: a one-of-a-kind program for a specific application, usually developed and owned by a single company

• Off-the-shelf software: existing software programs that are purchased

Table 4.5: A Comparison of Proprietary

and Off-the-Shelf Software

Table 4.5: A Comparison of Proprietary and Off-the-Shelf Software (continued)

Personal Application Software

• Serve the needs of an individual user

• Include personal productivity software, which enable users to improve their personal effectiveness

Table 4.6: Examples of Personal

Productivity Software

Table 4.6: Examples of Personal Productivity Software (continued)

Workgroup Application Software

• Workgroup application software: designed to support teamwork, whether people are in the same location or dispersed around the world

• Groupware: software that helps groups of people work together more efficiently and effectively

Table 4.8: Ernst & Young’s “Three Cs”

Rule for Groupware

Enterprise Application Software

• Software that benefits an entire organization

• Enterprise resource planning (ERP) software: a set of integrated programs that manage a company’s vital

business operations for an entire multisite, global

organization

Table 4.9: Examples of Enterprise

Application Software

Table 4.11: The Evolution of Programming Languages

First Generation

• Machine language

• Required use of binary symbols (0s and 1s)

Second Generation

• Assembly languages

• Use symbols rather than binary digits

• Assemblers: programs that translate assembly languages into machine code

Third Generation

• Greater use of symbolic code

• Examples: BASIC, COBOL, C, and FORTRAN

• Compiler: a software program that converts the

programmer’s source code into the machine-language instructions consisting of binary digits

Figure 4.18: How a Compiler Works

Languages Beyond the Fourth

Generation

• Artificial intelligence, visual, and object-oriented languages

• Easier for nonprogrammers to use

• Programming languages used to create artificial

intelligence or expert systems applications are called generation languages (5GLs)

fifth-• Visual languages use a graphical or visual interface for

program development

• Object-oriented programming languages are based on

objects (data and the actions that can be performed on it)

Software Issues and Trends

• Software bugs: defects in a computer program that keep

it from performing in the manner intended

• Copyrights and licenses

• Open-source software: software that is freely available

to anyone in a form that can be easily modified

Software Issues and Trends

(continued)

• Shareware and freeware: software that is very

inexpensive or free, but whose source code cannot be modified

• Multiorganizational software development

• Software upgrades

• Global software support

Summary (continued)

icons and menus displayed on screen to send commands to the computer system

• Time-sharing allows more than one person to use a

computer system at the same time

for a specific application, usually developed and owned by a single company

Summary (continued)

• Enterprise resource planning (ERP) software:

manages a company’s vital business operations for an entire multisite, global organization

• Programming languages allow humans to communicate instructions to be executed by a computer

• Programming languages can be classified as first

generation, second generation, third generation, fourth generation, and languages beyond the fourth generation