A desktop application is software that can be installed directly on your personal computer or laptop. It can be launched and run at any time regardless of other apps. You certainly permanently use them. There are MS Office programs like Word, Excel, or PowerPoint, media players, video games, graphical editors like Paint and Photoshop, and many others.

Desktop Computer Systems

1. A desktop computer system is a personal computer system designed for use in a set location This is primarily due to its size and power requirements

2. Unlike a mobile computing device such as a tablet, phone, or laptop, a desktop computer relies on a non-removable power supply plugged into the wall

3. A desktop computer generally includes the system case with the computer's components, as well as common peripherals such as a keyboard, mouse, and monitor

All you need to know about desktop apps

A desktop application is software that can be installed directly on your personal computer or laptop. It can be launched and run at any time regardless of other apps. You certainly permanently use them. There are MS Office programs like Word, Excel, or PowerPoint, media players, video games, graphical editors like Paint and Photoshop, and many others. 

You don’t need an Internet connection to start your desktop application, but remember that some apps require it to work properly. For example, there are Firefox or Chrome web browsers. Since they are installed on your PC, they are considered desktop apps. These programs have different features and can be simple or complex, resource-hungry or small-footprint, cost-intensive or cheap.

Desktop App Pros

No Internet Required

The World Wide Web is the main difference when we speak about desktop vs. web solutions. You don't need an Internet connection to launch your desktop app if it has already been installed on your PC. Therefore, it’s convenient to use desktop apps on a trip or in locations with poor connectivity.

Better Hardware Integration and Performance

If you install a proper version of your desktop program, it will always integrate with your system well. When you download the program specifically designed for your hardware, this means that it will smoothly run on your machine. Also, desktop apps can operate faster and provide a larger set of features than a web-based application.

Cheaper Alternatives

When you buy the desktop version, this means that it belongs to you. You don’t need to pay for any subscriptions or make other additional payments. Yes, these programs can be more expensive than web-based apps, but they are usually one-time paid and don’t require any ongoing payments.

Less Security and Ownership Issues

Desktop applications allow you to save your private data locally rather than in the cloud, which makes them more protected from hackers’ attacks. Using your desktop program offline also makes it possible to forget about losing your personal information. Do you have to share intellectual property like your own articles or songs? Then a desktop should be your choice. As people say, all rights are reserved.

Speaking about intellectual property, we should mention that when you create and save any files to your PC from the app, you will own them, which is not the case with web apps. You should always keep in mind that your content stored in the clouds can easily leak to the Internet.