What is front-end office Automation?

Answer 1

A front-end application is one that directly interacts with people or users. Marketing researchers often use a database as a front-end to a statistical analysis program. The researchers enter the results of market questionnaires or surveys into a database. The data is then transferred to a statistical analysis program to determine the potential for a new product or the effectiveness of an advertising campaign. A back-end application interacts with other programs or applications; it only indirectly interacts with people or users. When people request information from a Web site on the internet, the Web site can interact with a database (the back end) that supplies the desired information. For example, you can connect to a university Web site to find out whether the university's library has a book you want to read. The Web site then interacts with a database that contains a catalog of library books and articles to determine whether the book you want is available. Reference: Reynolds/Stair. (2006). Fundamentals of Information Systems, 3e. p. 115