Programming Capabilities and Application Software Comparison

Essay by PouUniversity, Master'sA+, February 2004

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Introduction

This paper will provide a comparison of the programming capabilities, application software between UNIX and Microsoft Windows 2000 and the differences between the availability of application software on both.

Differences

Windows 2000 come with only the operating systems. If you want office productivity tools you will need to purchase an additional product (Windows) or if you want to create programs you need to purchase an additional product (like Visual Basic).

UNIX systems have a plethora of application that comes with the operating system (O/S). These include applications that organize and manipulate files, text processing, editors (line and screen), spelling checkers, and text formatters for producing high-quality documents. Software development applications are also included with the O/S, these included compilers and libraries, debuggers, and source and object maintenance programs.

The GNU Project was launched in 1984 to develop a complete Unix-like operating system which is free software: the GNU system.

(GNU is a recursive acronym for ``GNU's Not Unix''; it is pronounced "guh-NEW".) Variants of the GNU operating system, which use the kernel Linux, are now widely used; though these systems are often referred to as ``Linux'', they are more accurately called GNU/Linux systems. The free (GNU) software is both versatile and effective in a wide variety of applications. Because the source code is given, it can be tailored specifically to an individuals needs. Something not easily accomplished with proprietary software.

The (GNU) software has a reputation for reliability throughout the user community. Day in and day out, its users expect it to perform with few or no complications in every type of application. There are many resources available for obtaining help for free software. People find that these resources are often more accessible and have a faster response time than most commercial software vendors.

An example of a...