Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
9. Identify the two primary sources for acquiring application
software.
10. What is an application service provider? What issues arise
in considering the use of an ASP?
11. What is open-source software? What is the biggest stum-
bling block with the use of open-source software?
12. What does the acronym API stand for? What is the role of
an API?
13. Briefly discuss the advantages and disadvantages of fre-
quent software upgrades.
14. Describe the term
enterprise resource planning (ERP) sys-
tem
. What functions does such a system perform?
15. What is freeware? Give two examples.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1.
Assume that you must take a computer-programming
course next semester. What language do you think would
be best for you to study? Why? Do you think that a pro-
fessional programmer needs to know more than one pro-
gramming language? Why or why not?
6. Define the term
software as a service (SaaS)
. What are some
of the advantages and disadvantages of employing a SaaS?
What precautions might you take to minimize the risk of
using one?
7. Describe three personal productivity software packages you
are likely to use the most. What personal productivity soft-
ware packages would you select for your use?
8. Contrast and compare three popular OSs for personal
computers.
9. If you were the IT manager for a large manufacturing com-
pany, what issues might you have with the use of open-
source software? What advantages might there be for use
of such software?
10. Identify four types of software licenses frequently used.
Which approach does the best job of ensuring a steady,
predictable stream of revenue from customers? Which
approach is most fair for the small company that makes
infrequent use of the software?
2.
You are going to buy a personal computer. What operating
system features are important to you? What operating sys-
tem would you select?
3.
Identify the fundamental types of application software.
Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each type.
4.
You are using a new release of an application software
package. You think that you have discovered a bug. Outline
the approach that you would take to confirm that it is
indeed a bug. What actions would you take if it truly was
a bug?
5.
How can application software improve the effectiveness of
a large enterprise? What are some of the benefits associated
with implementation of an enterprise resource planning
system? What are some of the issues that could keep the use
of enterprise resource planning software from being
successful?
PROBLEM-SOLVING EXERCISES
1.
Choose an application software package that might be use-
ful for a career that interests you and develop a six-slide
presentation of its history, current level of usage, typical
applications, ease of use, and so on.
months. Cut and paste both the spreadsheet and the graph
into a word processing document that summarizes your
financial condition.
3.
Use a database program to enter five software products you
are likely to use at work. List the name, vendor or manu-
facturer, cost, and features in the columns of a database
table. Use a word processor to write a report on the software.
Copy the database table into the word processing program.
2.
Use a spreadsheet package to prepare a simple monthly
budget and forecast your cash flow—both income and
expenses for the next six months (make up numbers rather
than using actual ones). Now use a graphics package to plot
the total monthly income and monthly expenses for six
