ad hoc reports reports that are not predefined by a programmer but designed as needed by a user

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1 INDEX GLOSSARY 80/20 syndrome 80 percent of the progress takes 20 percent of the effort, so the last 20 percent of progress can take 80 percent more time A abstract class a class that cannot be instantiated (no objects can be created), existing only to allow subclasses to inherit its attributes, methods, and associations acceptance test a system test that determines whether the system fulfills user requirements access control an integrity control that determines who has access to a system and its data access control list the list of users who have rights to access the system and data action-expression a description of the activities performed as part of a transition activation lifelines vertical rectangles in a sequence diagram that indicate when an object is executing a method activity diagram a type of workflow diagram that describes the user activities and their sequential flow activity-data matrix a table that describes stored data entities, the locations from which they are accessed, and the nature of the accesses activity-location matrix a table that describes the relationship between processes and the locations in which they are performed ad hoc reports reports that are not predefined by a programmer but designed as needed by a user adaptive approach an SDLC approach that is more flexible, assuming that the project cannot be planned out completely in advance but must be modified as it progresses afferent data flow the incoming data flow from a sequential set of DFD processes affordance a key principle of HCI that states the appearance of any control should suggest its functionality aggregation whole-part relationship between an object and its parts alpha version a system that is incomplete but ready for some level of rigorous testing analysis phase the phase of the SDLC whose objective is to understand the user needs and develop requirements application the portion of the new information system that satisfies the user s needs in the problem domain application architecture plan a description of the integrated information systems that the organization needs to carry out its business functions application deployment environment the configuration of computer equipment, system software, and networks for the new system application program interface (API) the set of public methods that are available to the outside world architectural design broad design of the overall system structure; also called general design or conceptual design artifact a class invented by a system designer to handle a needed system function associative entity a data entity that represents a many-to-many relationship between two other data entities asymmetric key encryption an encryption process that uses one key to encrypt and a different key to decrypt the data attribute one piece of specific information about a thing authentication the process of identifying a user to verify that he can have access to the system authorization the process of determining whether a user is permitted to have access to the system and data automation boundary the separation between the automated part of a system and the manual part of a system B balancing equivalence of data content between data flows entering and leaving a process and data flows entering and leaving a process decomposition DFD benchmark an evaluation of a system against some standard GLOSSARY 1

2 best-of-breed a software package developed for a particular application that is usually considered to incorporate the most current and best practices within the industry beta version a system that is stable enough to be tested by end users binary relationships relationships between two different types of things, such as a customer and an order black hole a process or data store with a data input that is never used to produce a data output bottom-up development a development order that implements modules at the bottom of a structure chart first boundary class (or view class) a class that exists on a system s automation boundary, such as an input window breakeven point the point in time at which the dollar benefits have offset the dollar costs browser forms forms programmed using HTML and script languages that follow Internet conventions build and smoke test a system test that is performed daily business benefits the benefits that accrue to the organization; often measured in monetary terms business intelligence the acquisition and use of information designed to improve competitive advantage business logic layer the part of three-layer architecture that contains the programs that implement the business rules of the application business process reengineering a technique that seeks to alter the nature of the work done in a business function, with the objective of radically improving performance C cardinality the number of associations that occur among specific things, such as a customer places many orders and an employee works in one department CASE tool a computer-aided system engineering tool designed to help a systems analyst complete development tasks central transform set of DFD processes that are located between the input and output processes centralized architecture architecture that locates all computing resources in a central location certificate, or digital certificate a text message that is encrypted by a verifying authority and used to broadcast an organization s name and public key certifying authority a wellknown third party that sells digital certificates to organizations change control log a log or list of requested changes to the existing set of functions chaordic a term used to describe adaptive projects, which are both chaotic and ordered check boxes input controls that enable the user to select more than one option from a group chief developer team a team with a single leader who makes all important decisions class the type or classification to which all similar objects belong class diagram a graphical model used in the object-oriented approach to show classes of objects in the system class-level method a method that is associated with a class instead of with objects of the class client a process, module, object, or computer that requests services from one or more servers client the person or group who funds the project closed-ended questions questions that have a simple, definitive answer clustered architecture a group of computers of the same type that share processing load and act as a single large computer system cohesion a qualitative measure of the consistency of functions within a single class collaborative specialist team a team with members who have wide variation in and minimal overlap of skills and experience combo box another variation of the list box that permits the user to enter a new value or select from the entries Common Language Runtime a mid-level language that allows programs to be partially compiled and managed for faster execution Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA) a standard for software component connection and interaction developed by the Object Management Group (OMG) 2 GLOSSARY

3 communication support systems support systems that allow employees to communicate with each other and with customers and suppliers completeness control an integrity control to ensure that all necessary fields on an input form have been entered complex data type a data type not directly supported by computer hardware or a programming language; also called user-defined data type component a standardized and interchangeable software module that is fully assembled and ready to use and that has well-defined interfaces to connect it to clients or other components Component Object Model Plus (COM+) a standard for software component connection and interaction developed by Microsoft composite state a state containing other states and transitions (that is, a path) composition whole-part relationship in which the parts cannot be dissociated from the object compound attribute an attribute that contains a collection of related attributes computer network a set of transmission lines, equipment, and communication protocols to permit sharing of information and resources computer program an executable entity made up of a set of modules concrete class a class that can be instantiated (objects can be created) concurrency, or concurrent state the condition of being in more than one state at a time configuration the process of selecting from an assortment of options, such as assembling software modules into a complete system or defining values of parameters in a software package context diagram a data flow diagram (DFD) showing the scope of a system context diagram a DFD that summarizes all processing activity within the system in a single process symbol control break report a report that includes detailed and summary information control class a class that mediates between boundary classes and entity classes, acting as a switchboard between the view layer and domain layer cooperating peer team a team with members of roughly equal skill and experience with overlapping areas of specialization cost/benefit analysis the analysis to compare costs and benefits to see whether investing in the development of a new system will be beneficial coupling a qualitative measure of how closely the classes in a design class diagram are linked critical path a sequence of tasks that cannot be delayed without causing the project to be completed late CRUD acronym of create, read, update, and delete customer relationship management (CRM) processes that support marketing, sales, and service operations involving direct and indirect customer interaction D data access class a class that is used to retrieve data from a database data couples the individual data items that are passed between modules in a program call data dictionary a repository for definitions of data flows, data elements, and data stores data entities the things the system needs to store information about in the traditional approach to information systems data flow diagram (DFD) a structured analysis model showing the inputs, processes, storage, and outputs of a system data flow an arrow on a DFD that represents data movement among processes, data stores, and external agents data flow definition a textual description of a data flow s content and internal structure data flow diagram (DFD) a diagram that represents system requirements as processes, external agents, data flows, and data stores data layer the part of three-layer architecture that interacts with the database data store a place where data are held pending future access by one or more processes data type the storage format and allowable content of a program variable or database field data validation control an integrity control to validate the input data for correctness and appropriateness GLOSSARY 3

4 data warehouse a collection of data used to support structured and unstructured managerial decisions database (DB) an integrated collection of stored data that is centrally managed and controlled database management system (DBMS) system software that manages and controls access to a database database synchronization the process of ensuring consistency among two or more database copies decision pseudostate a diamond notation on a state machine diagram indicating a decision point on a path decision support and knowledge-based systems (DSS/KBS) support systems that allow a user to explore the impact of available options or decisions or to automate routine decision making decision table a tabular representation of processing logic containing decision variables, decision variable values, and actions or formulas decision tree a graphical description of process logic that uses lines organized like branches of a tree decryption the process of converting encrypted data back into a readable format dependency relationship the relationship among elements in package diagrams, class diagrams, and interaction diagrams that indicates which elements affect other elements in a system so that designers can track the carry-through effects of changes deployment diagram a type of implementation diagram that shows the physical components across different locations descriptive model narrative memos, reports, or lists that describe some aspect of a system design pattern a standard solution template to a design requirement that facilitates the use of good design principles design patterns templates used to speed OO design design phase the phase of the SDLC during which the system and programs are designed desktop metaphor a direct manipulation approach in which the display screen includes an arrangement of common objects found on a desk destination an external agent or actor that receives data from the system destination controls integrity controls to ensure that output information is channeled to the correct persons destination state for a particular transition, the state to which an object moves after the completion of a transition detail design low-level design that includes the design of specific program details detailed report a report containing detailed transactions or records development environment the programming languages, CASE tools, and other software used to develop application software DFD fragment a DFD that represents the system response to one event within a single process symbol dialog metaphor a metaphor of HCI in which interacting with the computer is much like carrying on a conversation or dialog digital signature a technique in which a document is encrypted using a private key to verify who wrote the document direct manipulation a metaphor of HCI in which the user interacts directly with objects on the display screen direct installation, or immediate cutover an installation method that installs a new system, quickly makes it operational, and immediately turns off any overlapping systems discipline a set of functionally related activities that together contribute to the development process of a UP project discount factor the accumulation of yearly discounts based on the discount rate discount rate the annual percentage rate that an amount of money is discounted to bring it to a present value distributed architecture architecture that deploys computing resources in multiple locations connected by a computer network document metaphor a metaphor of HCI in which interaction with the computer involves browsing and entering data on electronic documents drill down to link a summary field to its supporting detail and enable users to view the detail dynamically driver a module, developed for unit testing, that simulates the calling behavior of a module that hasn t yet been developed 4 GLOSSARY

5 E early start time the earliest time that a task can begin due to completion times of predecessor tasks efferent data flow the outgoing data flow in a sequential set of DFD processes elementary business process (EBP) a task that is performed by one person, in one place, in response to a business event; that adds measurable business value; and that leaves the system and its data in a consistent state encapsulation a design principle of objects in which both data and program logic are included within a single self-contained unit encapsulation covering or protecting each object so that it contains values for attributes and methods for operating on those attributes, making the object a selfcontained (and protected) unit encryption the process of altering data so that they are unreadable by unauthorized users encryption algorithm a complex mathematical formula and process that encrypts or decrypts data encryption key a binary field that the encryption algorithm uses to transform the data enhancement the process of adding program code or program modules to provide additional functionality to software enterprise applications highly integrated systems that support company-wide operations and data, often combining aspects of TPSs, MISs, and DSSs/KBSs enterprise application integration (EAI) the process of linking applications to support the flow of information across multiple business units and IT systems Enterprise JavaBean (EJB) a JavaBean that can execute on a server and communicate with clients and other components using CORBA enterprise resource planning (ERP) a process in which an organization commits to using an integrated set of software packages for key information systems enterprise-level system a system that has shared components among multiple people or groups in an organization entity class a design identifier for a problem domain class entity-relationship diagram (ERD) a structured analysis and information engineering model of the data needed by a system event an occurrence at a specific time and place that can be described and is worth remembering event decomposition an analysis technique that focuses on identifying the events to which a system must respond and then determining how the system must respond event table a catalog of use cases that lists events in rows and key pieces of information about each event in columns event-partitioned system model, or diagram 0 a DFD that models system requirements using a single process for each event in a system or subsystem exception report a report that contains only information about nonstandard, or exception, conditions executive report a summary report from various information sources that is normally used for strategic decisions external agent a person or organization, outside the system boundary, that supplies data inputs or accepts data outputs external event an event that occurs outside the system, usually initiated by an external agent or actor external output printed documents such as statements, notices, form letters, and legal documents produced for use outside an organization extranet an intranet that has been extended outside the organization to facilitate the flow of information F facilities management the outsourcing of all data processing and information technology to an outside vendor field a column of a relational database table; also called an attribute field combination control an integrity control that verifies the data in one field based on data in another field or fields field value the data value stored in a single cell of a relational database table; also called an attribute value or data element first normal form (1NF) a relational database table structure that has no repeating fields or groups of fields foreign key a field value stored in one relational database table that also exists as a primary key value in another relational database table GLOSSARY 5

6 foundation classes the classes within an object framework frameset a high-level object that holds items to be displayed by a browser functional decomposition dividing a system into components based on subsystems that, in turn, are further divided into subsystems functional dependency a oneto-one correspondence between two field values functional requirement a system requirement that describes an activity or process that the system must perform G Gantt chart a bar chart that represents the tasks and activities of the project schedule generalization/ specialization hierarchies hierarchies that structure or rank classes from the more general superclass to the more specialized subclasses; sometimes called inheritance hierarchies graphical model diagrams and schematic representations of some aspect of a system group support system (GSS) a computer system that enables multiple people to participate with comments at the same time, each on the user s own computer guard-condition a true/false test to see whether a transition can fire H help desk the availability of support staff to assist users with any technical or processing problem associated with an information system human factors engineering (ergonomics) the study of human interaction with machines in general human-computer interaction (HCI) the study of end users and their interactions with computers hybrid object-relational DBMS a relational database management system used to store object attributes and relationships; also called hybrid DBMS hypermedia technology that extends the hypertext concepts to include multimedia content such as graphics, video, and audio hypertext documents that allow the user to click on a link and jump to a different part of the document or to another document I identifier (key) an attribute that uniquely identifies a thing implementation diagram a diagram that depicts physical components of a system implementation phase the phase of the SDLC during which the new system is programmed and installed incremental development a development approach that completes parts of a system in several iterations and then puts them into operation for users indirection a design principle in which an intermediate class is placed between two classes to decouple them but still link them information engineering a traditional system development methodology thought to be more rigorous and complete than the structured approach, because of its focus on strategic planning, data modeling, and automated tools Information Engineering (IE) a system development methodology that focuses on strategic planning, data modeling, and automated tools, and is thought to be more rigorous and complete than the structured approach information hiding a design principle in which data associated with an object is not visible to the outside world but methods are provided to access or change the data information system a collection of interrelated components that collect, process, store, and provide as output the information needed to complete business tasks information systems strategic plan the plan defining the technology and applications that the information systems function needs to support the organization s strategic plan information overload difficulty in understanding that occurs when a reader receives too much information at one time inheritance a concept that allows subclasses to share characteristics of their superclasses input, process, output (IPO) development a development order that implements input modules first, process modules next, and output modules last 6 GLOSSARY

7 inspection a formal review of design or construction details by a group of developers, where each person plays a specific role instantiation creation of an object based on the template provided by the class definition intangible benefits benefits that accrue to the organization but that cannot be measured quantitatively or estimated accurately integration test a test of the behavior of a group of modules or methods integrity control mechanisms and procedures that are built in to an application system to safeguard information contained within it interaction diagram either a communication diagram or a sequence diagram that shows the interactions between objects interface design standards general principles and rules that must be followed for the interface of any system developed by the organization interface designers specialists in user-interface design; also called usability consultants or human factors engineers internal output a printed report or document produced for use inside an organization Internet Inter-ORB Protocol (IIOP) a CORBA protocol for communication among objects and object request brokers Internet a global collection of networks that use the same networking protocol TCP/IP intranet a private network that is accessible to a limited number of users, but which uses the same TCP/IP protocol as the Internet iteration system development process in which work activities analysis, design, implementation are done once, then again, and yet again on different system components; they are repeated until the system is closer to what is ultimately needed J Java 2 Web Services (J2WS) a service standard for implementing applications and services in Java JavaBean an object that implements the required component methods and follows the required naming conventions of the JavaBean standard joint application design (JAD) a technique to define requirements or design a system in a single session by having all necessary people participate K key a field that contains a value that is unique within each row of a relational database table L late start time the latest time that a task can begin and still keep the project on schedule level of abstraction any modeling technique that breaks the system into a hierarchical set of increasingly more detailed models lifeline, or object lifeline the vertical line under an object on a sequence diagram to show the passage of time for the object links notations in a communication diagram that carry messages between objects or between actors and objects list box an input control that contains a list of acceptable entries the user can select local area network (LAN) a computer network in which the distances are local, such as within the same building location diagram a diagram or map that identifies all of the processing locations of a system logical model any model that shows what the system is required to do without committing to any one technology M maintenance release a system update that provides bug fixes and minor changes to existing features management information systems (MIS) information systems that take information captured by transaction processing systems and produce reports that management needs for planning and control mathematical model a series of formulas that describe technical aspects of a system message the communication between objects within a use case message event the trigger for a transition, which causes the object to leave the origin state metamodel a model that describes the characteristics of another model method signature a notation that shows all of the information needed to invoke, or call, the method GLOSSARY 7

8 methods the behaviors all objects of the class are capable of doing Microsoft.NET a Microsoft service standard based on SOAP middleware computer software that implements communication protocols on the network and helps different systems communicate minimization of interfaces a principle of model design that seeks simplicity by limiting the number of connections among model components miracle a process or data store with a data element that is created out of nothing mock-up an example of a final product that is for viewing only, and not executable model a representation of an important aspect of the real world modification the process of changing program code to alter the existing form of processing module an identifiable component of a computer program that performs a defined function module cohesion a measure of the internal strength of a module module coupling the manner in which modules relate to each other; the preferred method is data coupling multicomputer architecture a group of dissimilar computers that share processing load through specialization of function multiplicity a synonym for cardinality (used with the objectoriented approach) multitier architecture architecture that distributes application-related software or processing load across multiple computer systems multivalued attribute an attribute that contains zero or more instances of the same data type N n-ary relationship a relationship among n (any number of) different types of things navigation the process of accessing an object by extracting its object identifier from another (related) object navigation visibility a design principle in which one object has a reference to another object and thus can interact with it net present value (NPV) the present value of dollar benefits and costs for an investment such as a new system network diagram a model that shows how application layers are distributed across locations and computer systems nonfunctional requirements characteristics of the system other than activities it must perform or support, such as technology, performance, usability, reliability, and security normalization a technique that ensures relational database schema quality by minimizing data redundancy O object a thing in the computer system that can respond to messages object database management system (ODBMS) a database management system that stores data as objects or class instances Object Definition Language (ODL) a standard object database description language promulgated by the Object Database Management Group object framework a set of classes that are designed to be reused in a variety of programs object identifier a physical storage address or a reference that can be converted to a physical storage address at run time object request broker (ORB) a CORBA service that provides component directory and communication services object responsibility a design principle in which objects are responsible for carrying out system processing object reuse a design principle in which a set of standard objects can be used over and over again within a system object-oriented analysis (OOA) defining all of the types of objects that do the work in the system and showing what use cases are required to complete tasks object-oriented approach an approach to system development that views an information system as a collection of interacting objects that work together to accomplish tasks object-oriented design (OOD) defining all of the types of objects necessary to communicate with people and devices in the system, showing how objects interact to complete tasks, and refining the definition of each type of object so it can be implemented with a specific language or environment object-oriented programming (OOP) writing statements in a programming language to define what each type of object does, including the messages that the objects send to each other 8 GLOSSARY

9 office support systems support systems that help employees create and share documents, including reports, proposals, and memos open-ended questions questions that require discussion and do not necessarily have a simple, short answer origin state for a particular transition, the original state of an object from which the transition occurs overloaded method a method with the same name but two or more different parameter lists oversight committee clients and key managers who review and direct the project P package a symbol used to denote a group of similar elements packaged software software that is already built and can be purchased as a package pair programming XP practice in which two programmers work together on designing, coding, and testing parallel installation an installation method that operates both the old and new systems for an extended time period path a sequential set of connected states and transitions payback period the time period in which the dollar benefits have offset the dollar costs perfect technology assumption the assumption that events should be included during analysis only if the system would be required to respond under perfect conditions performance requirement a system requirement that describes an operational characteristic related to workload measures, such as throughput and response time performance test a system test that determines whether a system can meet time-based performance criteria persistent class a class that must store one or more attribute values between instantiations or method invocations persistent class an entity class that exists after a system is shut down PERT/CPM a technique for scheduling a project based on individual tasks or activities phased installation an installation method that installs a new system and makes it operational in a series of steps or phases phases related system development activities, which are grouped into categories of project planning, analysis, design, implementation, and support physical data store the storage area used by a database management system to store the raw bits and bytes of a database physical model any model that shows how the system will actually be implemented planning phase the initial phase of the SDLC, whose objective is to identify the scope of the new system and plan the project platform-independent model (PIM) a model describing system characteristics that are not specific to any deployment platform platform-specific model (PSM) a model describing system characteristics that include deployment platform requirements postcondition a set of criteria that must be true upon completion of the execution of a use case precondition a set of criteria that must be true prior to the initiation of a use case predictive approach an SDLC approach that assumes the development project can be planned and organized in advance and that the new information system can be developed according to the plan primary key a key used to uniquely identify a row of a relational database table primitive data type a storage format directly implemented by computer hardware or a programming language privileged user a user who has special security access privileges to a system problem domain the area of the user s business for which a system is being developed process a symbol on a DFD that represents an algorithm or procedure by which data inputs are transformed into data outputs process decomposition diagram a model that represents the hierarchical relationship among processes at different levels of abstraction process dependency diagram a model that describes the ordering of processes and their interaction with stored entities product backlog a prioritized list of user requirements used to choose work to be done during a Scrum project product owner the client stakeholder for whom a system is being built GLOSSARY 9

10 production system the version of the system used from day to day production version, release version, or production release a system that is formally distributed to users or made operational program call the transfer of control from a module to a subordinate module to perform a requested service project a planned undertaking that has a beginning and an end and that produces a desired result or product project management organizing and directing other people to achieve a planned result within a predetermined schedule and budget proof of concept prototype a very preliminary prototype built to illustrate that a solution to a business need is feasible protection from variations a design principle in which parts of a system that are unlikely to change are segregated from those that will prototype a preliminary working model of a larger system prototype a preliminary working model showing some aspect of a larger system provider an organization that sells systems or consulting services to other organizations pseudocode structuredprogramming-like statements that describe the logic of a module pseudostate the starting point of a state machine, indicated by a black dot public key encryption an asymmetric key method in which one key is publicized and the other key is kept private Q quality assurance (QA) the process of ensuring that an information system meets minimal quality standards R radio buttons (option buttons) input controls that enable the user to select one option from a group realization of use cases specification of all detailed system processing for each use case refactoring revising, reorganizing, and rebuilding part of a system so that it is of higher quality referential integrity a consistent relational database state in which every foreign key value also exists as a primary key value registered user a user who is registered or known to the system and is authorized to access some part of it relational database management system (RDBMS) a database management system that stores data in tables relationship a naturally occurring association among specific things, such as an order is placed by a customer and an employee works in a department reliability requirement a system requirement that describes the dependability of a system, such as service outages, incorrect processing, and error detection and recovery repository a database that stores information about the system in a CASE tool, including models, descriptions, and references that link the various models together request for proposal (RFP) a formal document, containing details on the system requirements, sent to vendors to request that they bid on supplying hardware, software, and/or support services response an output, produced by the system, that goes to a destination response time the desired or maximum allowable time limit for software response to a query or update return on investment (ROI) a measure of the percentage gain from an investment such as a new system risk management the project management area during which the team tries to identify potential trouble spots that could jeopardize the success of the project router network equipment that directs information within the network row the portion of a table containing data that describes one entity, relationship, or object; also called tuple or record rule of 7 ± 2 the rule of model design that limits the number of model components or connections among components to no more than nine S sales-force automation processes that make it easier for sales personnel to service customer accounts scenario, or use case instance a particular sequence of steps within a use case; a use case might have several different scenarios schema a description of the structure, content, and access controls of a physical data store or database 10 GLOSSARY

11 scope creep the addition of new functions to the scope of a system that cause the project to increase in size Scrum master the person in charge of a Scrum project, similar to a project manager Scrum team the team members working on a Scrum project second normal form (2NF) a relational database table structure in which every non-key field is functionally dependent on the primary key Secure Hypertext Transport Protocol (HTTPS or HTTP-S) an Internet standard for transmitting Web pages securely Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) a standard protocol to connect and transmit encrypted data security requirement a system requirement that describes user access to certain functions and the conditions under which access is granted security control mechanisms usually provided by the operating system or environment to protect the data and processing systems from malicious attack separation of responsibility a design principle in which analysts partition a system into sets of classes with a common purpose server a process, module, object, or computer that provides services over a network Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) a standard for component communication over the Internet using HTTP and XML single-computer architecture architecture that employs a single computer system executing all application-related software slack time the difference between the early start time and the late start time for a task; the amount of time a task can be delayed without delaying the project smart card a computer-readable plastic card with security information embedded within it sociotechnical systems information systems that include both social and technical subsystems designed to work well together software integration the process of combining separately produced components or subsystems and addressing problems in their interactions software maintenance modification of a software product after delivery to correct faults, improve performance or other attributes, or adapt the product to a changed environment source an external agent or actor that supplies data to the system source code control system (SCCS) an automated tool for tracking source code files and controlling changes to those files spin box a variation of the list box that presents multiple entries in a text box from which the user can select spiral model an adaptive SDLC approach that cycles over and over again through development activities until a project is complete sprint a time-controlled miniproject that implements a specific portion of a system stakeholders all the people who have an interest in the success of a new system state a condition during an object s life when it satisfies some criterion, performs some action, or waits for an event state event an event that occurs when something happens inside the system that triggers the need for processing state machine diagram a diagram showing the life of an object in states and transitions state variable an attribute that records a value of a current state to inform a system which items to enable or disable and which messages to process or ignore stereotype a way of categorizing a model element by its characteristics, indicated by guillemets () storyboarding a technique used to document dialog designs by showing a sequence of sketches of the display screen strategic planning a process during which executives try to answer questions about the company such as where the business is now, where they want the business to be, and what they have to do to get there structure chart a graphical model showing the hierarchy of program modules produced by the structured design technique structure chart a hierarchical diagram showing the relationships between the modules of a computer program structured analysis a technique used to define what processing the system needs to do, what data it needs to store and use, and what inputs and outputs are needed structured approach system development using structured analysis, structured design, and structured programming techniques structured design a technique providing guidelines for deciding what the set of programs in an IS should be, what each program should accomplish, and how the programs should be organized into a hierarchy GLOSSARY 11

12 structured English a method of writing process specifications that combines structured programming techniques with narrative English structured program a program or program module that has one beginning and one ending, and for which each step in the program execution consists of sequence, decision, or repetition constructs structured walkthrough a review of the findings from your investigation and of the models built based on those findings stub a module, developed for testing, that simulates the execution or behavior of a module that hasn t yet been developed subsystem a system that is part of a larger system summary report a report that recaps or summarizes detailed information over a period of time or some category supersystem a larger system that contains other systems supply chain management (SCM) a process that seamlessly integrates product development, product acquisition, manufacturing, and inventory management support phase the phase of the SDLC whose objective is to keep the system running productively after it is installed swimlane a rectangular area on an activity diagram representing the activities done by a single agent symmetric key encryption an encryption process that uses the same key to encrypt and to decrypt the data synchronization bar a symbol in an activity diagram to control the splitting or uniting of sequential paths system a collection of interrelated components that function together to achieve some outcome system boundary the separation between a system and its environment that inputs and outputs must cross system controls checks or safety procedures put in place to protect the integrity of the system system development methodology comprehensive guidelines to follow for completing every activity in the systems development life cycle, including specific models, tools, and techniques system documentation descriptions of system functions, architecture, and construction details, as used by maintenance personnel and future developers system flowchart a diagram that describes the overall flow of control between computer programs in a system system integrator an individual who is specially trained in integrating application software across various computing platforms system interfaces the parts of an information system involving inputs and outputs that require minimal human intervention system requirements specifications that define the functions to be provided by a system system scope document a document containing problem description, business benefits, and system capabilities to help define the scope of a new system system sequence diagram a diagram showing the sequence of messages between an external actor and the system during a use case or scenario system test a test of the behavior of an entire system or independent subsystem systems analysis the process of understanding and specifying in detail what the information system should accomplish systems analyst a business professional who uses analysis and design techniques to solve business problems using information technology systems design the process of specifying in detail how the many components of the information system should be physically implemented systems development life cycle (SDLC) the entire process of building, deploying, using, and updating an information system T table a two-dimensional data structure containing rows and columns; also called a relation tangible benefits benefits that can be measured or estimated in terms of dollars and that accrue to the organization technical requirement a system requirement that describes an operational characteristic related to an organization s environment, hardware, and software technical review a formal or informal review of design or construction details by a group of developers technique a collection of guidelines that help an analyst complete a system development activity or task 12 GLOSSARY

13 techniques strategies for completing specific system development activities technology architecture plan a description of the hardware, software, and communications networks required to implement planned information systems temporal event an event that occurs as a result of reaching a point in time ternary relationship a relationship among three different types of things test case a formal description of a starting state, one or more events to which the software must respond, and the expected response or ending state test data a set of starting states and events used to test a module, a group of modules, or an entire system test system a copy of the production system that is modified to test changes testing buddy a programmer assigned to test code written by another programmer text box an input control that accepts keyboard data entry third normal form (3NF) a relational database table structure in which no non-key field is functionally dependent on any other non-key field(s) three-layer architecture a client/server architecture that divides an application into the view layer, business logic layer, and data layer throughput the desired or minimum number of queries and transactions that must be processed per minute or hour tool software support that helps create models or other components required in the project tools software products used to help develop analysis and design specifications and completed system components top-down development a development order that implements modules at the top of a structure chart first top-down programming dividing more complex programs into a hierachy of program modules total quality management (TQM) the process of achieving the highest levels of quality throughout the entire organization tracking Gantt chart a type of Gantt chart that indicates the current date and percentage of work completed for each task transaction a single occurrence of a piece of work or an activity done in an organization transaction analysis the development of a structure chart based on a DFD that describes the processing for several types of transactions transaction logging a technique whereby all updates to a database are recorded with the information of who, when, and how the update was performed transaction processing systems (TPS) information systems that capture and record information about the transactions that affect the organization transform analysis the development of a structure chart based on a DFD that describes the input-process-output data flow transient class a class that doesn t need to store any attribute values between instantiations or method invocations transition the movement of an object from one state to another state Transport Layer Security (TLS) an updated version of SSL trigger a signal that tells the system that an event has occurred, either the arrival of data needing processing or a point in time true/false condition part of a message between objects that is evaluated prior to the message being sent to determine whether the message can be sent turnaround document an external output that includes a portion that is returned to the system as an input turnkey system a complete system solution, including software and hardware, that can be turned over to the purchasing organization U ubiquitous computing the current trend of using computer technology in every aspect of our lives unary (recursive) relationship a relationship among two things of the same type, such as one person being married to another person unauthorized user a person who does not have authorized access to a system Unified Process (UP) an object-oriented system development methodology offered by IBM s Rational Software unit testing, or module testing testing of individual code modules or methods before they are integrated with other modules usability the degree to which a system is easy to learn and use GLOSSARY 13

14 usability requirement a system requirement that describes an operational characteristic related to users, such as the user interface, work procedures, online help, and documentation usability test a test to determine whether a module, method, class, subsystem, or system meets user requirements use case an activity the system performs use case controller a class that systems designers create to serve as a collection point for incoming messages use case diagram a diagram to show the various user roles and how those roles use the system user the person or group of persons who will use the new system user documentation descriptions of how to interact with and maintain the system, as used by end users and system operators user interfaces the parts of an information system requiring user interaction to create inputs and outputs user s model what the user knows about using the system, including the problem domain things the user is manipulating, the operations that can be performed, and the procedures followed when carrying out tasks user-centered design a collection of techniques that place the user at the center of the development process V value chain the sequence of all processes within an organization that add value to a product or service offered value limit control an integrity control that identifies when a value in a field is too large or too small view layer the part of three-layer architecture that contains the user interface virtual organization a loosely coupled group of people and resources that work together as though they were an organization virtual private network (VPN) a network with security and controlled access for a private group but built on top of a public network such as the Internet visibility a key principle of HCI that states all controls should be visible and provide feedback to indicate that the control is responding to the user s action visibility a notation of whether an attribute can be directly accessed by another object; indicated by plus or minus signs W waterfall approach an SDLC approach that assumes the various phases of a project can be completed sequentially one phase leads (falls) into the next phase Web services architecture a client/server architecture that packages software into server processes that can be accessed via Web protocols weighted scoring a method to prioritize projects based on criteria with unequal weights whole-part hierarchies hierarchies that structure classes according to their associated components wide area network (WAN) a computer network spread across large distances, such as a city, state, or nation work breakdown structure (WBS) the hierarchy of phases, activities, and tasks of a project; one method to estimate and schedule the tasks of a project workflow a sequence of steps to process a business transaction World Wide Web (WWW), or Web a collection of resources such as files and programs that can be accessed over the Internet using standard protocols Z Zachman Framework a comprehensive approach for documenting an entire organization s information systems architecture 14 GLOSSARY