What is an Integrated Personal Development Environment (IPDE)?
An Integrated Personal Development Environment (IPDE) is any software application that supports End-User Development (EUD), or what some are referring to as a Situational Application. The goal of an IPDE is to enable end-users to create their own solutions. One example is software that help users (usually children) to create their own video games. Another example is Microsoft Access. While their are certainly software development professionals that use Access, a large portion of the user base is hobbiests that need a simplified tool for visually creating business applications. The most popular IPDE is the spreadsheet. Microsoft Excel, is rightfully considered a IPDE because it can be programmed to perform a sequence of instructions (usually numeric calculations). In fact, most modern spreadsheet applications offer an integrated programming language to help bridge the gap between it and professional IDEs. If you need some convincing that a spreadsheet is can be used as a development pla
