Talk:Standalone software

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I'm looking for the correct terminology that describes software that doesn't require "installation" to the operating system. For example there are some pieces of software that you can simply copy into a folder and run it, and you can even move said folder around without negatively impacting the functionality of the software (or in a more extreme case, if the software resides on the extended partition of a drive, the operating system itself can be wiped and re-installed without affecting the usability of the software). This is in contrast to software that depends heavily on system integration, such as a shell extension which would be essentially useless if the operating system was not directly made aware of a change in path or if the operating system itself was replaced. It seems like this might be another usage for the term stand-alone but I don't know if there is a better word for it.24.6.99.30 00:26, 7 December 2006 (UTC)

It is dangerous when some writers attempt to reinvent the wheel, so to speak, by allowing a change to definitions to occur over time. This usually occurs because of sloppy thinking and lack of knowledge, and contributes to the confusion over the terminology.

After over twenty-five years working within the computer industry, I can attest to the fact that stand-alone software is indeed software which does not have any other dependencies then what it contains within its own directory. Programs that install a DLL within the Windows system directory, or one that places something somewhere within the Linux /etc directory or other such scenario, may still be considered as basically stand-alone, as long as the reason for placing the additional files in other locations is to properly integrate with the backbone of the operating system (OS) itself. This is often because of a requirement of the OS rather than for any other reason. At the end of the day, the program must run on an OS, so that is not usually a part of the definition.

Programs which require the existence of other environmental components beyond those supplied directly by the OS, are definately not stand-alone programs. - KitchM (talk) 01:31, 4 March 2010 (UTC)

Tiny question

What is the term for the opposite of stand alone?? This would make it esier to search for software that is non-standalone. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 83.92.112.234 (talk) 16:46, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

I suppose that one might say "dependent" or "incomplete" or even "environment-specific" software, but I can't image why anyone would want to find those or prefer them over stand-alone. Anything interrelated to other programs are more likely to cause problems or to experience them. - KitchM (talk) 03:37, 4 March 2010 (UTC)