3315 Midterm

Study notes n shit.

Information Technology

•Combination of hardware and software products and services

•Used to manage, access, communicate, and share information

Changing nature of information technology

•Change is dramatic and continuous

•Advances influence change in business organizations

Systems analysis and design

•Step-by-step process for developing high-quality information systems

Information systems

technology, people, and data performing certain business functions

What does a systems analyst do?

•Plans, develops, and maintains information

•Manages IT projects, conducts meetings, delivers presentations, and writes memos, reports, and documentation

System

set of related components that produces specific results

Mission-critical systems

vital to operations

Data

basic facts that serve as raw material

Information

data transformed into output

Hardware

Physical layer of information system

Moore’s Law

transistors on an integrated circuit chip double about every 24 months

Software

controls hardware

System software

Manages hardware components

Application software

Support day-to-day business

• Horizontal, vertical, and legacy systems

Tables

Data is stored in ______

Processes

Describe tasks and business functions performed to achieve specific results

Stakeholders

individuals interested in an information system

Trends

•Rapidly increasing globalization

•Technology integration for seamless information access

•Rapid growth of cloud-based computing and services

The Internet Model

•Ecommerce (electronic commerce)

•User interface enables communication between a data-base management software and a web-based server

• Mobile devices interact with the system using apps

B2C (business-to-customer)

•In a single convenient session, customers can:

• Do research and compare prices and features

• Check availability and arrange delivery

• Choose payment methods

•B2B (business-to-business)

•Ecommerce was initially carried out using electronic data interchange (EDI)

•Most firms use supply chain management (SCM) software

• Helps manage inventory levels, costs, and suppliers

Business profile

•Overview of a company’s mission, functions, organization, products, services, customers, suppliers, competitors, constraints, and future direction

Business process

•Specific set of transactions, events, and results that can be described and documented

• Business process model (BPM)

• Business process modeling notation (BPMN)

Business Information Systems

•All employees use office productivity systems

• Operational users require decision support systems

• Systems are defined by functions and features

Enterprise computing

•Supports company-wide operations and data management requirements

• Enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems provide cost-effective support for users and managers throughout the company

Transaction processing (TP) systems

•Processes data generated by day-to-day business operations

• Customer order processing, accounts receivable, and warranty claim processing

Business support systems

•Provide job-related information support to users at all levels of a company

• Management Information Systems (MIS)

• Radio frequency identification (RFID)

Knowledge management

Uses a knowledge base and inference rules

Knowledge base

large database that allows users to find information by entering keywords

Inference rules

identify data patterns and relationships

User productivity systems

Technology that improves productivity

Groupware

enables data sharing

Digital assistants

Combinations of knowledge management systems and user productivity systems

Systems integration

Combination of transaction processing, business support, knowledge management, and user productivity features

Functions and organizational levels

Defined in a typical organizational model

Top managers

Develop long-range strategic plans

Middle managers

provide direction, resources, and performance feedback to supervisors and team leaders

knowledge workers

provide support for the organization’s basic functions

Supervisors and team leaders

Oversee operational employees and carry out day-to-day functions

Operational employees

•Rely on TP systems to enter and receive data they need to perform their jobs

•Empowered to handle tasks and make decisions that were assigned previously to supervisors

Structured analysis

•Used systems development life cycle (SDLC)

• plan, analyze, design, implement, and support an information system

Object-oriented analysis

Combines data and processes as objects

Agile methods

•Build a series of prototypes and constantly adjusts them to user requirements

• Spiral model

Prototyping

•Early working version of an information system

• Disadvantage: important decisions might be made before business or IT issues are thoroughly understood

• Prototypes based on careful fact-finding and modeling techniques can be extremely valuable

Human-Computer Interaction

•Relationship between computers and people who use them to perform their jobs

• Everything from smartphones to global networks

• Includes all communications and instructions to enter input and obtain output in the form of screen displays or printed reports

• Transparent user interface: does not distract the user

Understand the business

• Interface designer must understand:

• Underlying business functions

• How the system supports goals

Maximize graphical effectiveness

• Well-designed interface enables rapid learning

Think like a user

• Designer must see system from use’s perspective

Use models and prototypes

• Designers can present initial screen designs to users in the form of a storyboard

• Users test design and provide feedback

Focus on usability

• Include main options in the opening screen

• Offer a reasonable number of choices that a user easily can comprehend

Invite feedback

• Monitor system usage and solicit user suggestions

• Determine if system features are being used as intended by observing and surveying users

Document everything

• Document all screen designs for later use by programmers

• User-approved sketches and storyboards can be used to document the user interface

Garbage in, garbage out

Quality of the output depends on the quality of the input

Source document

Collects input data, triggers an input action, and provides a record of original transaction

Good form layout

makes the form easy to complete and provides enough space

True

Order and placement should be logical

Output technology

• In addition to screen output and printed matter, output can be delivered in many ways

• Actual forms, reports, and documents have to be created to be accessible from workstations, notebooks, tablets, smartphones, and other devices

Internet-based information delivery

• Allows users to download a universe of files and documents to support their information needs

• Companies use a live or prerecorded webcast to reach prospective customers and investors

Email

essential means of internal and external business communication

Blogs

web-based blogs are useful for posting news, reviewing current events, and promoting products

Instant messaging

useful for team members in a collaborative situation

Wireless devices

data can be transmitted using the Internet across a wide array of devices

Digital audio, images and video

Can be captured and stored in digital format, attached to an email message, or inserted as a clip in a Microsoft Word document

Automated fax or faxback systems

Allow a customer to request a fax using e-mail, via the company website, or by telephone

Podcasts

Used as sales and marketing tools, and to communicate with the employees

Computer output to digital media

Used when many paper documents must be scanned and stored in digital format for quick retrieval

Specialized forms of output

• Portable, web-connected devices

• Retail point-of-sale terminals

• Automatic teller machines (ATMs)

• Special-purpose printers

• Plotters

• Electronic detection of embedded data

Batch input

data entry performed on a specified time schedule, such as daily, weekly, monthly, or longer

Online input

online data entry enables immediate validation and availability of data

Source data automation

combines online data entry and automated data capture using input devices such as RFID tags, magnetic data strips, or smartphones

Trade-offs

• Manual data entry is slower and more expensive than batch input

• Decision to use batch or online input depends on business requirements

Output security and control

• Companies use output control methods to maintain output integrity and security

• Output security protects privacy rights

• Shields organization’s proprietary data from theft or unauthorized access

Diskless workstation

network terminal that supports a full-featured user interface but limits the printing or copying of data

Input security and control

• Ensures data is correct, complete, and secure

• Information should be traceable

• Procedures must be put in place for handling source documents

• Data security policies and procedures protect data from loss or damage

• Companies should have a records retention policy that meets legal requirements and business needs

• Audit trail files and reports should be stored and saved

Modular design

• Individual components, called modules, connect to a higher-level program or process

• Designed to perform a single function

Responsive web design

Focus on how GUI artifacts are presented on the device is handled automatically by the underling framework

Prototyping

Involves a repetitive sequence of analysis, design, modeling, and testing

System prototyping

Produces a full-featured, working model of the information system

Design or throwaway prototyping

Used to verify user requirements, is discarded, and implementation continues

Trade-offs: benefits

• Users and systems developers can avoid misunderstandings

• System developers create accurate specifications based on prototype

• Managers evaluate working models more effectively than paper specifications

• Helps develop testing and training procedures

• Reduces risks that occur when a finished system fails to support business needs

Trade-offs: Potential problems

• Rapid pace of development can create quality problems

• System requirements cannot be tested adequately using a prototype

• In complex systems, the prototype can become unwieldy and difficult to manage

• Clients may want to adopt the prototype with few to no changes, leading to increased maintenance costs later in the SDLC

Data structures

• Framework for organizing, storing, and managing data

• Comprises of files or tables that interact in various ways

• Each file or table contains data about people, places, things, or events

Mario and Danica: A Data Design Example

• Mario’s auto shop uses file-oriented systems

• MECHANIC SYSTEM uses the MECHANIC file to store data about shop employees

• JOB SYSTEM uses the JOB file to store data about work performed at the shop

• Danica’s auto shop uses a relational model

SHOP OPERATIONS SYSTEM

tables are linked by a common field named Mechanic No field

Database management system (DBMS)

• Collection of tools, features, and interfaces that enables users to add, update, manage, access, and analyze data

• Advantages

• Scalability

• Economy of scale

• Enterprise-wide application

• Stronger standards and better security

• Data independence

DBMS Components

Interfaces for users, database administrators, and related systems

Users

• Work with predefined queries and switchboard commands

Database administrators

Responsible for DBMS management and support

Related information systems

DBMS provides support to related information systems

Schema

Descriptions of all fields, tables, and relationships

Subschema

database portions that a particular system or user needs or is allowed to access

Physical data repository

• Contains the schema and subschemas

• Can be centralized or distributed

• Uses open database connectivity (ODBC) compliant software

Web-Based Design

Databases are created and managed by using languages and commands that have nothing to do with HTML

Objective

connect the database to the Web and enable data to be viewed and updated

Middleware

is used integrate different applications and allow them to exchange data

Entity

person, place, thing, or event for which data is collected and maintained

Table or file

contains a set of related records that store data about a specific entity

Field/Attribute

single characteristic or fact about an entity

Common field

attribute in more than one entity

Record/Tuple

set of related fields that describes one instance of an entity