Supporting Expert: often not a full-blown systems project, but rather it entails a small modification or decision affecting a single department. 

Agent of Change: You are an agent of change when you perform any of the activities in the systems development life cycle for a while.  defined as a person who serves as a catalyst for change, develops a plan for change, and works with others in facilitating that change.

Consultant: address information systems issues in the business. Advantage: unbiased views can bring a fresh perspective. Disadvantage: could never know the true organizational culture.

Phases of the system development life cycle

1. Identifying problems, opportunities, and objectives: pinpoint problems, situations that the analyst believes can be improved through computerized infosystems

2. Determining human information requirements.:

Using a variety of tools to understand how users interact in the work context with their current info systems. Using interviews, sampling and investigating hard data, and using questionnaires, along with unobtrusive methods like observing decision-makers' behaviors.

3. Analyzing system needs:

Special tools and techniques help the analyst make requirement determinations. Tools like data flow diagrams, processes, and output of the business's functions, or activity diagrams or sequence diagrams to show the sequence of events, illustrate systems in a structured, graphical form. From these tools, a data dictionary is developed that lists all the data items used in the system and their specifications.

4. Designing the recommended system:

Uses the information collected earlier to accomplish the logical design of the info system. The analyst designs procedures for users to help them accurately enter data so that data going into the info system are correct.

5. Developing and documenting software:

Works with programmers to develop any original software that is needed. During this phase, the analyst works with users to develop effective documentation for software, including procedure manuals, online help, and websites featuring FAQs.

6. Testing and maintaining the system:

Less costly to catch problems before the system is signed over to users. Tests pinpoint problems by running sample data and eventually with actual data from the system. Maintenance begins after testing, much of a programmer's routine work is maintenance. Program updates can be done automatically via a vendor site on the web.

7. Implementing and evaluating the system.:

training users to handle the system usually via systems analyst. The analyst needs to plan for a smooth conversion from the old system to the new one. This includes converting files, building a database, installing equipment, and bringing the new system into production.

Feedback, Communication, Courage, Simplicity

a.k.a. FCCs

Catagories of cloud computing

-Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) interacts with software hosted on the cloud

-Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) the infrastructure and hardware that powers the cloud

-Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) allows users to create and deploy applications.

Logical and physical data flow diagrams

Logical Data Flow: Focuses on “what” is in business and business activities. 

Describes the business events that take place and the data required for it. 

Physical Data Flow: Looks at “how” the system is implemented and “how” information flows through a system or process.  Includes data inputs and outputs, data stores.

Characterisitics of system analysis and design activities

Gather information to Define requirements: documented using use case diagrams

Then Prioritize system requirements to Develop u-i dialog (very clear about u.i. interface req.)

Evaluate requirements: Ensure all requirements are completed on time w/ solutions 

GDP DE

Characteristics of information systems

Hardware and software configurations, as a system can be composed of hardware only, software only, or a combination of both

Data flow diagram symbols

External entities (sources + destination of data) represented by squares 

Processes (input-processing-output) represented by rectangles with rounded corners 

Data flows (physical or electronic data) referred to by arrows 
Data Stores (physical or electronic like XML files) presented by open-ended rectangles.

Decision trees:

The sequential order of the branches of the decision tree helps to check the order of conditions and their respective actions.

Decision trees conditions and actions can be found on a few branches whereas in a decision table they are a part of the same table

Decision trees are easier to understand as compared to decision tables

Characteristics of context and level zero diagrams

Drawn in order to define and clarify the boundaries of the software system. 

It identifies the flows of information between the system and external entities. 

The entire software system is shown as a single process.

Characteristics of CASE tools

Are characterized by the stage(s) of the software development life cycle they primarily focus on. CASE tools are used in many different ways in organizations.

Requirement Analysis Tool

Structure Analysis Tool

Software Design Tool

Code Generation Tool

Test Case Generation Tool

Document Production Tool

Reverse Engineering Tool

Characteristics of graphics software

Used to create images, edit, and convert graphic files of different formats. Most of their products are categorized by the function they serve.

For example: Photoshop, Cinema 4D, Illustrator, Paint Shop Pro, CorelDRAW, etc.

Advantages of CASE tools

Advantages: 

1. Increased Speed 

2. Increased Accuracy: CASE Tools can provide ongoing debugging and error checking which is very vital for early defect removal, which actually played a major role in shaping modern software. 

3. Reduced Lifetime Maintenance:

As a result of better design, better analysis and automatic code generation, automatic testing, and debugging overall systems quality improves. 

4. Better Documentation

By using CASE Tools, vast amounts of documentation are produced along the way. Most tools have revisions for comments and notes on systems development and maintenance. 

5. Programming in the hands of non-programmers:

With the increased movement towards object-oriented technology and client-server bases, programming can also be done by people who don't have a complete programming background.

Disadvantages of CASE tools

Disadvantages:

1. Tool Mix: It is important to make an appropriate selection o tool mix to get a cost advantage. CASE integration and data integration across all platforms are also very important. The ability to share the results of work done on one CASE tool with another CASE tool is perhaps the most important type of CASE integration.

2. Cost: CASE is not cheap! In fact, most firms engaged in software development on a small scale do not invest in CASE tools because they think that the benefits of CASE are justifiable only in the development of large systems. The cost of outfitting every systems developer with a preferred CASE tool kit can be quite high. Hardware and systems, software, training, and consulting are all factors in the total cost equation.

3. Learning Curve: In most cases, programmer productivity may fall in the initial phase of implementation, because users need time to learn the technology. In fact, a CASE consulting industry has evolved to support the uses of CASE tools. The consultants offer training and on-site services that can be crucial to accelerating the learning curve and to the development and use of the tools.

Three most important activities in systems analysis and design

System analysis and design are the methodologies used to analyses a system requirement and functionality and designing the model.

- requirement analysis

- Physical and Logical design

- System proposal

Requirement analysis: This activity used to analyses a requirement based on the project. It is the first activity before starting a project. The requirement is categorized in two ways; Software requirement and hardware requirement.

Physical and Logical design: 

Physical design is dependent on the structure of hardware, software, system, file, and database.

Logical Design is developed on the aspect of the business module. This design is purely independent of the physical model. It tells the logic of the project.

System proposal: System proposal is used to apply all the requirements and design into the project. This proposal is the decided function to move the project.

Decision tables:

Are an important tool in the analysis of structured decisions.

They are easier to draw and don’t have too many conditions

They provide a compact representation of the decision-making process. 

A small table can replace several pages of flow charts.