1

What is !nformation
!nformation is processed data presented in a form that is
meaningful to the recipient and is of real value in the
current context or decision making process
Processing Data
Data
Storage
!nformation
Data is the raw material for processing information. Data
itself has no meaning or value. !t is a set of facts about the
Entities in the Real World

'he Need for N!S ??

'ough Clobal Competition
'o be able to Quickly React to Changing Environment
Faster Decision Naking with Ninimum Uncertainties
'o have a Competitive Edge
!ncrease the Organizational Responsiveness
'o Nanage Clobal Business Operation
'o Establish Proper Nanagement and Control
Because
Knowledge is an Asset and must not be lost
Better Productivity
Changing Organization Structures - Flattening and DeCentralizing
'o Empower the Employees with !nformation at the Right 'ime
Legal Nanifestations

What Nakes N!S Feasible

Cheap Computing Power (High Processing Power / Unit
Cost)
Computing power doubles every 18 months
Advances in data storage
Advances in data mining techniques
High End 'echnologies
Portable Computing
Advances in telecommunications / Networking
infrastructure
Affordable Software Solutions

Definition of N!S
A Nanagement !nformation System !s
An !ntegrated User Nachine System
For Providing !nformation
'o Support the Operations, Nanagement, Analysis and Decision
Naking Functions !n an Organization
A Nanagement !nformation System Utilizes
Computer Hardware and Software
Nanual Procedures
A Database
Nodels for Analysis, Planning, Control and DN

Other Definitions of N!S

N!S is a federation of several functional Subsystems.
!f we say that the N!S is a federation of several sub systems,
then there must be an integration of these sub systems. 'he
integrator is generally the database
!t is the wide variety of Computer Resources dedicated to
perform transaction processing, to provide processing for a
formal information and reporting systems, and to accomplish
managerial decision support systems are broadly classified as
the as the Organizations N!S

Physical Components of N!S

Hardware Refers to the Physical Computer Equipment System
Software 'hat Basically comprises of the System and the
Application Software that make the N!S Possible
Database !s typically the database Software that is used to
store the data on which the whole N!S operates
Procedures Which comprises of User Nanuals and the the Work
Flows that need to be followed to work with the N!S. For
Example How to Book a Sales Order"
Operating Personnel Are the People who work on the N!S,
Systems Analysts, Data Preparation Personnel, Database
Administrator Etc

Processing Functions of N!S

Processing 'ransactions
'ransaction are the unit activities that are performed
by an organization
Naintaining Naster Files
Store Permanent / Historical Data / Concentrated Data
Produce Reports
Regular / ADHOC
!nquiry Processing
Process !nteractive Support Application
Enables Planning, Analysis and Decision Naking
Function in an Organization
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Outputs for Users of An N!S
'here are various types of outputs that are provided by an N!S
'ransaction Documents / Screens
- !nformational, Action, !nvestigational
Preplanned Reports
- Nonitoring !nformation, Problem Finding !nformation,
Action !nformation, Decision Support
Preplanned !nquiry Responses
Adhoc Reports / !nquiry Responses
User Nachine Dialog Results

Activity S Functional Sub Sys

Transaction Processing
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Operational Control
Management Control
Strategic Planning
DATABASE
10
N!S Support for an Organization
Transaction Processing
Inquiry Response
Management Information For
Operational Planning, DM and Control
Management Information
for Tactical Planning and
Control
MIS
For
Strategy
and
Policy Planning
and DM
EIS
DSS
MRS
TPS
O
A
S
11
!nformation Rights
PR!vACY: Right to be left alone
Fair information practices (F!P):
No secret personal records
!ndividuals can access, amend information about
them
Use info only with prior consent
Nanagers accountable for damage done by
systems
Covernments can intervene
1
TPS
OAS
MIS
KWS
DSS
ESS
ORGANIZATIONAL LEVEL
TYPE OF
DECISION OPERATIONAL KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT STRATEGIC
STRUCTURED ACCOUNTS
RECEIVABLE
ELECTRONIC PRODUCTION
SCHEDULING COST OVERRUNS
SEMI- BUDGET
STRUCTURED PREPARATION
PROJECT
SCHEDULING
FACILITY
LOCATION
UNSTRUCTURED PRODUCT DESIGN NEW PRODUCTS
NEW MARKETS
!NFO SYS'ENS, LEvELS, DEC!S!ONS
1
!S for Operational Control
Operational Control is the process of ensuring that operational
Activities are carried out effectively and efficiently. !t makes
use of pre established procedures and Decision Rules
'here are various processing sub systems for operational
Control
'ransaction Processing
Report Processing
!nquiry Processing
Eg are 'ransactions for inventory withdrawal, or checking of
inventory levels, Orders pending for a specified duration
1
!S for Nanagement Control
Nanagement Control is required by Nanagers of Departments,
Cost Centers
'he various types of information that are required by this
level of Nanagement are
Planned !nformation
variances from Planned Performance
Reasons for variances
Analysis of Possible Decisions or courses of Action
1
!S for Strategic Planning
'he Purpose of Strategic Planning is to develop Strategies by
Which an Organization will be able to achieve its Objectives
!t is used by the 'op Nanagement Croup. Such Activities do
not take place at a regular intervals / frequency
'here is a considerable need for external Data which may be
bought from W'O, Narketing Research Organizations,
Covernment Agencies etc
'he Decision are Largely Unstructured and are widely
influenced by external factors. 'he Decisions generally have a
futuristic scope. various types of Decision Naking Nodels are
used for specific Analysis and Decision Naking
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!nformation Requirements
Characteristics
of !nformation
Operational
Control
Nanagement
Control
Strategic
Planning
Source Largely
!nternal
External
Scope Well Defined,
Narrow
Wide
Level of
Aggregation
Detailed Aggregate
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'ransaction Processing System
'PS : A transaction is defined as a business event /
activity.
A 'ransaction processing system supports the processing
of a firms transactions
'ransaction Processing Systems are generally responsible
for data capturing
'ransaction Processing System must be capable of
Handling large volumes of data
Nust be capable of handling the transactions on line, rather
than on a Batch Node
!t is the core of any N!S. 'he Other information systems
work by utilizing the information that is captured by 'PS
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Nanagement Reporting Systems
NRS : A is an information system that provides predefined
types of information to the Nanagement for relatively
structured types of information
NRS is typically used for planning and management
control. Essentially the data captured by 'PS is summarized
into a more meaningful form to allow the managers have a
global picture of the heath of the business
various Categories of NRS
Scheduled Reports
Exception Reports
Demand Reports
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TPS
Order Processing
System
MateriaIs Resource
PIanning System
GeneraI Ledger
System
ORDER FILE
PRODUCTON MASTER FLE
ACCOUNTING FILES
MIS MIS
MIS FILES MIS FILES
SALES
DATA
UNIT
PRODUCT
COST
PRODUCT
CHANGE
DATA
EXPENSE
DATA
MIS
REPORTS
MANAGERS MANAGERS
2.23
'PS DA'A FOR N!S APPL!CA'!ONS
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Decision Support Systems
Decision Support Systems refer to a class of Systems which
support the process of Naking Systems.
DSS are used because they
Compensate for fear of uncertainty of the outcome of decisions as
perceived by the Human Nind
Does not suffer from Latency Effects
Has a Wider Coverage on the various possibilities
'he DSS must support the Decision and not replace the normal
Human Decision Naking Behavior
Should assist in making decisions to solve semistructured
problems
Should be !nteractive, taking Regular Consolations with the
User and not an isolated process
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'he Decision Naking Process
!N'ELL!CENCE
DES!CN
CHO!CE
!ntelligence !mplies Searching the
Environment for Conditions calling for
Decisions
Design is inventing, developing and
analyzing the possible courses of
Actions
Choice is selecting an alternate course
of Action from those available. A Choice
is made and implemented

Decision Naking
Structured Decisions Unstructured Decisions
re Frequent
Flourish in Definite
Environments
The decision can be
expressed as a set of steps /
flowchart / decision tree /
formula
Data requirements are well
known in advance
Low / No Risk Decisions
re Infrequent
Thrive in mbiguous
Environments
There is no pre-established
decision procedure
Not so
High Risk ssociated with
Such Decisions

Structured / Unstructured Dec

For high level
Management
For low level
Management

Decision 'ables
1
Conditions
Actions
Rules

Executive !nformation Systems

!s to be used by the top executives of the organization
!t sits on the top of all function information systems
E!S is implemented by the use of special 'ools such as
Business Objects etc. 'he choice of tool is very important
since these executives cannot spend a lot of time in
learning the technologies
While Deigning an E!S due consideration should be given
to
siness Content Strategic Planning and Decision Naking
Support, Broad Based Computing Facility
Presentation Featres such as drill down reporting,
exceptional Reporting, Craphic Summary, OA Capabilities,
Ease and Learning of use and Customization

Office Automation Systems

Office Automation is application of Computer and Related
'echnologies like Communication and Networking that
integrate the Ceneral Office 'asks so that the efficiency of the
Work Force if greatly improved
'e OA Applications are
Documents management systems like DBNS for Data
Nanagement Storage And Handling
Nessage Handling Systems like internet, intranet,
mailing systems for Communication etc
'eleconferencing / video Conferencing for
Communication and Decision Naking
Office Support Systems like Word Processors / Craphic
Packages etc for Decision Naking and Communication

Office Automation Systems

'hus the Key Objectives of OAS are
'oward a PAPERLESS" office
Redesign of work flow
!ntegrated software
Ergonomic design
Bright, cheerful work space
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Knowledge Based Systems
Knowledge work is that work that involves thinking, processing,
information, formulating analyses, recommendations and
procedures
KBS / ES is an knowledge intensive program that solves a
problems by capturing the expertise of a human brain in limited
domain of knowledge and experience. !t is a self learning
system
'here are main areas of A! research
Expert Systems
Natural Languages
vision Systems
Robotics
Neural Networks

Ceneral Concepts of !nformation

Usefulness of !nformation : !f the cost of !nformation <
than the value benefits to be deduced from it
Quality if !nformation : How efficiently it motivates human
actions and contributes to effective decision making
Utility of !nformation
- Form
- 'ime
- Place
- Possession
value of !nformation : Change in the Decision Behavior
the cost of procuring the information
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Water Fall Nodel
Preliminary
Design
Requirements
Analysis
Systems
Design
Coding
Testing
Maintenance
1
Prototype Nodel
Customer
Evaluation
Engineer the
Product
Refine
Prototype
Requirements
Gathering and
Refinement
Quick
Analysis and
Design
Build
Prototype

Differences
Waterfall Nodel
Nature Processes S clear
requirements
Low involvement of user
Key emphasis on each
phase
Structured and less time
consuming
Lesser Costs
Appropriate where
requirements are stable
and implementation
cycles are small
Prototype Nodel
Requirements not very
clear to the user
High involvement of user
Lack of focus on design,
coding and testing
phases
Repeated !terations,
hence more time
consuming
Creater costs
Appropriate where
implementation cycles
are small and
requirements are
changing

Spiral Nodel
Risk Analysis
Engineering
Customer
Evaluation
Planning

Spiral Nodel Features

!s a combination of waterfall and prototype models with
an added function - Risk Analysis
Appropriate for projects with large implementation
cycles > years
Coding id deferred to as late as possible in order to be
able to utilize latest technologies

System Engineering S Analysis

'he Set Of Activities Carried out during this phase are
!dentification of Customer Needs
Evaluate System Concept for Feasibility
Perform 'echnical Analysis
Allocation System Requirements to Software, Hardware
People, Databases and Procedures
Establish Cost And Schedule Constraints
Create a System Definition that forms the Foundation
for Subsequent Work

System Engineering S Analysis

Project Size and effort Estimation is done in order to determine
the Cost, 'ime and Nanpower required to develop such a
project
Cost Benefit Analysis
'angible benefits
!ntangible benefits
Feasibility Analysis
'echnical Feasibility
Economic Feasibility
Legal Feasibility
Operational Feasibility
Schedule Feasibility

Requirements Analysis
!s a communication intense activity
!t is the prime phase wherein the requirements are
captured
!t is really a complex activity, which involves converting a
set of nebulous, confused thoughts in the minds of a User
into a set of clear, well defined and well represented facts
that are to be furnished by the system
Why do projects fail
Cost Overruns
'ime Overruns
Poor Quality of the Product
Requirements Changed or were not understood properly
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Requirements Analysis
RA is a communication !ntense Activity a process of discovery,
refinement, modeling and specification, wherein both the
developer and customer take an active role in the requirements
analysis and specification
'he Activities for RA are broadly divided into
Problem Recognition
Evaluation and Synthesis
Nodeling
Specification
Review
'his process helps to lay down the specifications for Software
Function and Performance, Software's !nterface with other
systems and establish the design constraints to be met

Requirements AnalysisNodeling
Nodels are developed during the Requirements Analyst that
allow the user and the Analyst to gain a better understanding of
the system. 'he Nodels Focus on What to Do and not How to
Do
tility of Nodels
Aid in understanding !nformation, Function and Behavior of a
system thereby Naking RA more easy and more systematic
Nodels are the focal point of Review and hence the key to
determine Completeness, Consistency and accuracy of Function
Become the Foundation of Design - Providing designer in
Essential Representation of the Software that can be mapped to
implementation
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Nethods of Collecting !nformation
Questionnaires
OpenEnded
Closed Ended
Observation Nethods
Delphi 'echniques
Deriving from Existing !nformation Systems
Nanual
Electronics
Croup Discussions
Brain Storming
1
Requirements Analysis
'o Reach a Clear common Understanding between the User
and the Development 'eam modeling, flowcharting,
structured English representation and other specific methods
are used to capture the various Complex Business Scenarios
Data Flow Diagrams (DFD's) is a graphical technique that
depicts information flow and the transforms that are applied as
data flows from input to the output
Rules for drawing a DFD
Sources cannot leak data directly into data store
A store cannot directly pass on information to a destination
Data cannot flow directly from one store to another
Any process producing output must be a source itself
Any process with only input should be a data destination
Each Subsystem must be further exploded in the next level DFD

Requirements Analysis
Process or Function that operates upon a
data to perform a specific function
Data Flow / Data !tem
External Entity that represents the source
or sink of data
Represents a data storage that is generally
a permanent data storage

DFD's - Case Study !

Case : Depict the process for Customer
withdrawing cash from a Bank through a
'eller
'he following considerations have been taken
'he Customer is making a Withdrawal using
a Withdrawal slip
'he Customer is aware of the banking
procedure and has sufficient knowledge

DFD - 'ips - How to make one

!dentify the possible users that may be
involved in the procedure to be
accomplished
Decide on the probable actions that are
required to complete the process. !t is not
necessary to be over enthusiastic but do
allow for possible additions as your diagram
progresses.
Work out the data that is going to be
needed to carry out each of these actions.
Lastly put them all together like a jigsaw
puzzle

DFD's - Customer Withdrawal

1. Customer
.Complete
Withdrawal
Slip
!nformation
. validate
'ransaction
And
balance
. Pay
Balance
. Process
'ransaction
Customer Account !nfo
. 'eller
Receipt,
Cash,
Card
Account No
Signature,
Card
!nformation
Debit !nfo
Account
Amount
Account No valid A/C Debit Amt New Balance
New Bal.
Cash Amt.

Data Dictionary
!s a structured Repository of data about data
(NEDADA'A). !t is a rigorous definitions of
all the DA'A elements and Data Structures
Data Elements - are the smallest unit of data
that provides for no further decomposition. Eg.
Date
Data Structure - A group of data elements
handled as a unit. For Eg the Customer Account
info is a data structure of data elements like
AccNo, Name, Address, Balance, Signature,
Credit and Debit !nformation and so on.
Data Flows and Data Stores

Systems Design
Systems Design is Defined as the process of applying various
techniques and principles for the purpose translating the
requirements into a representation of the software in sufficient
details to permit its physical realization
'he !mportance of design
Design
Naintenance
'est
!mplementation
!mplementation
'est
Naintenance
Design is the place where quality is fostered into the
software
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Systems Design
Design
Code
'est
Data Design
Architectural
Design
Procedural
Design
!nformational
Nodel
Functional Nodel
Behavioral
Nodel
Other
Requirements
Design Code and
testing Phase absorb
almost of the
Software Cost

Systems Design
System design can be categorized into various factors such as
!npt Design : All care must be taken to take the correct
system inputs in the most efficient and simple way. !nput
Design includes determining the various means by which the
System would receive the inputs from the surrounding such as
data Entry Screens, Bar Code Readers etc. !t also accounts for
the validations that would be performed by the system in order
to check for the correctness of the data being entered. A
correct input a very essential in order to allow successful
functioning of the system in desired fashion
Otpt Design : !mplies the careful design of the out
interfaces such as screen designs and Report Layouts. 'he
output response time should be carefully designed and should
be the maximum possible
0
Systems Design
Data Design : !mplies defining the data dictionary that
would be used to capture the data the would be captured /
generated by the system. 'his is one of the most important
design phases since the Data Design directly would affect the
performance of the system
A good database design is one that not only allows you to
store the correct representation of data, but also allows you
to retrieve the data in a simple and efficient Nanner
Care should be taken to defined the low level database
parameter at this phase. !nstead ER Diagram and the Data
!ntegrity constraints should be explicit, allowing the flexible
choice of the database details to be taken care of at the
implementation level
1
Systems Design
Arcitectral Design : 'he prime Objective is to develop a
modular program structure and represent the control
relationship between the various components. !t also includes
the design of program structure and data structure, defining
the interfaces that enable the data to flow throughout the
program
P1
P
P
P
P
P
P
P1
P
P
P
P
P1
P
P
N

Systems Design
Procedral Design : 'his occurs generally after the data and
architectural designs have been accomplished. !t is used to
define the algorithmic details to implement the various
operations that would be performed on the data. 'he
procedural design can be done by using Structured English,
Craphical Design Notations, etc
Examples
!f <ConditionDescription>
'hen <Block Pseudo code>
Else < Block Pseudo code >
End !f
DO While <ConditionDescription>
<Block Pseudo code>
EndDo

Coding
Coding !nvolves the translation of the Detail Design
Representation into a Programming Language Representation
'hus to Code you need a Programming Language. 'he choice
of the Language generally determines the complete life Cycle. A
good Programming Language Will
Support Nodularization (Functions, Procedures, Logical Units)
Support for Abstract Data Structures
Allows Use of Complex Data 'ypes
Ease of Learning, Using
!ntelligent Compiler to produce Nachine Efficient Code
Source Code Portability - ]ava, vB.net, CL's. E.g. SQL
Naintainability
Ability to Plug !nto Other Software (OLE, CON, CORBA etc)

Coding
'he Output of the Coding Phase is Lines of Code
Software Design
Lines Of Code
Compile
Coding
Nachine Exec Code
Categories of Programming Languages
First Ceneration Languages Eg Assemblers
Second Ceneration Languages Eg FOR'RAN
'hird Ceneration Languages
Ceneral Purpose
Object Oriented
Specialized Languages
Fourth Ceneration Languages Eg Query Cenerators

'esting
'esting is the critical element of Software Quality Assurance -
representing the ultimate review of specification, design and
coding. 'esting cannot show the absence of a defects, it can
only show that the defects are present
nit 'esting : !s used to test the a individual component and
takes place as soon as a unit component is developed
!ntegration 'esting : !s carried out between the various
dependant components to ensure that the various components
are able to perform the designation Function in relation to each
other
Fnctional 'esting : !s carried out to ensure that the product
meets the acceptance criteria that has been defined during the
RA Phase. !n short it ensure that the system

'esting Strategies
D
R
C

/ F'
!
S
S'
System Engineering
Design
Coding
Unit 'esting
!ntegration 'esting
Functional 'esting
System 'esting
Requirements Analysis

!mplementation of N!S
'here are two scenarios of !nformation
Systems implementation
Case ! : When no !nformation Systems PreExist in
the organization
'his case is easy, the new information systems are right
away implemented in the organization. 'here are no
specific complexities involved
Case !! : When there is an existing information
System in Organization.
'his requires special handling since the existing
information systems hold important data, which is useful
to the organization and cannot be done away with
'he data from existing systems need to be ported to the
new information systems
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!mplementation of N!S
'he specific four approaches for
!nformation systems Replacement by
new Systems are
Direct
Parallel
Nodular
Phasein

!mplementation of N!S
Direct Approach
Refers to the case in which implementation of new system is
done and immediately the old system is discontinued.
!t is also referred to as the Cutoff Approach.
!t is Applicable when
Old system is very small or simple
!t is judged absolutely worthless
'he new System is radically different from the existing one
!t involves a high risk of failure
Old System New system
0
!mplementation of N!S
Parallel Approach
'he new system is installed and operated in
parallel with existing system till it has been tested
thoroughly., then the current system is cut off
'he outputs from new and existing system are
compared from each system during the parallel
phase and differences are reconciled
!t is expensive since it requires duplication of
effort to maintain dual systems
!t is need for critical operations
Old System
New system New system
1
!mplementation of N!S
Nodular Approach
!s a pilot approach, refers to
implementations of systems on a
piecemeal basis
Advantages
Risk of System failure is localized
Problems identified in the system can be
corrected before further implementation
Nodule (c) new Nodule (a) old
Nodule (d) new Nodule (b) old
Nodule (c) new Nodule (a) new
Nodule (d) new Nodule (b) new

!mplementation of N!S
Phasein !mplementation
'his method is referred to as cut over by segments
approach and is similar to the modular approach
'he system itself is segmented and not the organization
New data collection activities are implemented and an
interface mechanism with old system is develop, which
allows old system to operate with new data
Later new data access, storage and retrieval activities are
implemented
'hen , again interfaces with old systems are developed
Note : High Costs are involved but needed for large
enterprises
Function (b) Function (a)
New Old
Old System

Database Nanagement
Entity
Anything of interest to the
user about which data is to
be collected
Attributes
Characteristics about the
entity which are relevant to
record
Data !tem
Record
File
Database

Database Nanagement
'he !nitial Approach was to develop files to store
information
'hus data files were developed and maintained separately
for individual applications
Problems
Data duplication
Same data stored at different location, to be processed by
different applications
Data inconsistency
Lack of data integration
!nformation spread across different files, need complex programs
for data extraction
Data Dependence
Applications in file processing systems are data dependant
Program Dependence
Applications / Program manipulate the information in the files

Database Nanagement System

A database management system is a
collection of software that not assist in
storing information, but also aid in quick and
efficient retrieval of data.
'he objectives of database is to have
Controlled data redundancy
Enhanced data consistency
Data independence
Concurrency Control
Ease of Use
Economical
Recovery from failure

INFORMATION & INFORMATION &

TECHNOLOGY TECHNOLOGY
INDIVIDUAL INDIVIDUAL
SOCIETY SOCIETY
POLITY POLITY
QUALITY OF LIFE QUALITY OF LIFE
ETHICAL ISSUES ETHICAL ISSUES
SOCIAL ISSUES SOCIAL ISSUES
POLITICAL ISSUES POLITICAL ISSUES
INFORMATION INFORMATION
RIGHTS RIGHTS
&OBLIGATIONS &OBLIGATIONS
PROPERTY PROPERTY
RIGHTS & RIGHTS &
OBLIGATIONS OBLIGATIONS
ACCOUNTABILITY ACCOUNTABILITY
& CONTROL & CONTROL
SYSTEM SYSTEM
QUALITY QUALITY
.5
E'H!CAL, SOC!AL S POL!'!CAL !SSUES

Role of EndUsers in !S Development

!n this case the endusers develop information system with little
help from technical specialists using th generation tools
Strengths
!ncreased productivity using th generation tools
query languages
graphics
report generators
application generators
Short development times
Weaknesses
Relatively inefficient
Slow transaction processing
Nay carry high cost
Large files can degrade performance
Nonprocedural approach may hamper logic S updating
requirements
Lack of Consistency and approach to Software Development
Lack of a process approach for software Development
Lack of quality approach ('esting, Documentation etc)
Disassociation from Primary ]ob for which the person was hired
8
Role of EndUsers in !S Development
Nanagement Benefits:
!mproved requirements determination
!ncreased user involvement S satisfaction
Reduced application backlog
Nanagement Problems:
Neet organizational objectives?
Quality assurance?
!nadequate methodology, testing,
documentation?
Lost control over data?