Chapter 8
Software as a Service (SaaS)
allows businesses to subscribe to Web-delivered application software by paying a monthly service charge; substantially less expensive than developing software in-house
Systems Analyst
a professional who specializes in analyzing and designing business systems and develops detailed plans for the new or modified system; often the only person who sees the system in its totality
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)
a rating system which includes a number of standards for the construction and operation of buildings
Programmer
a specialist responsible for modifying or developing programs to satisfy user requirements; takes the plan from the systems analyst and builds or modifies the necessary software
Systems Maintenance
a stage of systems development that involves checking, changing, and enhancing the system to make it more useful in achieving user and organizational goals; for purchased software, this can be 20% or more annually of the purchase price
Systems Investigation Report
a summary of the results of the systems investigation and the process of feasibility analysis and recommendation of a course of action (either continue on into systems analysis, modify the project, or drop the project); reviewed by the steering committee
Scrum
a systems development approach that stresses agile, incremental development
Natural User Interface (NUI)
a touch (or multi-touch) user interface
Critical Path
activities that, if delayed, would delay the entire project; these activities have zero slack time
Entity Symbol
representation of either a source or destination of a data element
Environmental Design
(aka green design) involves systems development efforts that slash power consumption, require less physical space, and result in systems that can be disposed of in a way that doesn't negatively affect the environment
Phase-In-Approach
(aka piecemeal approach) slowly replacing components of the old system with those of the new one; this process is repeated for each application until the new system is running every application and performing as expected
Direct Conversion
(aka plunge or direct cutover) stopping the old system and starting the new system on a given date; least desirable approach because the potential for problems and errors is doubled because two systems are turning on and off simultaneously
Upper-CASE Tools
CASE tools that focus on activities associated with the early stages of systems development
Individual Systems Developer
a person who performs all of the systems development roles, including systems analyst, programmer, and technical specialist
IS Vendor
a company that offers hardware, software, telecommunications systems, databases, IS personnel, or other computer-related resources; includes general computer manufacturers, peripheral equipment distributors, and chip makers
Project Milestone
a critical date for the completion of a major part of the project
Logical Design
a description of the functional requirements of a system; involves planning the purpose of each system element, independent of hardware and software considerations
Project Schedule
a detailed description of what is to be done
Final Evaluation
a detailed investigation of the proposals offered by the vendors remaining after the preliminary evaluation
Systems Request Form
a document filled out by someone who wants the IS department to initiate systems investigation; the information in this form helps to rationalize and prioritize the activities of the IS department
Request for Proposal (RFP)
a document that specifies in detail required resources such as hardware and software; an important document for many organizations involved with large, complex systems development efforts
Crystal Methodologies
a family of systems development approaches that concentrates on effective teamwork and the reduction of paperwork and bureaucracy to make development projects faster and more efficient
User Acceptance Document
a formal agreement that the user signs stating that a phase of the installation or the complete system is approved; removes or reduces IS vendor's liability
Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT)
a formalized approach that creates three time estimates (shortest possible time, most likely time, and longest possible time) for an activity to determine a single time estimate
Gantt Chart
a graphical tool used for planning, monitoring, and coordinating projects; essentially a grid that lists activities and deadlines
Data-Flow Line
a line with arrows that show the direction of data element movement
Questionnaires
a method of gathering data when the data sources are spread over a wide geographic area; may be the best data collection method
Data-Flow Diagram (DFD)
a model of objects, associations, and activities that describes how data can flow between and around various objects
Process Symbol
representation of a function that is performed
Steering Committee
an advisory group consisting of senior management and users from the IS department and other functional areas; these people help IS personnel with their decisions about the use of information systems in the business and give authorization to pursue further systems development activties
Asking Directly
an approach to gather data that asks users, stakeholders, and other managers about what they want and expect from the new or modified system; works best for stable systems in which stakeholders and users clearly understand the system's functions
Object-Oriented Systems Development (OOSD)
an approach to systems development that combines the logic of the systems development life cycle with the power of object-oriented modeling and programming; follows a defined systems development life cycle, much like SDLC
Idea Factory
an approach used by the TSA to review current information systems and recommend new ones or changes to existing systems
Preliminary Evaluation
an initial assessment whose purpose is to dismiss the unwanted proposals; begins after all proposals are submitted
Unstructured Interview
an interview in which the questions are not written in advance, the interviewer relies on experience in asking the best questions
Structured Interview
an interview in which the questions are written in advance
Prototyping
an iterative approach to the systems development process in which at each iteration requirements and alternative solutions to a problem are identified and analyzed, new solutions are designed, and a portion of the system is implemented
Feature-Driven Development (FDD)
an iterative systems development approach that stresses the features of the new or modified system and involves developing an overall model, creating a list of features, planning by features, designing by features, and building by features
Legacy System
an old system that might have been patched or modified repeatedly over time; can be expensive to maintain and sometimes difficult to add new features
Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT)
analyzes the energy usage of new systems
Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC)
another name for the systems development process, because the activities associated with it are ongoing; as each system is built, the project has timelines and deadlines until at last the system is installed and accepted
End-User Systems Development
any systems development project in which the primary effort is undertaken by a combination of business managers and users; possible for one person to be both an individual developer and user
Feasibility Analysis
assessment of the technical, economic, legal, operational, and schedule feasibility of a project
Technical Feasibility
assessment of whether the hardware, software, and other system components can be acquired or developed to solve the problem
Lean User Experience (Lean UX)
based on Toyota's lean manufacturing; attempts to rapidly convert user requirements into information systems using daily meetings and delivering results in a short time frame
Data Store
representation of a storage location for data
Lean Software Development
comes from lean manufacturing practices used by Toyota and stresses continuous learning, just-in-time decision making, empowering systems development teams, and the elimination of waste
Data Modeling
commonly accepted approach to modeling organizational objects and associations that employ both text and graphics
Help Desk
computer systems, manuals, people with technical expertise, and other resources needed to solve problems and give accurate answers
Acceptance Testing
conducting any tests required by the user
Development Team
determines objectives of the information system and delivers a system that meets those objectives; usually consists of stakeholders, users, managers, systems development specialists, and various support personnel
Direct Observation
directly observing the existing system in action by one or more members of the analysis team
Adaptive Software Development (ASD)
grew out of rapid application development techniques and stresses an iterative process that involves analysis, design, and implementation at each cycle or iteration
Object-Oriented Systems Analysis
identifies problems or potential opportunities and key participants, and collects data
Rational Unified Process (RUP)
includes a number of tools and techniques that are typically tailored to fit the needs of a specific company or organization; uses an iterative approach to software development that stresses quality as the software is changed and updated over time
Data Preparation (Data Conversion)
making sure that all files and databases are ready to be used with new computer software and systems
System Performance Measurement
monitoring the system -- the number of errors encountered, the amount of money required, the amount of processing or CPU time needed, and other problems should be closely observed
Capability Maturity Model (CMM)
one way to measure an organizational experience; grades an organization's systems development maturity using 5 levels: (1) initial, (2) repeatable, (3) defined, (4) managed, and (5) optimized
Users
people who will regularly interact with the system (i.e. employees, managers, or suppliers)
Stakeholders
people who, either themselves or through the organization they represent, ultimately benefit from the systems development project
Site Preparation
preparation of the location of a new system; security is important, as is developing IS sites that are energy efficient
Systems Analysis Report
report that covers strengths and weaknesses of existing system from a stakeholder's perspective, user/stakeholder requirements for new system, organizational requirements for new system, and a description of what the new information system should do to solve the problem
Agile Development
requires cooperation and frequent face-to-face meetings with all participants as they modify, refine, and test how the system meets users' needs and what its capabilities are; more flexible so they are able to rapidly change with the changing conditions and environments
Parallel Start-Up
running both the old and new systems for a period of time and comparing the output of the new system closely with the output of the old system; any differences are reconciled. When users are comfortable with the new system is working correctly, the old system is eliminated
Pilot Start-Up
running the new system for one group of users rather than all users
System Performance Products
software that measures all components of the information system, including hardware, software, database, telecommunications, and network systems; when properly used, these products can quickly and efficiently locate actual or potential problems
Integration Testing
testing all related systems together
Unit Testing
testing of individual programs
Volume Testing
testing the application with a large amount of data
System Testing
testing the entire system of programs
Systems Development
the activity of creating new systems or modifying existing systems; refers to all aspects of the process -- from identifying problems to solve or opportunities to exploit to implementing and refining the chosen solution
Project Deadline
the date the entire project is to be completed and operational; when the organization will start seeing benefits
Make-Or-Buy Decision
the decision regarding whether to obtain the necessary software from internal or external sources
Requirements Analysis
the determination of user, stakeholder, and organizational needs
Legal Feasibility
the determination of whether laws or regulations may prevent or limit a systems development project
Schedule Feasibility
the determination of whether the project can be completed in a reasonable amount of time
Economic Feasibility
the determination of whether the project makes financial sense and whether predicted benefits offset the cost and time needed to obtain them
System Specifications
the final results of systems design; they include a technical description that details system outputs, inputs, and user interfaces as well as hardware, software, etc. and the way these components are related
Systems Review
the final step of systems development, involving analyzing systems to make sure that they are operating as intended; can be performed during systems development which results in halting the new systems while they are being built because of problems
Data Analysis
the manipulation of collected data so that the development team members who are participating in systems analysis can use the data
Operational Feasibility
the measure of whether the project can be put into action or operation
Design Report
the primary result of systems design, reflecting the decisions made for systems design and preparing the way for systems implementation; contains system specifications
Start-Up
the process of making the final tested information system fully operational; if not done properly, the results can be disastrous
Installation
the process of physically placing the computer equipment on the site and making it operational
User Preparation
the process of readying managers, decision makers, employees, other users, and stakeholders for the new systems; important but often ignored area of systems implementation
Physical Design
the specification of the characteristics of the system components necessary to put the logical design into action
Rapid Application Development (RAD)
the systems development approach that employs tools, techniques, and methodologies designed to speed application development
Systems Investigation
the systems development phase during which problems and opportunities are identified and considered in light of the goals of the business; a defined development project is the primary result
Systems Analysis
the systems development phase involving the study of existing systems and work processes to identify strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for improvement; a list of requirements and priorities is the major outcome
Systems Design
the systems development phase that defines how the information system will do what it must do to obtain the solution; the primary result is a technical design that either describes the new system or describes how existing systems will be modified. Answers the question "How will the information system solve a problem?"
Systems Maintenance and Review
the systems development phase that ensures the system operates as intended and modifies the system so that it continues to meet changing business needs
Systems Implementation
the systems development phase that includes hardware acquisition or development, user preparation, hiring and training of personnel, site and data preparation, installation, testing, start-up, and user acceptance; results in an installed, operational information stem that meets the business needs for which it is developed
Critical Success Factors (CSFs)
those factors which are critical to the success of an area of the organization
Individual Users
those who acquire applications for both personal and professional use
Computer-Aided Software Engineering (CASE)
tools that automate many of the tasks required in a systems development effort and encourage adherence to the SDLC; instills a higher degree of rigor and standardization to the entire systems development process
Information Systems Planning
translating strategic and organizational goals into systems development initiatives
Systems Operation
use of a new or modified system in all kinds of operating conditions
Extreme Programming (XP)
uses pairs of programmers who work together to design, test, and code parts of the systems they develop; helps companies develop robust systems with fewer errors
Green Death
when old computers and computer equipment are fed into machines and shred them into small pieces and sort them into materials that can be reused
Object-Oriented (OO) Approach
with this approach, a class is used to describe different types of objects