Download Basic System and Application Software_LAS

Principles of
Information
Technology 1
Lesson Activities
Student Answer Sheet
Basic System and Application Software
The Lesson Activities will help you meet these educational goals:
 Content Knowledge—You will explore different operating systems and application
software used in information systems.
 Inquiry—You will conduct online research, in which you will collect information and
make observations in written form.
 21st Century Skills—You will employ online tools for research and analysis.
Directions
You will evaluate these activities yourself. Please save this document before beginning the
lesson and keep the document open for reference during the lesson. Type your answers
directly in this document for all activities.
_________________________________________________________________________
Self-Checked Activities
Read the instructions for the following activities and type in your responses. At the end of the
lesson, click the link to open the Student Answer Sheet. Use the answers or sample
responses to evaluate your own work.
1. Common Operating Systems and Application Software
In this activity, you will explore the operating systems and application software that
businesses commonly use.
a. Contact a few information systems professionals and ask them what types of operating
systems and application software they use in their organizations. (Alternatively, you
may browse through articles in business periodicals for the same information.) Fill in
the table with information about the operating systems and application software used
in four different organizations.
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Sample answer:
Company
Operating Systems
Oracle Corporation
Oracle Linux
Oracle Solaris
IBM Informix
cross-platform
operating systems:
Microsoft Windows
Linux
Mac OS X
multiple operating
system software
version
UNIX
Tibco Software Inc.
BEA Systems
Application Software
database application
software
business application
software
database application
software
business application
software
relational database
application software
b. Give reasons for each company’s choice of operating systems.
Sample answer:
The Oracle Linux operating system software includes all the latest innovations in the
field. It is an advanced version with improved performance that provides the best
software options to its users. Oracle Linux is a derivative of the UNIX operating
system, which belongs to the multiuser/multitasking operating system category, and
this version has become the most purchased open-source software in the industry.
The Oracle Solaris (UNIX operating system) is also a commonly used operating
system in the Oracle Corporation, and it provides successful outcomes to its users.
The IBM Informix uses cross-platform operating systems. This means that the
software provided by the Informix can run on any given operating system if it has a
certain format (example: x86 architecture for Microsoft Windows, UNIX, LINUX, Mac
OS X). Since almost all of the common operating systems are in use, it terminates the
need to install a specific operating system. The company can use any of the given
operating systems.
Tibco Software provides business application software and on-premises use of
software to leading software companies. This corporation uses all types of operating
systems, and the only shortcoming is that not all of the operating system versions
update simultaneously. Some of the software produced by Tibco Software works on
Windows 7 or 8, and so on.
BEA Systems specializes in infrastructure software and uses relational database
application software. This company uses the UNIX operating system and its derivative,
the Linux operating system. These are multiuser/multitasking operating systems, and
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they give BEA Systems opportunities to reach out to more users and add new
applications software.
2. Types of Application Software and System Software
In this activity, you will explore different types of application software and operating
systems.
a. Research various kinds of application software that this lesson did not discuss, and
briefly describe their use. Use business periodicals, magazines, and books for your
research, and then write about at least three types of application software.
Sample answer:
(Individual answers will vary.)
Types of application software that this lesson did not cover include educational
software, accounting software, and enterprise software.
Education software: This software consists of facilities that enable individuals with an
educational need to access the contents. Teachers, trainers, students, and others who
wish to obtain extra knowledge on a particular subject or take a course as a whole
may make use of this software.
Courseware is an example of educational software. It is a term used by companies for
educational packages that they offer, which involve a whole course or lessons bundled
together on a particular subject with tests and other materials. We can view this
software as ‘computer-formatted’ classroom software that allows an individual to gain
learning experience without being physically present in an educational institution.
With an increasing need to reduce harmful environmental effects from the over-use of
paper, companies as well as educational institutions have taken to technology to help
them solve this problem. Assessment software is educational software that prepares a
virtual testing environment, which conducts tests and evaluates each student’s ability
and knowledge. It relies on interconnected networks that create a common platform for
computers to store the online test results and access it at the time of evaluation.
Accounting software: As the name suggests, accounting software records and
processes accounting transactions. It can consist of an in-house system created by a
company, or a company may buy software from a different company or third party and
then integrate the program into their system. It keeps track of the accounts payable
and receivable, the payroll, and the trial balance. Accounting software is an accounting
information system.
Enterprise software: This software keeps track of the needs and objectives of an
organization. Some organizations may use this software to plan their entire business
system. However, this can be expensive, and many companies avoid using it.
Enterprise application software provides services related to business-oriented tools,
such as online shopping, online payments, automated billing systems, and so on. The
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most popular customer relations management, business intelligence, project
management, and human resource management programs fall under this particular
software category.
b. Using business periodicals, magazines, or books, research and identify two types of
operating systems not discussed in this lesson. Briefly describe these operating
systems and their advantages and drawbacks.
Sample answer:
(Individual answers will vary.)
Embedded operating systems and distributed operating systems are two types of
operating systems that this lesson did not cover.
Embedded operating system: This operating system is for embedded computer
systems, designed for compact and specific use of the resources available to such
operating systems.
The advantage of the embedded operating system is that its operations are very
specific, and the focus is on speed and instant delivery of messages. It carries out
tasks in real-time. However, since this particular operating system has limited
resources, it restricts the usage of Random Access Memory and Read Only Memory.
This means that specialized applications cannot run on these computer systems
because they cannot use enough memory space. This is the main disadvantage of the
embedded operating system.
Distributed operating system: The distributed system is a software system that
involves various components located on computers spread across large distances and
in connection with each other, which means they are interconnected. Such networked
computers working on distributed operating systems have a common goal to achieve,
and they communicate within the network in the form of messages. The
communication between these interconnected computers is quick and precise, and it is
an advantage of this type of system.
However, the distributed operating system’s functioning limits it to accessing a
question, solving it, and then stopping all processes after it. It is unable to continue the
process and to keep developing new solutions to the problems presented to it. It
handles only one problem at a time, which is a disadvantage when confronted with
multifaceted problems.
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