*Software Information*
The primary medium for software distribution used to be the magnetic floppy disk. Companies and individuals alike used "floppies" to transfer software and data from one computer to another. Presently, Compact Discs (CDs) have surpassed floppy disks as the distribution medium of choice because of their digital nature and capacity to store a greater amount of data.
Without a doubt, we are witnessing computers move away from the standalone, or "unconnected," model of operation, and migrating into a networked environment. As a result, the network itself becomes a more powerful medium for software distribution. The physical medium is the network cable itself, a fixed cost associated with the establishment of the network. Therefore, distributing and installing software over an existing network bypasses the cost overhead of producing CDs or floppy disks.
In addition, using the network as the distribution medium profoundly reduces the software’s total cost of ownership -- something whichsomething that cannot be achieved by CDs or floppies even if these two media cost nothing to manufacture. Software distribution via CDs and floppies obey the "pull" paradigm, where every action is user initiated. Distribution over the network has the ability to apply a "push" paradigm, thereby providing the following three features:
Hands-free install – user does not need to manually install software.
Easy and timely upgrade from a designated location – the burden of software upgrades is placed on the software itself.
Cross platform – reduces complexity for the user by providing cross-platform software, or the correct version of platform specific software. The user is guaranteed to receive working software in both cases.
This specification shows how to describe software packages originating from a server that serves a set of arbitrarily heterogeneous clients. OSD can be used to deploy:
Java packages
Java standalone applications
Platform native code
OSD has the ability to describe software dependencies in the form of a directed graph. This is a useful and necessary feature because for software engineered in a modular fashion, we should handle the situation where one component requires the presence of another to operate.
The primary medium for software distribution used to be the magnetic floppy disk. Companies and individuals alike used "floppies" to transfer software and data from one computer to another. Presently, Compact Discs (CDs) have surpassed floppy disks as the distribution medium of choice because of their digital nature and capacity to store a greater amount of data.
Without a doubt, we are witnessing computers move away from the standalone, or "unconnected," model of operation, and migrating into a networked environment. As a result, the network itself becomes a more powerful medium for software distribution. The physical medium is the network cable itself, a fixed cost associated with the establishment of the network. Therefore, distributing and installing software over an existing network bypasses the cost overhead of producing CDs or floppy disks.
In addition, using the network as the distribution medium profoundly reduces the software’s total cost of ownership -- something whichsomething that cannot be achieved by CDs or floppies even if these two media cost nothing to manufacture. Software distribution via CDs and floppies obey the "pull" paradigm, where every action is user initiated. Distribution over the network has the ability to apply a "push" paradigm, thereby providing the following three features:
Hands-free install – user does not need to manually install software.
Easy and timely upgrade from a designated location – the burden of software upgrades is placed on the software itself.
Cross platform – reduces complexity for the user by providing cross-platform software, or the correct version of platform specific software. The user is guaranteed to receive working software in both cases.
This specification shows how to describe software packages originating from a server that serves a set of arbitrarily heterogeneous clients. OSD can be used to deploy:
Java packages
Java standalone applications
Platform native code
OSD has the ability to describe software dependencies in the form of a directed graph. This is a useful and necessary feature because for software engineered in a modular fashion, we should handle the situation where one component requires the presence of another to operate.
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