<programming, operating system> (Or "application", "app") A
complete, self-contained program that performs a specific
function directly for the user. This is in contrast to system
software such as the operating system kernel, server
processes and libraries which exists to support application
programs.
Editors for various kinds of documents, spreadsheets, and
text formatters are common examples of applications. Network
applications include clients such as those for FTP,
electronic mail, telnet and WWW.
The term is used fairly loosely, for instance, some might say
that a client and server together form a distributed
application, others might argue that editors and compilers
were not applications but tools for building applications.
One distinction between an application program and the
operating system is that applications always run in "user
mode" (or "non-privileged mode"), while operating systems and
related utilities may run in "supervisor mode" (or "privileged
mode").
The term may also be used to distinguish programs which
communicate via a graphical user interface from those which
are executed from the command line.
(1994-11-28)
Nearby terms:
Application Integration Architecture « application layer « Application Portability Architecture « application program » Application Program Interface » Application Programming Interface » Application Protocol Data Unit
