Software development refers to the processes of designing, implementing, and maintaining software and other applications to meet specific requirements. It involves developing software by planning, writing, integrating, and supporting it to satisfy the requirements of the users or companies. Fundamentally, it is about creating software or computer systems that perform operations and yield specific results.
Types of Software
Software is a set of instructions or programs that enable the computer to perform its functions, thus making them programmable and hardware-neutral.
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System Software
System software consists of applications that assist a computer or other computing device in proper functioning and resource management.
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Programming Software
Programming software consists of those applications and tools which are used by the programmer to design, rewrite, compile or execute a given program or application etc.
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Application Software
Based on the features mentioned above application software can be defined as those programs or software applications that are developed for specific purposes or to provide user-based solutions.
Steps Involved in Software Development: How to Start
Before starting with any software development project the following steps must be followed.
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Idea Generation and Market Research
The first stage involves identifying the product concept and carrying out a feasibility analysis.
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Selecting a Methodology
It is important to have a blueprint that will guide the software development project.
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Requirements Analysis
At this stage, each component is described in detail with the scope, responsibilities of the developer, and testing criteria of a high-quality product.
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Design
In the design phase, a plan is formulated, structured and documented on how the software solution will be implemented.
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Development and Implementation
In this stage, the development or coding of the actual software solution is done.
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Testing
In this stage, the software application is tested to verify that it operates satisfactorily, and up to the required functional standards.
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Deployment and Maintenance
This is the last step which means making the software application available to users and maintaining it.
Conclusion
Software development can be described as the essential foundation of the contemporary digital world as it contributes to the development of exciting new applications that address various challenges, support organizational transformation, as well as improve overall user experiences. In this article, an attempt has been made to explain the fundamentals of software categories and how one can initiate a software development process.