Information System for Managers

Chapter 4 - Software: Systems

and Application Software
 CONTENT

 Why Learn about S/W

 Introduction
 System Software

Operating System
 Utility Programs
 Middleware and Others
 Application Software
 Programming Languages
 Open Source Software
 Why Learn About Software?

 Systems & application S/W are critical in helping

individuals & organizations achieve their goals
 Decide – Build or Buy
 Choose appropriate software platform
considering the skills and experience
 Need to be aware of recent trends and issues to
be effective in business and personal life
 Introduction

 Systems software: coordinates the activities

and functions of hardware and programs
 Computer system platform: combination of a
hardware configuration and systems software
 Application software: helps users solve
particular problems
 Computer programs: sequences of
instructions for the computer
 Documentation: describes program functions
 Systems Software

 Operating systems
 Utility programs
 Middleware and Others
 Operating Systems (continued)

 Combinations of OSs, computers, and users


Single computer with a single user, e.g. PC

Single computer with multiple users, e.g. Main Frame
computer where hundreds of users are working

Multiple computers, e.g. network of computers

Special-purpose computers, e.g. home appliances
 Operating Systems (continued)

 OS is set of programs
 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

Manage processing tasks

Provide networking capability

Control access to system resources

Manage files
Operating Systems (continued)

Figure 4.4: The Role of Systems Software

 Operating Systems (continued)

 Common hardware functions


Get input from 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 the
computer system
 Operating Systems (continued)

 Hardware independence

Application program interface (API): allows
applications to make use of the operating system

If hardware changes, application software need not
change
 Memory management

Control how memory is allocated, accessed and
maximize available memory and storage

Physical Memory vs. Virtual Memory
 Operating Systems (continued)

Figure 4.6: Application Program Interface Links Application

Software to the Operating System
 Operating Systems (continued)

 Processing tasks

Multitasking: more than one program can 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 that aid users in
connecting to a computer network
 Operating Systems (continued)

 Access to system resources and security


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
 Current OS

Table 4.2: Popular Operating Systems Cross All Three Spheres of Influence
 Current OS (cont)

 Microsoft PC operating systems


PC-DOS and MS-DOS: early, command-driven OSs

Windows XP: greatly improved stability and security
over previous versions of Windows

Windows XP Professional X64: for computers with
newer 64-bit capabilities

Vista: latest version of Windows

Which is the new OS already announced?
 Current OS (cont)

 Apple operating systems


Often provide cutting edge tools in graphics and
music not available from Microsoft

Mac OS X
 Jaguar (OS X.2)
 Panther (OS X.3)
 Tiger (OS X.4): support for 64-bit computing,
Dashboard, Spotlight, etc.
 Current OS (cont)

 Linux

Developed by Linus Torvalds in 1991

Open-source product

Only the kernel of an OS

Several distributions available with
capabilities/applications that form a complete OS
 Examples: Red Hat Linux, Caldera OpenLinux
 Workgroup Operating Systems

 Windows Server
 UNIX
 NetWare
 Red Hat Linux
 Mac OS X Server
 Enterprise Operating Systems

 z/OS
 MPE/iX
 HP-UX
 Linux
 Operating Systems for Small
Computers, Embedded Computers,
and Special-Purpose Devices
 Palm OS
 Windows Embedded
 Windows Mobile
 Utility Programs

 Hardware utilities: i.e. check status of Hard Disk

 Virus-detection and recovery utilities
 File-compression utilities
 Spam and pop-up blocker utilities
 Network and Internet utilities
 Server and mainframe utilities

Monitor network

Virtual Machine – Multiple OS on same machine
 Other utilities, e.g. Searches for files and
documents
 Middleware and Others

 Middleware: Software that allows different

applications to communicate & exchange data.
 WEB Server (e.g. Apache)
 Application Server (WEBSphere)
 Transaction Server (Tuxedo)
 RDBMS (SQL Server 2005)
 Compilers
 Interpreters
 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, e.g.

Railway Reservation

ATM

Pay Roll
 Application programs interact with systems
software; systems software then directs
computer hardware to perform the necessary
tasks
 Overview of Application Software

 Proprietary software: one-of-a-kind program

for a specific application, usually developed and
owned by a single company, e.g. Pay Roll for
Krune Computer Consultancy
 Off-the-shelf software: existing software
program that is purchased, e.g. Tally
 Overview of Application Software
(continued)

Table 4.4: A Comparison of Proprietary and Off-the-Shelf Software

 Overview of Application Software
(continued)

Table 4.4: A Comparison of Proprietary and Off-the-Shelf Software (continued)

 Personal Application Software

 Serves the needs of an individual user

 Includes personal productivity software

Enables users to improve their personal effectiveness
 Personal Application Software
(continued)

Table 4.5: Examples of Personal Productivity Software

 Personal Application Software (continued)

Table 4.5: Examples of Personal Productivity Software (continued)

 Personal Application Software
(continued)

 Software suite: collection of single application

programs packaged in a bundle

Microsoft Office: most popular general-purpose
software suite

Other general-purpose software suites: Corel’s
WordPerfect Office, Lotus SmartSuite, Sun
Microsystems’s StarOffice
 Integrated application packages: offer a range
of capabilities for less money than software
suites

Example: Microsoft Works
 Personal Application Software
(continued)

Table 4.6: Major Components of Leading Software Suites

 Workgroup Application Software

 Workgroup application software:


support teamwork, whether people are in the same
location or dispersed around the world

Helps groups of people work together more efficiently
and effectively
Examples

Schedule Team Meetings – reflects on individual
calendar

Collaborative software for working on same
document, e.g. Track Change

Threaded group discussion
 Enterprise Application Software

 Software that benefits an entire organization

 Enterprise Application Software

 Enterprise resource planning (ERP) software:

set of integrated programs that manage a
company’s vital business operations for an
entire multisite, global organization
 Specialized Application Software

Forecasting sale for next month

Predicting which customer is more likely to buy

Which items in supermarket sell together

Visualize and analyze the human genome
 Programming Languages

 Sets of keywords, symbols, and a system of

rules for constructing statements by which
humans can communicate instructions to be
executed by a computer
 Different languages have different
characteristics
 Syntax: a set of rules associated with a
programming language
The Evolution of Programming
Languages

3G Example – C, COBOL, FORTRAN

Table 4.9: The Evolution of Programming Languages
 3GL Vs 4GL

 3GL

Tells how to do

More Efficient

More flexible
 4GL

Tells what to do (How part left on system)

Higher productivity
 Embedding 4GL in 3GL – Best of both worlds
 3GL Object oriented programming languages
are based on objects, e.g. C++, Java
 The Evolution of Programming
Languages (continued)

Figure 4.21: Reusable Code in Object-Oriented Programming

 Complier and Interpreter

 Compiler: a special software program that

converts programmer’s source code into
machine-language program
 Interpreter: a special software program that
converts programmer’s instruction (One at a
time) into machine-language instructions and
executes them
The Evolution of Programming
Languages (continued)

Figure 4.23: How a Compiler Works

 Software Issues and Trends

 Because software is such an important part of

today’s computer systems, software issues have
received increased attention
 Major software issues and trends discussed in
the text

Software bugs, copyright, software licensing, open-
source software, shareware and public domain
software, multiorganizational software development,
software upgrades, and global software support
 Software Issues and Trends (Cont)

 Software bug: defect in a computer program

that keeps it from performing as it is designed to
perform
 Most software products are protected by law
using copyright or licensing provisions

In some cases, you are given unlimited use of
software on one or two computers

In other cases, you pay for your usage—if you use
the software more, you pay more
 Some software now requires that you register or
activate it before it can be fully used
 Open-Source Software

 Open-source software:

software freely available to anyone in a form that can
be easily modified (System Software, Utility or
Application Software)
 Some widely used open-source software:

Linux OS, Free BSD, Apache, Sendmail, Perl
 Open-source software disadvantages

systems can contain hidden costs, particularly for user
support or solving problems with the software

However community or paid third party support made
available
Open-Source Software (continued)

Table 4.10: Examples of Open-Source Software

 Shareware, Freeware, and Public
Domain Software

 Shareware and freeware:


Software that is very inexpensive or free

Source code cannot be modified

Source code may not be available (Acrobat Reader)
 Public domain software:

Shareware and freeware that is in the public domain

Not protected by copyright law

Can be freely copied and used

May not be open source
 Open Source

Source is available
 Software Upgrades

 Software companies revise their programs and

sell new versions periodically
 Revised software may or may not offer any
major additional capabilities
 Revised software may have patches for bugs
 Revised software can contain bugs or errors

Users should not be first to work at the latest version

Who should be first?
 Software upgrades usually cost much less than
the original purchase price
 Global Software Support

 Vendors face the challenge of providing

adequate support for their software customers in
all locations of the world
 Trend of outsourcing global support to one or
more third-party distributors