Ch 8 - Systems Development 

• Participants in systems development:

     1. Development team:      * Determines objectives of the information system      * Delivers system that meets objectives   2. Project:      * Planned collection of activities that archives a goal   3. Stakeholders:      * People who benefit from a project   4. Users:      * People who interact regularly with the system   5. system analyst:      * Professional who specialises in analysing and designing business systems   6. programmer:      * Responsible for modifying or developing programs to satisfy user requirements

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• Individual systems developer: person who performs all of the systems development roles
• Individual users: acquire applications for both personal and professional use
• End-user systems development: describes any systems development project in which business managers and assume the primary effort

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• Information systems planning and aligning corporate and IS goals:   * Information systems planning: translating strategic and organisational goals info systems development initiatives   * Aligning goals and IS goals: critical for successful systems development effort

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• %%System Development Life Cycles%%:

     1. Traditional systems development life cycle:      * Systems investigation: identifies problems and identities and considers them in a light of business goals      * Systems analysis: studies existing systems and work processes to identify strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for improvement      * Systems design: defines how the information system will do what it must to obtain the problem’s solution      * Systems implementation: creates or acquires various system components details in systems design, assembles them, and places new or modified system info operation      * Systems maintenance and review: ensures the system operates as intended      * Modifies the system so it continues to meet changing business needs

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2. Prototyping:    * An iterative approach    * Requirements and alternative solutions to the problem are identified and analysed    * New solutions are designed, and a portion of the system is implemented    * Rapid application development (RAD): employs tools, techniques, and methodologies designed to speed application development    * Other approaches to rapid development:    * Agile development    * Extreme programming (XP)

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• Outsourcing and on-demand computing: Reasons for using outsourcing and on-demand computing approaches   * Reduce costs   * Obtain state-of-the-art technology   * Eliminate staffing and personnel problems   * Increases technological flexibility

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• Degree of Change: Continuous improvement projects vs. reengineering   * Continuous improvement projects have a high degree of success   * Reengineering projects have a high risk high benefit
• Managing change: essential to recognise and deal with existing or potential problems

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• Project Management Tools:   * Project schedule: detailed description of what is to be done   * Project milestone: critical date for completion of a major part of the project   * Project deadline: date the entire project is set to be completed and operational
• Critical path: activities that, if delayed, would delay the entire project

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3. Object-oriented systems development: Combines logic of systems development life cycle with power of object-oriented modelling and programming    * OOSD: identifies potential problems and opportunities    * Defines what kind of system users require    * Designing the program    * Programming or modifying modules    * Evaluation by users    * Periodic review and modification

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• Feasibility analysis: Assesses:   * Technical feasibility   * Economic feasibility   * Legal feasibility   * Operational feasibility   * Schedule feasibility     * Object-oriented approach is used through all phases of system development

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• Investigation process: Initiated by a systems request form
• Systems analysis: The examination of existing systems   * The systems investigation report summarises results of systems investigation
• Data modelling: accomplished through the use of entity-relationship (ER) diagram

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• Activity modelling:   * Accomplished through the use of data-flow diagrams   * DFDs: describe the activities that fulfils a business relationship or accomplish a business task

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• Requirements analysis: determines user, stakeholder, and organisational needs

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• System Design:   * Logical design: describes functional requirements of a system   * Physical design: specifies the characteristics of the system components necessary to put the logical design into action   * Purpose of systems design: To prepare the detailed design needs for a new system or modifications to an existing system   * Environmental design: Involves systems development efforts that slash power consumption and take less physical space   * Request for proposal (RFP): document that specifies required resources such as hardware and software in detail   * Purpose of systems implementation: To install a system and make everything, including users, ready for its operation   * IS vendor: Company that offers hardware, software, telecommunications systems, databases, IS personnel, or other computer-related resources   * Software: Can be purchased from external vendors or developed in house   * Systems operation: The use of a new or modified system \n \n \n

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