Module 2

Jayden Nyman

IST 1100

Module 2

            Workflow software was created in order to allow people and businesses all around the world to collaborate and work on things together using a shared medium. Workflow software is very efficient because it allows things to be done faster and without mistakes because humans do not have to do it like they used too. It is now machines running everything, eliminating mistakes, and being more time efficient. Workflow is great because it allows machines to talk to other machines with absolutely no human interaction. These are the types of things that are changing how we live our lives. There have been many steps leading up to workflow software. For one, HTML allowed people to publish documents that could be read by anyone on any computer no matter where they were located. My example of workflow software is one of the easiest. People used to send letters to each other before we could use email. Now the only time people really use the mail is for the delivery of gifts, where it used to be for simply sending people letters which can now be done in minutes instead of days and sometimes weeks. Another positive thing about sending emails is that people can access your email from anywhere they are. When you send a letter it has one specific destination.

            Open source software is allowing the source code for a software online accessible to people who have something to contribute, or just let a lot of people download it for their own personal use. Groups or individuals can use source codes for the foundation of a commercial product, but they have to acknowledge the original group that produced it. Open source software is designing new software then uploading it for the world to see. Apache is a shareware program for Web server technology, an open source Web serving community. I believe Apache is where open source technology began to grow and develop. Today Apache is one of the most successful open source tools, and it powers about two-thirds of the Web sites in the world. Apache was produced for free by some geeks working online in an open source chat room. Open source software is important because it allows many different people to help with the innovation of software and technology. With more people being able to revise and look at specific software, there is less room for mistakes, and more room for improvement. Many companies are using the open source approach to innovation.

            Outsourcing was a way for our call centers, business support operation, or knowledge work to be sourced globally to the cheapest, smartest, and most efficient provider. Indian techs used fiber-optic-cable-connected workstations to fix companies computers even though they were halfway around the world, as explained in the book. The Y2K computer issues are what got the Indian IT industry’s name across the world. The Y2K crisis soon became known all around the world. Outsourcing is very important because it allowed companies to have software engineers look at their computers from across the world. This really revolutionized the way that we do things.

            In closing, workflow software, open source software, and outsourcing have revolutionized the way companies all around the world operate. We can now do things that we never could before because of a few geeks, such as Apache. Fiber-optic-cable was a major game changer in outsourcing. My opinion on our reading so far is that we have been able to completely alter the way things are completed. We have software for just about anything you can wrap your mind around nowadays. I believe that the amount of time it takes to create technology and software has nearly been cut in half thanks to major corporations and hard working software engineers.