The primary purpose of this type of software is to create text-based documents

60

DEMO : Purchase from A-PDF to remove the watermark

61

Learning Objectives

After you have read this chapter, you should be able to:

1 Identify general-purpose applications. 2 Describe word processors, spreadsheets, presentation programs, and database management systems. 3 Identify specialized applications. 4 Describe graphics programs, web authoring programs, and other specialized professional applications. 5 Describe mobile apps and app stores. 6 Identify software suites. 7 Describe office suites, cloud suites, specialized suites, and utility suites.

The power and capability of application software is exploding. We can expect applications beyond our imagination and to control these applications entirely with our voice, gestures, and thoughts. This chapter covers the things you need to know to be prepared for this ever-changing digital world, including:

• General-purpose applications—how to create documents, ana- lyze data, make presentations, and organize information. • Special-purpose applications—how to use graphics programs for image editing and creating web pages and how to locate and use mobile apps. • Software suites—how to use suites and cloud-based applications.

AppLIcAtIOn SOftwAre 63

Many applications, and Microsoft applications in particular, use an interface known as the Ribbon GUI to make it easier to find and use all the features of an application; this GUI uses a system of ribbons, tabs, and galleries. (See Figure 3-2.) • Ribbons replace menus and toolbars by organizing commonly used commands into a set of tabs. These tabs display command buttons that are the most relevant to the tasks being performed by the user. • Tabs are used to divide the ribbon into major activity areas. Each tab is then orga- nized into groups that contain related items. Some tabs, called contextual tabs, appear only when they are needed and anticipate the next operation to be per- formed by the user.

figure 3-1 traditional graphical user interface

Menu bar

Toolbar

Button Dialog box

figure 3-2 ribbon GUI

Gallery

Tabs

Groups

Ribbons

64 chApter 3

• Galleries simplify the process of making a selection from a list of alternatives. This
is accomplished by graphically displaying the effect of alternatives before being
selected.

common features Most applications provide a variety of features to make entering/presenting, editing, and formatting documents easy. Some of the most common features include • Spell checker—looks for misspelled words. • Alignment—centers, right-aligns, or left-aligns numbers and characters. • Fonts and font sizes (perhaps using character effects)—specify the size and style of entered numbers and text. • Character effects—provide a variety of different typefaces, such as bold or italics. • Edit options—provide easy ways to edit text, such as cut, copy, and paste.

concept check

List three categories of application software. What is a graphical user interface? What are windows, menus, toolbars, and dialog boxes? What is the Ribbon GUI? What are ribbons, tabs, and galleries? Discuss some of the most common features in application programs.

As mentioned previously, general-purpose applications include word processors, spreadsheets, presentation graphics, and database management systems.

word processors Word processors create text-based documents and are one of the most flexible and widely used software tools. All types of people and organizations use word processors to create memos, letters, and faxes. Organizations create newsletters, manuals, and brochures to provide information to their customers. Students and researchers use word processors to create reports. Microsoft Word is the most widely used word processor. Other popular word pro- cessors include Apple Pages, Google Docs, Corel WordPerfect, and OpenOffice Writer. Assume that you have accepted a job as an advertising coordinator for Adventure Travel Tours, a travel agency specializing in active adventure vacations. Your primary responsibilities are to create and coordinate the company’s promotional materials, including flyers and travel reports. To see how you could use Microsoft Word as the advertising coordinator for the Adventure Travel Tours, see Figures 3-3 and 3-4.

66 chApter 3

creating a report

Your next assignment is to create a report on Tanzania and Peru. After conducting your research, you start writ- ing your paper. As you enter the text for the report, you notice that the AutoCorrect feature automatically cor- rects some grammar and punctuation errors. Your report includes several figures and tables. You use the captions feature to keep track of figure and table numbers, to enter the caption text, and to position the captions. You use the footnote feature to assist in adding notes to further explain or comment on information in the report. Finally, you prepare the report for printing by adding header and footer information.

figure 3-4 report

captions Identifying figures with captions in a report makes the report easier to read and more professional.

Autocorrect As you enter text, you occasionally forget to capitalize the first word in a sentence. Fortunately, Auto- correct recognizes the error and automatically capitalizes the word.

footnote To include a note about Mt. Kilimanjaro, you use the footnote feature. This feature inserts the footnote superscript number and automatically formats the bottom of the page to contain the footnote text.

header or footer Page numbers and other document-related infor- mation can be included in a header or footer.

AppLIcAtIOn SOftwAre 67

Spreadsheets Spreadsheets organize, analyze, and graph numeric data such as budgets and finan- cial reports. Once used exclusively by accountants, spreadsheets are widely used by nearly every profession. Marketing professionals analyze sales trends. Financial ana- lysts evaluate and graph stock market trends. Students and teachers record grades and calculate grade point averages. The most widely used spreadsheet program is Microsoft Excel. Other spreadsheet applications include Apple Numbers, Corel Quattro Pro, Google Sheets, and Open- Office Calc. Assume that you have just accepted a job as manager of the Downtown Internet Café. This café provides a variety of flavored coffees as well as Internet access. One of your responsibilities is to create a financial plan for the next year. To see how you could use Microsoft Excel as the manager for the Downtown Internet Café, see Figures 3-5 and 3-6.

creating a Sales forecast

Your first project is to develop a first-quarter sales forecast for the café. You begin by studying sales data and talking with sev- eral managers. After obtaining sales and expense estimates, you are ready to create the first-quarter forecast. You start struc- turing the worksheet by inserting descriptive text entries for the row and column headings. Next, you insert numeric entries, including formulas and functions to perform calculations. To test the accuracy of the worksheet, you change the values in some cells and compare the recalculated spreadsheet results with hand calculations.

figure 3-5 first-quarter forecast

worksheets worksheets are used for a wide range of different applications. One of the most common uses is to create, analyze, and forecast budgets. text entries text entries provide meaning to the values in the worksheet. The rows are labeled to identify the various sales and expense items. The columns are labeled to specify the months.

functions functions are prewritten formulas. In this case, cell C22 (Total Expenses for February) contains the function SUM(C14:C21) rather than the formula = C14 + C15 + C16 + C17 + C18 + C19 + C20 + C21.

cells cells can contain labels, numbers, formulas, and functions. A cell’s content is indicated by the row and column labels. For example, cell D16 contains a number for the Payroll expense expected for March.

formulas formulas provide a way to perform calculations in the worksheet. In this case, cell C24 contains the formula = C12 (Total Sales for February) – C22 (Total Expenses for February) and displays the result of the calculation for the Net Income for February.

AppLIcAtIOn SOftwAre 69

presentation Graphics

Research shows that people learn better when information is presented visually. Presentation graphics are programs that combine a variety of visual objects to create attractive, visually interesting presentations. They are excellent tools to communicate a message and to persuade people. People in a variety of settings and situations use presentation graphics programs to make their presentations. For example, marketing managers use presentation graph- ics to present proposed marketing strategies to their superiors. Salespeople use these programs to demonstrate products and encourage customers to make purchases. Stu- dents use presentation graphics programs to create high-quality class presentations. Six of the most widely used presentation graphics programs are Microsoft Power- Point, Apple Keynote, Google Slides, Corel Presentations, OpenOffice Impress, and Prezi. Assume that you have volunteered for the Animal Rescue Foundation, a local ani- mal rescue agency. You have been asked to create a powerful and persuasive presenta- tion to encourage other members from your community to volunteer. To see how you could use Microsoft PowerPoint, see Figure 3-7.

creating a presentation

You have been asked to create a powerful and persuasive presentation for the director of the foundation designed to encourage other members from your community to volunteer. The first step is to meet with the director of the foundation to determine the content of the presentation. Then using PowerPoint, you begin creating the presentation by selecting a pre- sentation template and document theme. After entering the content, you add interest to the presentation by adding animation to selected objects and using slide transition effects.

figure 3-7 presentation

Document theme To make your presentation more professional and eye- catching, you select a document theme , built-in sets of colors, fonts, and effects that can be quickly applied to your entire presentation.

templates templates provide an excellent way to quickly create a presentation by providing predesigned styles and layouts as well as suggested content based on the type of template you select.

Animation To provide additional emphasis to items or show the information on a slide in phases, you add animation to text and objects. Finally, you use slide transition effects to animate the transition from one slide to the next.

70 chApter 3

Database Management Systems A database is a collection of related data. It is the electronic equivalent of a file cabi- net. A database management system (DBMS) or database manager is a program that sets up, or structures, a database. It also provides tools to enter, edit, and retrieve data from the database. All kinds of individuals use databases, from hospital admin- istrators recording patient information to police officers checking criminal histories. Colleges and universities use databases to keep records on their students, instructors, and courses. Organizations of all types maintain employee databases. Four widely used database management systems designed for personal computers are Microsoft Access, Apple FileMaker, Google Obvibase, and OpenOffice Base. Assume that you have accepted a job as an employment administrator for the Life- style Fitness Club. To see how you could use Microsoft Access, see Figure 3-8.

concept check

What are word processors? What are they used for? What are spreadsheets? What are they used for? What are presentation graphics programs? What are they used for? What are database management systems? What are they used for?

While general-purpose applications are widely used in nearly every profession, spe- cialized applications are widely used within specific professions. These programs include graphics programs and web authoring programs.

Graphics Graphics are widely used by professionals in the graphic arts profession. They use desktop publishing programs, image editing programs, illustration programs, and video editors. • Desktop publishing programs, or page layout programs, allow you to mix text and graphics to create publications of professional quality. While word processors focus on creating text and have the ability to combine text and graphics, desktop publishers focus on page design and layout and provide greater flexibility. Profes- sional graphic artists use desktop publishing programs to create documents such as brochures, newsletters, newspapers, and textbooks. Popular desktop publishing programs include Adobe InDesign, Microsoft Publisher, and QuarkXPress. While these programs provide the capability to cre- ate text and graphics, typically graphic artists import these elements from other sources, including word processors, digital cameras, scanners, image editors, illus- tration programs, and image galleries.

72 chApter 3

• Image editors, also known as photo editors, are specialized
graphics programs for editing or modifying digital photo-
graphs. They are often used to touch up photographs to
remove scratches and other imperfections. The photographs
consist of thousands of dots or pixels that form images often
referred to as bitmap or raster images. One limitation of bit-
map images, however, is that when they are expanded, the
images can become pixelated, or jagged on the edges. For
example, when the letter A in Figure 3-9 is expanded, the bor-
ders of the letter appear jagged, as indicated by the expanded
view.
   Popular image editors include Adobe Photoshop, Corel
PaintShop Pro, GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program),

figure 3-9 Bitmap image and Windows Photo Gallery.

Letter A

Expanded view

• Illustration programs, also known as drawing programs, are used to create and
edit vector images. While bitmap images use pixels to represent images, vector
images, also known as vector illustrations, use geometric shapes or objects. These
objects are created by connecting lines and curves avoiding the pixeleted or ragged
edges created by bitmap images. (See Figure 3-10.) Because these objects can be
defined by mathematical equations, they can be rapidly and easily resized, col-
ored, textured, and manipulated. An image is a combination of several objects.
   Illustration programs are often used for graphic design, page layout, and creat-
ing sharp artistic images. Popular illustration programs include Adobe Illustrator,
CorelDRAW, and Inkscape.
• Video editors are used to edit videos to enhance quality and appearance. Once
used only by Hollywood professionals, video editors are now widely used to edit
high-quality video captured using smartphones and other devices. You can readily
add special effects, music tracks, titles, and on-screen graphics.
   Just a few years ago, video editors were used only by professionals with expen-
sive specialized hardware and software. Now, there are several free or inexpensive
editors designed to assist the amateur videographer. Three well-known video edi-
tors are Windows Live Movie Maker, Apple iMovie, and YouTube Video Editor.
(See Figure 3-11.)

figure 3-10 Vector image

figure 3-11 Video editor

ethics

Image editing software has made it easy to alter any photo or video to correct for a variety of different imperfections. However, some professionals can use these programs to significantly manipulate the content or meaning of a photo or video. Such changes are often intended to influence the opinions or emotions of the viewer. Supporters argue that this type of editing is acceptable and is just another way to express an opinion or feeling from an editor. Critics note that this type of image and video manipulation is unethical because it intentionally misleads the viewer and often creates unobtainable or unhealthy definitions of beauty. What do you think?

AppLIcAtIOn SOftwAre 73

figure 3-12 Video game design software

Video Game Design Software

Have you ever thought about designing a video game? While it may initially be unre- alistic to create an immersive 3D world like Skyrim or BioShock, you can experiment and create some impressive games on your own with the right software. The first step is to visualize the game by thinking about the game’s length and plot. The second step is to choose the right video game design software. Video game design software will help you organize your thoughts and guide you through the game design process including character development and environmen- tal design. There are many choices from free software to very expensive software designed for professional game designers. Some of the better-known free or inexpen- sive video game design software are YoYo GameMaker, Stencyl, Flixel, and Unity. (See Figure 3-12.)

web Authoring programs

There are over a billion websites on the Internet, and more are being added every day. Corporations use the web to reach new customers and to promote their prod- ucts. Individuals create online diaries or commentaries, called blogs. Creating a site is called web authoring. Almost all websites consist of interrelated web pages. As we mentioned in Chapter 2, web pages are typically HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) and CSS (cascading style sheets) documents. With knowledge of HTML and a simple text editor, you can create web pages. Even without knowledge of HTML, you can create simple web pages using a word processing package like Microsoft Word. More specialized and powerful programs, called web authoring programs, are typically used to create sophisticated commercial sites. Also known as web page editors and HTML editors, these programs provide support for website design and HTML coding. Some web authoring programs are WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) editors, which means you can build a page without interacting directly with HTML code. WYSIWYG editors preview the page described by HTML code. Widely used web authoring programs include Adobe Dreamweaver and Microsoft Expres- sion Web.

AppLIcAtIOn SOftwAre 75

• Shopping. A recent poll concluded that well over half of
all smartphone users in the United States regularly use
their phones for shopping. By scanning a product’s bar-
code, shopping apps search for the product and provide
price comparisons as well as product reviews. Using
Amazon’s Price Check app, all you need to do is take a
picture of the product.

• Games. One of the most popular activities on smart-
phones and tablets is game playing. Some of these
games are quite basic, are free, and include in-app
optional purchases. For example, Crossy Road chal-
lenges game players to assist a character across obsta-
cles (roads, rivers, grass, and train tracks) without
succumbing to obstacles such as rivers, trees, trains
and cars. Players have the option to buy additional
characters. Some other games are quite complex and
are not free. For example, Dragon Quest V is a popular
role playing game (RPG) where gamers create their
own villages, fight off intruders, and form alliances with millions of other play-
ers online. (See Figure 3-13.)
Many apps are written for a particular type of mobile device and will not run on

other types. For example, an app designed for Apple’s iPhone may not work with Google’s Android.

App Stores

An app store is typically a website that provides access to specific mobile apps that can be downloaded either for a nominal fee or free of charge. Two of the best-known stores are Apple’s App Store and Google Play. (See Figure 3-14.) Although most of the best- known app stores specialize in applications for a particular line of mobile device, other less well-known stores provide apps for a wide variety of mobile devices. For a list of some more widely used app stores, see Figure 3-15.

figure 3-13 crossy road game

figure 3-14 Apple’s App Store

privacy

Did you know that many mobile phone apps track a phone’s physical location? For example, iOS’s Siri and Android’s Google Now use a smartphone’s GPS to track locations to customize interactions with users. The smartphone’s location is monitored, stored, and potentially used for a variety of different objectives. Privacy advocates argue that many people are unaware that they may be tracked in this manner and that their movements are recorded for possible later use. App developers argue that the objective is simply to improve users’ interactions with their smartphones. What do you think?

76 chApter 3

A software suite is a collection of separate application programs bundled together and made available as a group. Four types of suites are office suites, cloud suites, special- ized suites, and utility suites.

Office Suites Office suites, also known as office software suites and productivity suites, contain general-purpose application programs that are typically used in a business situation. Productivity suites commonly include a word processor, spreadsheet, database man- ager, and a presentation application. The best known is Microsoft Office. Other well- known productivity suites are Apple iWork and OpenOffice.

cloud computing Cloud suites or online office suites are stored at a server on the Internet and are avail- able anywhere you can access the Internet. Documents created using online applica- tions can also be stored online, making it easy to share and collaborate on documents with others. One downside to cloud applications is that you are dependent on the server providing the application to be available whenever you need it. For this rea- son, when using online applications, it is important to have backup copies of your documents on your computer and to have a desktop office application available to use. Popular online office suites include Google Docs, Zoho, and Microsoft Office 365 and Office for iPad. (See Figure 3-16.) To learn more about one of the most widely used online office suites, see Making IT Work for You: Google Docs on page 78.

Specialized and Utility Suites Two other types of suites that are more narrowly focused are specialized suites and utility suites. • Specialized suites focus on specific applications. These include graphics suites like CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X6, financial planning suites like Moneytree Software’s TOTAL Planning Suite, and many others. • Utility suites include a variety of programs designed to make computing easier and safer. Two of the best known are Norton SystemWorks and Norton Internet Security Suite. (Utility suites will be discussed in detail in Chapter 4.)

concept check

What are mobile apps? What are they used for? Describe two types of game apps. What is RPG? What are app stores? What are they used for?

App Store focus Site Apple App Store Apple devices apple/itunes/charts Google Play Android devices play.google/store/apps

Appszoom Android and Apple devices appszoom figure 3-15 App stores

78

####### Making

It

####### work for you

GOOGLE DOCS

Do you need to create and collaborate with others on a document, presentation, or spreadsheet? Do you need access from different computers in different locations? If so, an online office suite, such as Google Docs, might be just what you need. (Please note that the web is continually changing, and some of the spe- cifics presented below may have changed.)

creating a Document You must have a free Google account in order to start creating and sharing documents. To get started:

1 • Go to docs.google. If you are not currently signed in or you do not have a Google account, click the Sign in button and follow the appropriate instructions.

2 • Once you are signed in, click the Menu button in the upper left of the page. Select Docs to see existing word processing documents.

3 • click the Create New Documents button in the lower right of the page (a red circle with a  white + in the center).

4 • Start typing in the blank document. You will notice many familiar buttons in the toolbar above the document area.

5 • click the Untitled document area at the top left, and you will be prompted to enter a name for the document.

6 • close the browser tab (or window) in order to close the document.

You may have noticed that there is no save option. This is because your document is automatically being saved as you work on it.

Sharing a Document Any document that you create can be shared with one or more individuals. Those individuals can be granted read-only access, or they could be allowed to edit the document, even at the same time that you are working on it. To share a document:

1 • with the document open, click the Share button at the top right.

2 • type in the e-mail addresses of those with whom you wish to share the document.

3 • to the right of this text box, select the permission these individuals will have for the document.

4 • click the Done button to finish.

79

A LOOK TO THE FUTURE

next-Generation User Interfaces

Have you ever given a presentation and wished you could interact with the whiteboard like a computer screen? Wouldn’t it be great to be able to have a digital whiteboard with different pens for collaborating on projects? The traditional mouse and keyboard work great for interacting with a computer, but sometimes it would be nice to have more options. Recently, touch screens and voice recognition offer new ways to interface. In the future, larger touch screens that can identify different users will allow for mul- tiple people to work on the same screen, and recent innovations in video capture technology may have computers leaving the desk - top and entering the yoga studio. Technology has been making better interfaces, and will con- tinue to evolve to improve our lives as we look to the future. There are several chal- lenges with designing inter- faces. First is the simple fact that individuals have varying preferences. Some might pre- fer to interact with a friend through text messages, while others prefer voice communi- cation. Therefore, it is doubt- ful that a single interface will become dominant. The second challenge is ergonomic in nature; that is, it must be comfort- able to use. Since tablets and smartphones have touch-screen inter- faces, many people believe that all home and business com- puters will eventually have them too. In futuristic movies individuals use both hands to interact with a large screen. Such a setup allows a person to interact with multiple objects at the same time. The only problem with a multi-touch, multi- gesture screen is that it is not comfortable to extend our arms for prolonged periods. Knowing this, many companies are looking toward large, interactive surfaces that perform the same function while lying flat on a desk. Microsoft has already developed a product called “PixelSense” that acts like a large, interactive table. It responds to both human interac- tions and objects that are placed on top of it. Although costs prevent it from replacing the desktop of today, the strain on a

person’s neck from looking down could prevent it from being used for long periods of time. The ideal use of PixelSense appears to be activities involv- ing collaboration and teamwork. Voice recognition is another form of input that is already available, but much improvement is needed. Computers are becoming better at following spe- cific voice commands, but they cannot engage in everyday conversation or follow complex requests. Researchers in the field of artificial intelligence are working to improve natu- ral language processing to help computers understand our writing and speech. When that is fully developed, you will be able to speak to your computer in the same way you would speak to another person. Both cameras and soft- ware are becoming sophisti- cated enough to observe and interpret our movements and gestures. The “Kinect” system for the Xbox One has the abil- ity to use body movements to interact with various games and fitness programs, includ- ing ones that analyze and cor- rect form during yoga routines. Researchers at MIT are also working with cameras that can observe our gestures and the physical objects we interact with in order to communicate with a computer. In the future, computers could become so attuned to our emotions and expressions that they will be able to see our frustration with the current operation and take various cor- rective actions to relieve that frustration. The next step in computer interaction may be some- thing called “Augmented Reality.” Microsoft HoloLens offers glasses that you can see through but can also act as a moni- tor that can overlay text and images onto the real world. Through the HoloLens, and sophisticated body tracking cameras, your real world may become populated with virtual assistants, digital notes, and interactive how-to manuals. Which type of interface do you currently enjoy using the  most? Do you think that touch-screen interfaces will replace keyboards? Do you believe augmented reality will become the keyboard and mouse of the future?

Which software is primarily used to create text

What is the primary purpose of system software?

Which of the following software is used to write and edit text documents?

Which software is the most widely used to create text effects?