Applications Software
Applications software includes all programs written to
accomplish particular tasks for computer users. Portfolio
management programs, general ledger accounting pro-
grams, sales forecasting programs, material requirements
planning (MRP) programs, and desktop publishing prod-
ucts are all examples of applications software. Each of you
will be using applications software as part of your job, and
many of you will be involved in developing or obtaining
applications software to meet your organization’s needs.
Because applications software is so diverse, it is dif-
ficult to divide these programs into a few neat categories
as we have done with support software in Figure 2.8.
Instead, we will begin with a brief look at the sources of
applications software, and then we will give an example
of an accounting software packageto illustrate the types
of commercial products that are available for purchase.
Finally, we will look at personal productivity products for
handling many common applications (e.g., word process-
ing, spreadsheets).
Where do we obtain software? Support software is
almost always purchased from a hardware vendor or a soft-
ware company. Applications software, however, is some-
times developed within the organization and sometimes
purchased from an outside source. Standard applications
products, such as word processing, database management
systems (DBMSs), electronic mail, and spreadsheets, are
always purchased. Applications that are unique to the
organization—a one-of-a-kind production control system,
a proprietary foreign exchange trading program, and a
decision support system for adoption or rejection of a new
product—are almost always developed within the organi-
zation (or by a consulting firm or software company under
contract to the organization). The vast middle ground of
applications that are quite similar from one organization to
the next, but which might have some features peculiar to
the particular organization, might be either purchased or
developed.
These middle-ground applications include accounts
payable, accounts receivable, general ledger, inventory
control, sales analysis, and personnel reporting. Here, the
organization must decide whether its requirements are
truly unique. What are the costs and benefits of developing
in-house versus purchasing a commercial product? This
make-or-buy decision for applications software is an
important one for almost every organization, and this topic
will be addressed further in Chapter 10. Let us note at this
point that the rising costs of software development tend to
be pushing the balance toward more purchased software
and less in-house development.
In an interesting development over the past two
decades, much of the internal software development—36 Part I • Information Technology
APPLICATIONS
SOFTWARE
OPERATING SYSTEM
Communications
Interface
Programs
Utility
Programs
Database CASE
Management
Systems
Language
Translators
(3 GL, 4 GL, OOP)
FIGURE 2.8 The Software Iceberg