Student Generated Info Sys Questions - 16 March

1. How does the SDLC fit into the overall view of developing an information system?

The SDLC is one methodology for developing an information system. An opposing methodology would be prototyping. The SDLC is a more formalised process often taking longer than prototyping. However, for large projects or projects that have very specific requirements this process can produce better results. A prototype is a working model.

2. What are the different stages of the SDLC?

This depends on what literature you are reading. However, early on you received a handout on the stages commonly used in the Information Systems exam.

3. What people are involved in developing an information system?

See heading in your text book "Who participates in the System Development Lifecycle" approx p. 622.

4. What are the characteristics of office information system?

p. 726

6. What are the characteristics of a transaction processing information system?

p726 - captures data from day-to-day business activities such as deposits, payments, orders, reservations. See other examples o p. 726

5. What are the characteristics of a management information system?

• p727 - mis systems generate accurate, timely and organised information so managers can make decisions, solve problems, supervise activities and track progress.
• Used for day to day decisions.
• Used by low level managers.
  
• often integrated with or based on TPS.
• Summary reports and exception reports are common examples.

7. What are the characteristics of a decision support system?

• p. 728 analyse data to make major decisions - specialised reports to make major decisions
  
• uses data from internal and external sources
• often answer what-if questions by creating models
  
• maybe used for things such as determining the price of a new product
  

8. What is the difference between the Context Diagram and Level 0 data flow diagram?

p 5 - diagram sheets
Context Diagrams show an overview of the system. They identify the scope of the system by establishing the system boundary. They identify the people or other systems that interact with the system analysed and they identify the flow of data/ information into/ out of the system. They do NOT identify specific processes within the system.

Level 0 Diagrams additionally show the processes and files within the system.

9. What are some ways of working out processes from the context diagram

You can not work out processes form the Context Diagram. Systems Analyst can only identify processes through information gathering techniques - survey, questionnaire, observation, review of system documentation, etc. For students generally you will identify processes by reading through the case study and analysing the processes within the system based on the system boundary set in the Context Diagram.

10. In drawing a data flow diagram, what is a good starting point?

• Reviewing the Context diagram.
• Get a set of coloured highlighters
• Read the case study highlighting the various components using different colours (See page 27 from handouts to help with this)
• Draw in the processes first (like on page 32)
• Add in dataflows process by process (p 33 -34)
• check for drawing errors (p. 30 - NO entity to entity, NO entity to data store, NO data store to data store)
• NOTE: often you need to create several drafts to get a well constructed diagram

FYI - Interesting example of distributed computing using PS3s