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Programming software


programming tool or software development tool is a program or application that software developers use to create, debug, maintain, or otherwise support other programs and applications. The term usually refers to relatively simple programs that can be combined together to accomplish a task, much as one might use multiple hand tools to fix a physical object. Programming tool or programming software is a sub-category of system software but sometimes it is stated as a separate category of software along with application and system software.[1]

Application software


Application software, also known as an application or an app, is computer software designed to help the user to perform specific tasks. Examples include enterprise software, accounting software, office suites, graphics software and media players. Many application programs deal principally with documents. Apps may be bundled with the computer and its system software, or may be published separately. Some users are satisfied with the bundled apps and need never install one.

Application software is contrasted with system software and middleware, which manage and integrate a computer's capabilities, but typically do not directly apply in the performance of tasks that benefit the user. The system software serves the application, which in turn serves the user.

Similar relationships apply in other fields. For example, a shopping mall does not provide the merchandise a shopper is seeking, but provides space and services for retailers that serve the shopper. A bridge may similarly support rail tracks which support trains, allowing the trains to transport passengers.

This category includes:



      • Business software

      • Computer-aided design

      • Databases

      • Decision-making software

      • Educational software

      • Image editing

      • Industrial automation

      • Mathematical software

      • Medical software

      • Molecular modeling software

      • Quantum chemistry and solid state physics software

      • Simulation software

      • Spreadsheets

      • Telecommunications (i.e., the Internet and everything that flows on it)

      • Video editing software

      • Video games

      • Word processing


Commercial Software


Commercial software, or less commonly, payware, is computer software that is produced for sale[1] or that serves commercial purposes. Commercial software is most often proprietary software, but free software packages may also be commercial software.[2][3][4]

All or parts of software packages and services that support commerce are increasingly made available as free software. This includes products from Red Hat, Apple Computer, Sun Microsystems, Google, and Microsoft Corporation. Microsoft Corporation uses "commercial software", to describe their business model.[5]


Free and open-source software


While less common than commercial proprietary software, free and open-source software may also be commercial software. This is a fact that the Free Software Foundation emphasizes,[6] and is the basis of the Open Source Initiative.

Under the free software business model, free software vendors may charge a fee for distribution and offer pay support and software customization services. Proprietary software uses a different business model, where a customer of the proprietary software pays a fee for a license to use the software. This license may grant the customer the ability to configure some or no parts of the software themselves. Often some level of support is included in the purchase of proprietary software, but additional support services (especially for enterprise applications) are usually available for an additional fee. Some proprietary software vendors will also customize software for a fee.[7]

Free software is generally available at no cost and can result in permanently lower costs compared to proprietary software. With free software, businesses can fit software to their specific needs by changing the software themselves or by hiring programmers to modify it for them. Free software often has no warranty, and more importantly, generally does not assign legal liability to anyone. However, warranties are permitted between any two parties upon the condition of the software and its usage. Such an agreement is made separately from the free software license.

Freeware


Freeware (portmanteau of "free" and "software") is software that is available for use at no cost or for an optional fee,[1] but usually with one or more restricted usage rights.[2][3][4] Freeware is in contrast to commercial software, which is typically sold for profit, but might be distributed for a business or commercial purpose in the aim to expand the marketshare of a "premium" product.

According to theFree Software Foundation, "freeware" is a loosely defined category and it has no clear accepted definition, although FSF says it must be distinguished from free software (libre).[4] Popular examples ofclosed-source freeware include Adobe reader and Skype.


Shareware


The term shareware (also termed trialware or demoware) is proprietary software that is provided to users without payment on a trial basis and is often limited by any combination of functionality,availability (it may be functional for a limited time period only), or convenience (the software may present a dialog at startup or during usage, reminding the user to purchase it; "nagging dialogs"). Shareware is often offered as a download from an Internet website or as a compact disc included with a periodical such as a newspaper or magazine. The rationale behind shareware is to give buyers the opportunity to use the program and judge its usefulness before purchasing a license for the full version of the software. Firms with superior software thus have an incentive to offer samples, except if their product is already well known, or if they do not want to be listed in direct competition with other products on shareware repositories.[1]

Shareware is usually offered either with certain features only available after the license is purchased, or as a full version but for a limited trial period of time. Once the trial period has passed, the program may stop running until a license is purchased. Shareware is often offered without supports or updates which only become available with the purchase of a license. The words "free trial" or "trial version" are indicative of shareware.

The term shareware is used in contrast to retail software, which refers to commercial software available only with the purchase of a license which may not be copied for others; public domain software, which refers to software not copyright protectedopen-source software, in which the source code is available for anyone to inspect and alter; and freeware, which refers to copyrighted software for which the developers solicit no payment (though they may request donations).



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