Lionel Sujay Vailshery
Research expert covering cloud computing and emerging tech industries
Software development - statistics & facts
Imagine a world without the apps you use daily, the games you enjoy, or the websites you rely on. Software development is the invisible hand behind this digital magic, transforming ideas into the tools that shape our lives. Software development is the process of creating, designing, deploying, and supporting software. It includes all the computer activities between the software's conception and final manifestation.
These activities are planned and put into stages in a logical order, a process known as the software development life cycle (SDLC) or software development. The SDLC often includes six stages: requirement analysis, design, development, testing, implementation, documentation, and evolution. Programming languages such as JavaScript and C++ are used to create software, with JavaScript being the most popular programming language in 2023 and used by roughly 65 percent of software developers.
Software industry and software development
As an integral part of the IT market, the software industry has seen rapid growth lately. Despite the temporary decline brought about by the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak in 2020, the market has recovered well to retrieve the growth trajectory in the foreseeable future. As the creative engine of this ever-evolving industry, software development plays a vital role; tech companies spend exponentially on research and development, with Adobe allocating over three billion U.S. dollars to R&D new software products and improving current ones. For instance, Adobe spends exponentially on research and development. Software developers are among the most generously paid for their work in the United States, among other professions.
Types of software development
Depending on the software type, there are several types of software development. One of the most common types is application development, which develops software applications that perform specific tasks on personal computer operating systems. With the growing ubiquity of smartphones, mobile app development – the process of developing a mobile app for mobile devices – is also becoming popular. Most developers work with both Android and iOS mobile operating systems, while others work exclusively with one of the two primary mobile operating systems. Another popular type of software development is web development, which involves developing websites for the internet or an intranet (a private network). Application programming interface (API) development and embedded systems development are some other software development types.
