Systems Analysis and Design Flashcards

Chapter 1 - From Beginning to End: An Overview of Systems Analysis and Design

Chapter Overview

• The seventh edition emphasizes example-based learning, using the first chapter as a complete development project example.
• The chapter provides a broad overview and clear perspective of the entire development process.
• It introduces basic concepts, including:
  • Systems Analysis
  • Systems Design
  • Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC)
  • Iterative development
  • Agile development
  • Six core processes of systems development
• The chapter illustrates the first iteration of a typical development project for the Ridgeline Mountain Outfitters (RMO) Tradeshow system, divided into seven steps (including pre-project activities).
• For simplicity, each step is assigned a day.
• All six core processes are explained and illustrated throughout the daily activities.
• Sample models and diagrams introduce major techniques and models.
• A chapter case provides assignments similar to the RMO Tradeshow system for students to practice the entire development process.
• Grading for these assignments should be lenient, focusing on completion rather than correctness.

Learning Objectives

• Describe the purpose of systems analysis and design in developing information systems.
• Explain the purpose of the System Development Life Cycle (SDLC) and identify its six core processes.
• Explain how information system methodologies provide guidelines for completing the six core processes of the SDLC.
• Describe the characteristics of Agile methodologies and iterative system development.
• Based on the Ridgeline Mountain Outfitters Tradeshow System example:
  • Describe how the six core processes of the SDLC are used in each iteration
  • Identify key documents used in planning a project
  • Identify key diagrams used in systems analysis and systems design

Instructor's Notes: Software Development and Systems Analysis and Design

Key Terms

• Computer application (app): A computer software program that executes on a computing device to carry out a specific function or set of related functions.
• Information system: A set of interrelated computer components that collects, processes, stores, and provides as output the information needed to complete business tasks.
• Systems analysis: Activities that enable a person to understand and specify what the new system should accomplish.
• Systems design: System development activities that enable a person to describe in detail how the resulting information system will actually be implemented.

Lecture Notes

• The section introduces the basic concepts of a computer application and an information system.
• It defines systems analysis and design and explains its role in systems development.
• Systems analysis means understanding what the system must do.
• Systems design means specifying how the components are configured to provide the solution.

Quick Quiz

• Q: What is the basic purpose of a course in systems analysis and design?
• A: To provide the student with the necessary tools to (1) understand and document the business need, i.e. requirements, (2) define a solution, (3) work in a team to build the solution and (4) launch the application so that it is in productive use.

Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC)

Key Terms

• Project: A planned undertaking that has a beginning and an end and produces some definite result.
• Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC): A framework that identifies all the activities required to research, build, deploy, and often maintain an information system.
• System development process or methodology: A set of comprehensive guidelines for carrying out all of the activities of each core process of the SDLC.
• Agile Development: An information system development process that emphasizes flexibility and rapid response to anticipate new and changing requirements during development

Lecture Notes

• The section explains the Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC), which defines all activities required to develop a new system.
• The text distills out six core processes required for the development of any new system. These six core processes are:
  1. Identify the problem or need and obtain approval to proceed.
  2. Plan and monitor the project—what to do, how to do it, and who does it.
  3. Discover and understand the details of the problem or the need.
  4. Design the system components that solve the problem or satisfy the need.
  5. Build, test, and integrate system components.
  6. Complete system tests and then deploy the solution.
• Agile Development is introduced as an iterative approach to systems development. Agile projects must be flexible and embrace changes and new requirements during the development process.

Quick Quiz

• Q: What is the basic philosophy of Agile development?
• A: That the user cannot predict all of the needs of a new system, so the development process must be structured to anticipate the many requirements changes that normally occur. The development process must be flexible and agile.
• Q: What are the six core processes?
• A: See the list above.

Iterative Development

Key Terms

• Iterative development: An approach to system development in which the system is “grown” piece by piece through multiple mini-projects called iterations

Lecture Notes

• Iterative Development is introduced. The six core processes are utilized across various iterations to develop a new system.
• Core processes and iterative development are common themes for many types of SDLCs, including the Unified Process, Extreme Programming, and Scrum.

Quick Quiz

• Q: What are the key benefits of iterative development?
• A: Quicker deployment of important portions of the system, being able to address tough problems early, and having a flexible development process that can respond to changing requirements.

Introduction to Ridgeline Mountain Outfitters (RMO)

Lecture Notes

• Ridgeline Mountain Outfitters (RMO) is a sportswear company that sells its own branded products as well as other national brands.
• The Tradeshow system is a small system that serves as the example development project in Chapter 1.
• The Consolidated Sales and Marketing System (CSMS) is a major system that serves as the running example throughout the rest of the textbook.
• This chapter only introduces RMO and the Tradeshow system.

Developing RMO’s Tradeshow System

Key Terms

• Subsystem – An identifiable and partitioned portion of the overall system

Lecture Notes

• This development project is designed as a six-day iteration with some pre-project activities to get the project started.
• The activities in the pre-project and each of the six days provide the supporting detail for the six core processes for systems development.
• There is a case at the end of the chapter with student assignments for pre-project activities and each of the six days of activities.
• Students will not have the skills to develop all the required elements of a development project. The assignments are meant to give them a brief introduction to some of the tasks, models, and components that are created during development.
• The assignments are designed to give them a brief introduction to some of the tasks, models, and components that are created during development.
• At this point the benefit comes from the effort of thinking about those components, rather than producing correct models or solutions. It is suggested that grading for these assignments be on a pass-fail approach, where credit is given for any serious attempt.

Initial Project Activities

• Pre-project activities are those activities required to get the project approved and started.
• The two major objectives are:
  • Identify the problem and document the objectives of the solution system.
  • Obtain approval in order to begin the project.
• Systems Vision Document:
  • Introduced here, it provides a brief description of the problem, the basic functionality of the new system, e.g. system capabilities, and the business benefits to be derived by the new system.

Day 1 Activities: RMO – Supplier Information System

• The first day of an iteration is usually a planning day.
• Day 1 will focus on planning the overall project, which is the objective of core process number 2.
• There are three activities that are completed:
  1. Determine the major components (functional areas) that are needed. (Core Process 2)
  2. Define the iterations and assigning each functional area to an iteration. (Core Process 2)
  3. Determine team members and responsibilities. (Core Process 2)

Planning the Overall Project and the Project Iterations

• During the first activity, it was determined that two subsystems are needed: The Supplier Information subsystem and the Product Information subsystem.
• It was decided that the remainder of the iteration would focus on the Supplier Information subsystem.

Planning the Rest of the First Iteration: The Supplier Subsystem

• The next planning activities, Activities 2 and 3 above, are to plan the rest of the iteration.
• Planning each iteration requires three steps:
  • Identify the tasks required for the iteration.
  • Organize and sequence these tasks into a schedule.
  • Identify required resources (especially people) and assign people to tasks.
• The first step - identify the tasks required for the iteration - is done through the development of a Work Breakdown Structure.
• In a full scale project, the Work Breakdown Structure is used to build a schedule, usually with some tool such as Microsoft Project.
• A simple version of a schedule can be done using a simple PERT/CPM chart, which is called a "work sequence" diagram.

Quick Quiz

• Q: What is the purpose of a Work Breakdown Structure?
• A: To identify all of the tasks that must be done to complete a particular iteration and produce the defined deliverable.
• Q: What is the purpose of a work sequence diagram?
• A: To define the order of the work, e.g. the tasks in the WBS. It also helps to monitor the progress of the iteration. It also helps to assign resources to the tasks to avoid duplication and plan for tasks that require extensive time or resources.

Day 2 Activities: Fact Finding and User Involvement

• Now that the project and the iteration have been planned, Day 2 initiates actual development work.
• Day 2 focuses on systems analysis activities.
• In particular three activities are required:
  • Do preliminary fact-finding tasks to understand the requirements. (Core Process 3)
  • Develop a preliminary list of use cases and a use case diagram. (Core Process 3)
  • Develop a preliminary list of classes and a class diagram. (Core Process 3)

Identifying Use Cases

• Fact finding is usually done by interviewing the users and other stakeholders.
• The use cases are documented in a table.
• A use case is something that the user needs the system to do. Use a phrase such as, "The clerk uses the system to…." where the prepositional clause is the use case, such as "…to enter a new sale."
• The objective of this step is to teach the students that the functions of the new system must be identified.

Identifying Domain Classes

• The classes are documented either in a table or a class diagram.
• At this point simply try to identify "informational things" that the system must remember -- such things as a "supplier."
• The objective of this step is to teach the students that information systems always have information that is maintained and this is the method used to determine what is needed.
• Classes are information components that have a name and detailed elements or attributes.

Quick Quiz

• Q: What is the purpose of a list of user cases?
• A: To identify and list the functions that must be provided by the new system.
• Q: What is the purpose of a table of classes or class diagram?
• A: To identify and list the information components that must be maintained by the new system.

Day 3 Activities

• The purpose of Day 3 activities is to flesh out the details of each of the use cases identified earlier (in Day 2).
• Each use case supports some user work flow, e.g. a sequence of user tasks.
• The activities for day three are the following:
  • Perform in-depth fact finding to understand details. (Core Process 3)
  • Understand and document the detailed work flow of each use case. (Core Process 3)
  • Define the user experience with screens and reports. (Core Processes 3 and 4)
• We begin this process with a use case diagram, which is just another way to illustrate the use cases that have been identified.
• Students should be able to read a use case diagram.

Developing Use Case Descriptions and Workflow Diagrams

• A work flow diagram documents a particular user, his/her actions and what the system must do to respond to the user's actions. It is used to document the internal work flow of one use case.
• Students may be able to read a work flow diagram. Mostly they should understand that it is used to document the internal steps of a particular use case.

Defining Screen Layout

• Another technique to define and describe the user actions is a screen layout.
• Sample screens drawings are useful to describe how the user works with the system.
• Students should be able to read and understand a sample screen layout. They should also be aware that sample screen layouts are an important technique for developing the user interface.

Quick Quiz

• Q: What is the purpose of a use case diagram?
• A: To document the use cases and the actors in a system or subsystem.
• Q: What is the purpose of a work flow diagram?
• A: To define the detailed processing steps of a use case.
• Q: What is the purpose of sample screen layouts?
• A: To design the layout of a computer screen, including all the data elements required on the screen.

Day 4 Activities

• Day 4 begins the design activities. Although analysis (understanding what) and design (structuring the how), often are done concurrently, we divide them into separate activities for learning purposes.
• Day 4 includes two major activities:
  • Design the database structure (schema). (Core Process 4)
  • Design the system’s high-level structure. (Core Process 4)

Designing the Database

• Database design flows directly from the class diagram developed earlier.

A General Approach to Design

• Designing the overall system structure or architecture is done using architecture configuration diagrams.

Designing the Software Components

• These high-level design decisions will determine the detailed software components of the system.
• A browser-based system is structured and constructed differently than an application system that runs on a smart phone or a tablet computer.

Defining the Preliminary Design Class Diagrams

• A design class diagram (DCD) identifies the OOP classes that will be needed for the system.
• The set of design classes includes problem domain classes, view layer classes, sometimes separate data access classes, and utility classes.

Designing the Subsystem Software Architecture

• Once we have an overall structure and an overall approach for implementing the new system, we begin to drill down to the subsystem design.
• The subsystem is further divided into layers: a view layer and a model layer.

Managing the Project

• Systems design is a rather complex endeavor.
• The students should understand that high-level architecture design should be done before low-level design and programming.
• It is important to have an overview of the entire system before building the detailed components.
• Architectural design models provide an effective tool to think about and document the system in its entirety.

Quick Quiz

• Q: What is the purpose of a design class diagram?
• A: To define the details of the information requirements in preparation for building the database schema.
• Q: What is the purpose of the database schema?
• A: It is the detailed database structure. Used to build the database with MySql, Oracle, or SQLServer.
• Q: What is the purpose of the system architectural configuration diagram?
• A: To configure the overall solution system.
• Q: What is the purpose of the subsystem architectural design diagram?
• A: To define the individual components of a subsystem and identify how they relate to each other.

Day 5 Activities

• Day 5 activities focus on programming the system.

Day 6 Activities

• Day 6 is final testing and deployment.

First Iteration Recap

• Also during the last day of an iteration it is common to do an "introspection" of the iteration to discuss what went well and what problems were encountered.
• Because there are multiple iterations in an iterative SDLC, the project team has the opportunity to evaluate and improve their internal work processes.

Where You Are Headed - The Rest of This Book

• The following sections in this chapter provide a brief overview of the remainder of the textbook.
• Part 1: Introduction to Systems Development
  • Part 1 consists of Chapter 1 and Online Chapter A.
  • Online Chapter A, "The Role of the Systems Analyst" describes the skills required of a systems analyst and the various career options available.
• Part 2: Systems Analysis Tasks
  • Chapters 2 through 5 cover systems analysis in detail, including gathering information and building analysis models. The primary focus is on system process, as documented by use cases, and system information, as documented by classes.
  • Online Chapter B, "The Traditional Approach to Requirements," discusses Data Flow Diagrams and other traditional structured analysis models.
• Part 3: Essentials of Systems Design
  • Chapters 6, 7, 8, and 9 provide the foundation principles for systems design. Chapter 6 provides a broad and comprehensive discussion of systems design principles. Chapter 7 teaches about the overall environment into which the new software must reside. It also covers issues related to the system architecture. Chapter 8 teaches how to design the user interfaces. Chapter 9 explains database design.
• Part 4: Projects and Project Management
  • We have moved project management principles to the middle of the text so that the students will have some experience in project related activities before discussion of how to organize and manage those activities.
  • Chapter 10 introduces various types of SDLC options and different methodologies used to develop software applications. Chapter 11 extends those concepts and teaches the fundamental principles of project planning and project management. Online Chapter C, "Project Management Techniques," teaches the details of calculating net present value and building a project schedule with Microsoft Project.
• Part 5: Advanced Design and Deployment Concepts
  • Chapters 12 and 13 explain the detail models and techniques to do detailed object-oriented systems design. These two chapters are rather detailed since design can be a complex activity.
  • Chapter 14 explains the final steps of acceptance test, data conversion, and deployment of the new system.

Classroom Activities

• Since the objective of this chapter is to provide an example of a complete systems development project, one interesting activity is to ask the students what they would do, i.e. what are the steps, to build a system.
• Give an example, such as a patient monitoring system for a dentist, or an inventory tracking system for a small business, and ask them how they would build this system for the owner (who is a good friend).
• Then you can ask pointed question such as:
  • How do you find out exactly what the user needs the system to do?
  • How do you remember what the user tells you about what it must do?
  • How do you know what information is important to keep?
  • How do you make sure it does what it is supposed to do?
  • How do you divide up the work, if there are two or more of you working together?
• The chapter has a rather detailed case at the end of the chapter. You can assign the entire case, or select specific problems out of the case. The case can be assigned to individuals or to small groups to do.
• The students should be able to observe that developing software applications for a third party can be a challenging process.

Troubleshooting Tips

• The danger in this chapter is to become too focused on the individual models or the specific solutions. Keep the focus on the overall process of planning, analysis, design, programming, testing, deployment with the emphasis on Systems Analysis and Design.
• For all of the models presented, focus only on the overall purpose of the model. Simplify it as much as possible. For example work flow diagrams are simply steps of what needs to happen with arrows showing the order of the steps. Class diagrams are simply the "things" that the system needs to know about and remember. The attributes are simply the details. Use cases are simply how the user "uses" the system.

Discussion Questions

1. The need to have a development methodology.
   • Many students today will have experience building simple applications such as a Facebook app or an iPhone app. These students may not see the need to have a development process with distinct steps, plans, and models. Often these students built an app they envisioned themselves. Hence they were the client, user, stakeholder, analyst, design, and tester all in a single person. It is very different to build an application where there are multiple users, multiple developers, and multiple testers. Function decisions must be discovered and then remembered, ire. documented, designs must be communicated across multiple programmers, acceptance tests must be coordinated, and so forth. Trying to build even a medium sized system without a project plan and a development methodology will spell disaster. Some typical questions to ask in this type of discussion might include the following.
   • What purpose does systems analysis serve? Is it really necessary? Why?
   • Is it important to build models? What function do they serve? How do the developers ensure that they understand the requirements? How do they remember what decisions were made by the user (and themselves)?
   • Evaluate the six core processes? Are there better ways to execute a project? Are the six core processes a minimal set? Are there things missing that should be added?
   • How long should we keep documentation and models that were built? Should we have external documentation that must be maintained?
   • Is it important to have a formal SDLC? What are the alternatives? How formal should it be?
2. The effectiveness of iteration and the Agile philosophy
   • When we get to Chapters 8 and 9 we will discuss various forms of the SDLC and adaptive projects versus predictive projects. However, it is would be an effective classroom technique to begin the discussion with this example. Some discussion questions might include the following.
   • What does "iteration" mean in software development? What is the alternative? What are some advantages of an iterative process? What are the disadvantages or potential problems with this approach?
   • This example (Tradeshow system) appears to have sequential steps for analysis, design, and programming within the iteration. Is this the best way to execute a project? Is there a better way? Why do you suppose the example presents it sequentially (Day 1, Day 2, etc.)?
   • What does it mean to use Agile principles for a project? Is Agile an effective way to execute a project? What are some of the disadvantages of an Agile approach?
   • Is it important to do project planning? How much time and energy should be spent planning the project? Is planning important to an Agile project? What are some of the dangers of not planning? Of over planning?