Why WEB?

Web-based applications offer a range of business advantages over traditional desktop applications.

What is a web-based application?

A web-based application is any application that uses a website as the interface (the ‘front-end’). Users access the application from any computer connected to the Internet using a standard browser, instead of using an application that has been installed on their local computer.

For example, most of us are familiar with Microsoft Word, a common word-processing application. Google Docs is also a word-processing application, but users perform all the functions using any web browser instead of using software installed on their computer.

What are the business advantages?

Cost effective development

With web-based applications, users access the system via a uniform environment—the web browser. There’s no need to develop and test it on all possible operating system versions and configurations.

Accessible anywhere

Unlike traditional applications, web systems are accessible anytime, anywhere, via a PC with an Internet connection, putting the user in charge of where and when they access the application.

Easily customizable

The user interface of web-based applications is easier to customize than it is in desktop applications. This makes it easier to update the look and feel of the application, or to customize the presentation of information to different user groups.

Accessible for a range of devices

In addition to customizing content for user groups, content can also be customized for presentation on any device connected to the internet, including PDAs, mobile phones, etc., further extending the user’s ability to receive and interact with information.

Improved interoperability

Using internet technologies based on industry-wide standards, it’s possible to achieve a far greater level of interoperability between applications than with isolated desktop systems. For example, it is much easier to integrate a web-based shopping cart system with a web-based accounting package than it is to get two proprietary systems to talk to each other. Web-based architecture makes it possible to rapidly integrate enterprise systems, improving work-flow and other business processes.

Adaptable to increased workload

Increasing processor capacity also becomes a far simpler operation. If an application requires more power to perform tasks, only the server hardware needs to be upgraded. The capacity of web-based software can be increased by “clustering” or running the software on several servers simultaneously. As workload increases, new servers can be added to the system easily—Google, for example, runs on thousands of Linux servers.