Everyday we’re contacted by companies who need to build a custom software application to automate their business, or perhaps upgrade an older existing software system. One of the most important decisions to make is what technology to leverage to create it. For most applications the decision comes down to whether to build the system as a desktop based application, like Microsoft Outlook or Microsoft Access, or to build the system as a web based application. Today, most new systems are being built as web applications. Here are a few of the major advantages of using a web based architecture to build your new custom software application:

1. Multi-location capability- By building a web based application, you immediately gain the benefit of having your application be available world-wide through the Internet (if you allow it). It can be accessed by multiple locations for your business, or perhaps from your home office. While you can obtain a similar result using a desktop application, it would rely any many more technologies which add great cost, for instance dedicated Internet lines or pricey VPN software. A web application is a natural fit for a multi-location requirement.
2. Instant Update Deployment - When using a desktop application, anytime an update is made to the application you typically must re-install the application on each computer. In the case of dozens or hundreds of computers in a typical organization, the time and effort to simply install the updates can be high. Contrast this with a web application, where to make an update all you need to do is upload the changes to the central web server and all users instantly have access to the new version.
3. Vendor/Client Access - If one of your requirements is that your vendors, customers, or other business partners need to access your data in some way, then building a custom web application is the definite way to go. You can seamlessly create the ability to allow your vendors to log in and access the data that you define. Later, if you need your customers to access day, say view invoices or submit orders, you can create an area of the web application for them as well.
4. Higher Security- This one may take many people by surprise, as web applications in the past have been viewed as less secure. But the fact is that with web applications all of the internal coding for the system is kept securely on a central server. With a desktop application, however, all the code for the system resides on the users computer which provides a point of access for unscrupulous users to decompile or otherwise hack a desktop application. Using SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) all the data being sent and received by a web application is secured through high powered data encryption.
5. Zero Installation Problems- A typical issue with desktop applications is that they must be installed on each computer. This often causes great problems as users may be using different version of Windows, or perhaps other operating systems such as Apple Mac, Linux, or maybe the new Google Chrome. With a web application there is no install required. The user simply accesses the application through the Internet via their web browser, which they already know how to use since they use it every day to surf the web.

Building your custom software system as a web application usually makes a lot of sense. It might not alway be a great fit though under certain circumstances, but that’s a topic for another article. Contact us today and we can help you make the decision on what type of system you should build.