Computer Software

Computer software has become a deriving force. It is the engine that drives business decision making. It serves as the basic for modern scientific investigation and engineering power solving. It is a key factor that differentiates modern products and services. It is embedded in systems of all kinds: transportation, medical, telecommunications, military, Industrial processes, entertainment, office products,.....the list is almost endless. Software is virtually inescapable in a modern world. And as we move into the twenty first century, it will become the driver for new advances in everything from elementary education to genetic engineering.

What is it?
Computer software is the product that software engineers design and build. It encompasses programs that execute within a computer of any size and architecture, documents that encompass hard copy and virtual forms and data that combine numbers and text but also include representations of pictorial, video and audio information.

Who does it?
Software Engineers build it, and virtually everyone in the industrialized world uses it either directly or indirectly.

Why is it important?
Because it affects nearly every aspect of our lives and has become pervasive in our commerce, our culture, and our everyday activities.

What are the Steps?
You build computer software like you build any successful product, by applying a process that leads to a high quality result that meets the needs of the people who will use the product. You apply a software engineering approach.

What is the work product?
From the point of view of a software engineer, the work product is the program, documents, and data that are computer software. But from the user's viewpoint, the work product is the resultant information that somehow makes the user's world better.