New Jersey Institute of Technology College of Computing Sciences CIS677: Information System Principles, Spring 2002 Professor Bieber
A Public Research University

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Assignment: IS Examples (Distance Sections)

When:

This assignment will take place during the second week of class discussion (1/31 - 2/14). Post your IS example by Monday 2/11 at the very latest. But please try to post it much earlier.

Goal:

To explore the idea of information systems further with some examples.

What to Do:

In your WebBoard discussion conference, post a description of some information system (IS) that you have had some experience with, either as a developer, an active user, or just as a casual user. Use Steven Alter's Work Centered Analysis (WCA) framework to describe your system. The WCA framework is described in the Alter 1996 reading.

Remember that Alter views an information system as being much broader than the technology used to build and run the computer system itself. Because of this you may have trouble drawing a boundary around your system. (If you do have trouble, just decide on a boundary and stick with it :-)

Please post your description in your WebBoard discussion conference using plain text (or HTML). Please do not append any attachments.

1. Start out by describing the system goals, which are not part of the information system itself, but the motivation for it, i.e., the reason that the organization building the system invested in it.
2. Who are the "customers" or "clients" who use the system's products or services? These customers or clients may be inside an organization (internal) or outside the organization, including the general public (external)
3. What products or services does the system produce?
4. Then describe the work practices, i.e., the kinds of things the system is used in - how people do their jobs or accomplish the tasks they need to.
5. Then identify the people using the system,
6. the information, i.e., the data used within and produced by the system and what it is used for,
7. and finally the information technology (IT) the system uses, i.e., the computer hardware and software used in people's work practices to process the data.

You may be able to specify all these aspects of the WCA framework accurately and in detail, or you may just be able to speculate based on what you have experienced as a casual user. For example, if you pick an ATM (automated bank teller machine) and have no knowledge of what is behind it, just speculate to the best of your everyday experience with banks. Hopefully in the discussion with your classmates, other viewpoints and details will emerge.

During the discussion for this period, please reply to both these IS examples and the regular discussion within your discussion conference.

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