What's the difference between a “script” and an “application”?

Question

I\'m referring to distinctions such as in this answer:

...bash isn\'t for writing applications it\'s for, well, scripting. So sure, your application m

Answer 1

Actually the difference between a script ( or a scripting language) and an application is that a script don't require it to be compiled into machine language.. You run the source of the script with an interpreter.. A application compiles the source into machine code so that you can run it as a stand alone application.

Answer 2

A script generally runs as part of a larger application inside a scripting engine eg. JavaScript -> Browser This is in contrast to both traditional static typed compiled languages and to dynamic languages, where the code is intended to form the main part of the application.

Answer 3

Taking perl as an example, you can write perl scripts or perl applications.

A script would imply a single file or a single namespace. (e.g. updateFile.pl).

An application would be something made up of a collection of files or namespaces/classes (e.g. an OO-designed perl application with many .pm module files).

Answer 4

Personally, I think the separation is a step back from the actual implementation.

In my estimation, an application is planned. It has multiple goals, it has multiple deliverables. There are tasks set aside at design time in advance of coding that the application must meet.

A script however, is just thrown together as suits, and little planning is involved.

Lack of proper planning does not however downgrade you to a script. Possibly, it makes your application a poorly organized collection of poorly planned scripts.

Further more, an application can contain scripts that aggregated comprise the whole. But a script can only reference an application.

Answer 5

An application is big and will be used over and over by people and maybe sold to a customer.

A script starts out small, stays small if you're lucky, is rarely sold to a customer, and might either be run automatically or fall into disuse.

Answer 6

First of all, I would like to make it crystal clear that a script is a program. In other words, a script is a set of instructions.

Program:

A set of instructions which is going to be compiled is known as a Program.

Script:

A set of instructions which is going to be interpreted is known as a Script.