The Origins of software Flashcards
Outsourcing
The practice of turning over responsibility
for some or all of an organization’s
information systems applications and
operations to an outside firm.
reasons for outsourcing
- freeing up internal resources,
- increasing the revenue potential of the organization,
- reducing time to market,
- increasing process efficiencies, and
- outsourcing noncore activities.
- outsourcing may be cost-effective.
sources of software
Information technology services firm Packaged software producers Enterprise-wide solutions ( Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) ) Cloud computing Open source software In-house developers
IT services firms
help companies develop
custom information systems for internal use, or they develop, host, and run applications
for customers, or they provide other services
Packaged Software Producers
Software companies develop what are sometimes called prepackaged or off-the-shelf systems. Their software offerings range from general, broad based packages, such as productivity tools, to very narrow, niche packages, such as software to help manage a day care center.
turnkey systems.
off-the-shelf software systems cannot be modified to meet the specific, individual needs of a particular organization
enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems
A system that integrates individual traditional business functions into a series of modules so that a single transaction occurs seamlessly within a single information system rather than several separate systems.
Cloud computing
The provision of computing resources, including applications, over the Internet, so customers do not have to invest in the
computing infrastructure needed to run and maintain the resources.
Cloud computing Benefits
Free internal IT staff
Faster access to application than via internal development
Lower cost than internal development
Cloud computing drawbacks
Security
Reliability
Regulation compliance
Open-Source Software
Freely available including source code
Developed by a community of interested people
Performs the same functions as commercial software
In-House Development
If sufficient system development expertise with the chosen platform exists in-house, then some or all of the system can be developed by the organization’s own staff.
The most common criteria for choosing off-the self software
- Cost
- Functionality
- Vendor support
- Viability of vendor
- Flexibility
- Documentation
- Response time
- Ease of installation
request for proposal (RFP)
A document provided to vendors that asks
them to propose hardware and system
software that will meet the requirements of
a new system
Validating Purchased Software Information
1- Use a variety of information sources: ( Collect information from vendor, Software documentation, Technical marketing literature)
2- request for proposal (RFP)
3- Running software through a series of tests
4- Feedback from other users of the vendor’s product
5- Independent software testing services
6- Articles in trade publications
reuse
The use of previously written software resources, especially objects and components, in new applications.
Component-based development
Components can be as small as objects or as large as pieces of software that handle single business functions
Abstraction
involves the design of a reusable piece of software, starting from existing software assets or from scratch
Storage
involves making software assets available for others to use
recontextualization
This involves making the reusable asset understandable to developers who want to use it in their systems.
approaches to reuse
1- ad hoc: individuals are free to find or develop reusable assets on their own, and there are few, if any, organizational rewards for reusing assets.
2- facilitated : developers are not required to practice reuse, but they are encouraged to do so. The organization makes available some tools and techniques that enable the development and sharing of reusable assets.
3- Managed : the development, sharing, and adoption of
reusable assets is mandated. The organization establishes processes and policies for ensuring that reuse is practiced and that the results are measured
4- designed : In addition
to mandating reuse and measuring its effectiveness, the designed reuse approach takes the extra step of mandating that assets be designed for reuse as they are being designed for specific applications.
