Chapter 5: System and Interface Design Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards covering key terms and definitions from Chapter 5 on System and Interface Design.

System Design

The phase in the SDLC that shows how the system will fulfill user requirements by translating the System Requirements Document into a blueprint called the System Design Specification.

Logical Design

A design developed during the systems analysis phase that describes what functions and features (input, process, output) must be performed by the system.

Physical Design

A design developed during the systems design phase that describes how the system will be implemented physically, including actual processes for entering, verifying, and storing data.

System Architecture Design

An overall architectural structure showing internal systems, external systems, hardware (servers, clients, network infrastructure), and the relationships between them.

System Structure Design

The design structure of an internal system that shows its various modules (processes) and how they are related to each other.

Functional Decomposition Diagram (FDD)

A top-down design tool, also known as a Structure Chart, used to represent a system and its lower-level modules across various development stages.

User Interface

The hardware and software mechanisms through which users interact with a system.

Command-line Interface

An interface where users interact with the computer system by typing commands at a prompt (e.g., C>).

Menu-Driven Interface

An interface that allows users to perform tasks by selecting options from lists or menus.

Cascading Menu

A menu interface where secondary submenus open sequentially from selected items on a primary menu.

Context Sensitive HELP

An on-screen help facility that provides assistance tailored to the user's current task or error, including command examples and recovery mechanisms.

Escapability

A forgiving user interface feature that allows users to easily exit current screens or recover/undo actions when mistakes occur.

Pull-down List

An interface control that displays a list of acceptable or approved values from which a user can select for a given data field.

Default Values

Values automatically populated into input fields by the system when the required data can be predicted with certainty, such as current dates or tax rates.

Verification

Manual checks (such as visual inspection using human eyes) carried out on data before it is input into a system.

Validation

Automated programmatic checks performed on input data during entry to ensure accuracy prior to processing.

Format Check

A data validation check that verifies input data conforms to an expected pattern or picture structure (e.g., AAA/99/AAA).

Existence Check

A data validation check that confirms whether keyed-in data already exists within the relevant database before saving a record.

Null Value Check

A data validation check that ensures mandatory fields are filled out and not left blank.

Limit Check

A data validation check that ensures an entered value does not go below a specified lower boundary or above an upper boundary.

Range Check

A data validation check that verifies whether entered data falls strictly within predetermined upper and lower acceptable limits.

Detail Report

A report type that lists every individual item or transaction, which may be sorted and uncategorized or categorized with control breaks and sub-totals.

Summary Report

A report type that presents high-level totals and sub-totals, often incorporating charts or graphs rather than individual item lines.

Exception Report

A report type that filters and displays only items meeting specific criteria, such as employees exceeding overtime thresholds.

Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (MICR)

An automated input technology used primarily on bank cheques to read printed character information using magnetic ink.

Optical Character Recognition (OCR)

A technology that scans physical documents and converts scanned image files into editable text documents.