Instead, it relies on common software protocols and formats so that individual computer applications can find and talk to one another across the internet.

ECONOMIST: IT in the health-care industry

Plenty of tech companies, including Facebook and Twitter, allow voters to interact with politicians via computer and mobile applications, and one of the hallmarks of the Obama presidential campaign was its success in harnessing Internet donations.

FORBES: Business In The Beltway

Instead of sprawls of special-purpose computer servers--one for Internet applications, one for e-mail and so on--a virtualized system uses one machine to do all of these functions.

FORBES: Hardware for Hard Times

There is a wealth of data, games, applications, videos, music, and products available to anyone with a computer and internet access.

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Software now covers a maze of different industries, including applications software, operating systems, databases, the Internet, computer-aided design and networking.

ECONOMIST: Silicon Valley