GLOSSAR Y
Glossary
659
Glossary
659
GLOSSAR Y
acceptance testing
conducting any
tests required by the user
accounting MIS
information system
that provides aggregate information on
accounts payable, accounts receivable,
payroll, and many other applications
accounting systems
systems that
include budget, accounts receivable,
payroll, asset management, and
general ledger
accounts payable system
system
that increases an organization’s control
over purchasing, improves cash flow,
increases profitability, and provides
more effective management of current
liabilities
accounts receivable system
system
that manages the cash flow of the com
pany by keeping track of the money
owed the company on charges for
goods sold and services performed
ad hoc DSS
a DSS concerned with
situations or decisions that come up
only a few times during the life of the
organization
analog signal
a continuous,
curving signal
antivirus programs
programs or
utilities that prevent viruses and recover
from them if they infect a computer
applet
small program embedded in
Web pages
application flowcharts
diagrams
that show relationships among applica
tions or systems
application program interface
(API)
interface that allows applications
to make use of the operating system
application servers
Software pack
ages, often written in the Java program
ming language for use on computers
running the Windows NT operating
system, that connect end users to the
databases holding the information they
need to access
application service provider
a
company that provides both enduser
support and the computers on which to
run the software from the user’s facilities
application software
programs that
help users solve particular computing
problems
application virus
a virus that infects
executable application files such as
word processing programs
arithmetic/logic unit (ALU)
por
tion of the CPU that performs mathe
matical calculations and makes logical
comparisons
ARPANET
project started by the U.S.
Department of Defense (DOD) in
1969 as both an experiment in reliable
networking and a means to link DOD
and military research contractors,
including a large number of universities
doing militaryfunded research
artificial intelligence (AI)
a field in
which the computer system takes on the
characteristics of human intelligence
artificial intelligence systems
people, procedures, hardware, soft
ware, data, and knowledge needed to
develop computer systems and
machines that demonstrate the
characteristics of intelligence
asking directly
an approach to
gather data that asks users, stakehold
ers, and other managers about what
they want and expect from the new or
modified system
asset management transaction
processing system
system that con
trols investments in capital equipment
and manages depreciation for maxi
mum tax benefits
asynchronous communications
communication in which the receiver
gets the message minutes, hours, or
days after it is sent
attribute
a characteristic of an entity
audit trail
documentation that allows
the auditor to trace any output from
the computer system back to the source
documents
auditing
analyzing the financial condi
tion of an organization and determin
ing whether financial statements and
reports produced by the financial MIS
are accurate
backbone
one of the Internet’s
highspeed, longdistance
communications links
backward chaining
The process of
starting with conclusions and working
backward to the supporting facts
bandwidth
the width of the range of
frequencies that an electronic signal
occupies on a given transmission medium
batch processing system
method of
computerized processing in which busi
ness transactions are accumulated over
a period of time and prepared for pro
cessing as a single unit or batch
benchmark test
an examination that
compares computer systems operating
under the same conditions
best practices
the most efficient and
effective ways to complete a business
process
biometrics
the measurement of a liv
ing trait, whether physical or behavioral
bit
BInary digiT—0 or 1
bot
a software tool that searches the Web
for information, products, prices, etc.
brainstorming
decisionmaking
approach which often consists of
members offering ideas “off the top of
their heads”
bridge
connection between two or
more networks at the media access
control portion of the data link layer;
the two networks must use the same
communications protocol
broadband
telecommunications in
which a wide band of frequencies is
available to transmit information,
allowing more information to be trans
mitted in a given amount of time
660
Glossary
budget transaction processing
system
system that automates many of
the tasks required to amass budget
data, distribute it to users, and consoli
date the prepared budgets
bus line
the physical wiring that con
nects the computer system components
bus network
a type of topology that
contains computers and computer
devices on a single line; each device is
connected directly to the bus and can
communicate directly with all other
devices on the network; one of the
most popular types of personal com
puter networks
business intelligence
the process of
gathering enough of the right informa
tion in a timely manner and usable
form and analyzing it to have a positive
impact on business strategy, tactics, or
operations
business resumption planning
the
process of anticipating and providing
for disasters
businesstobusiness (B2B)
ecommerce
a form of ecommerce
in which the participants are
organizations
businesstoconsumer (B2C)
ecommerce
a form of ecommerce in
which customers deal directly with the
organization, avoiding any intermediaries
byte (B)
eight bits together that repre
sent a single character of data
cache memory
a type of highspeed
memory that a processor can access
more rapidly than main memory
carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS)
the aggravation of the pathway for
nerves that travel through the wrist (the
carpal tunnel)
CASE repository
a database of sys
tem descriptions, parameters, and
objectives
catalog management software
software that automates the process of
creating a realtime interactive catalog
and delivering customized content to a
user’s screen
CDrewritable (CDRW) disk
an
optical disk that allows personal com
puter users to replace their diskettes
with highcapacity CDs that can be
written upon and edited over
CDwritable (CDW) disk
an opti
cal disk that can be written upon but
only once
central processing unit (CPU)
the part of the computer that consists
of three associated elements: the
arithmetic/logic unit, the control unit,
and the register areas
centralized processing
processing
alternative in which all processing
occurs in a single location or facility
certificate authority (CA)
a trusted
third party that issues digital certificates
certification
process for testing skills
and knowledge that results in a state
ment by the certifying authority that
says an individual is capable of per
forming a particular kind of job
change model
representation of
change theories that identifies the
phases of change and the best way to
implement them
character
basic building block of
information, consisting of uppercase
letters, lowercase letters, numeric dig
its, or special symbols
chat room
a facility that enables two
or more people to engage in interactive
“conversations” over the Internet
chief programmer team
a group of
skilled IS professionals with the task of
designing and implementing a set of
programs. This team has total responsi
bility for building the best software
possible
choice stage
the third stage of deci
sion making, which requires selecting a
course of action
clickstream data
data gathered
based on the Web sites you visit and
what items you click on
client/server
an architecture in which
multiple computer platforms are dedi
cated to special functions such as data
base management, printing, communi
cations, and program execution
clock speed
a series of electronic
pulses produced at a predetermined
rate that affect machine cycle time
closed shops
IS department in which
only authorized operators can run the
computers
cold site
a computer environment that
includes rooms, electrical service,
telecommunications links, data storage
devices, and the like; also called a shell
collaborative computing software
software that helps teams of people to
work together toward a common goal
commandbased user interface
a
user interface that requires that text
commands be given to the computer to
perform basic activities
common carriers
longdistance tele
phone companies
communications software
software
that provides a number of important
functions in a network, such as error
checking and data security
compact disk readonly memory
(CDROM)
a common form of opti
cal disk on which data, once it has been
recorded, cannot be modified
competitive advantage
a significant
and (ideally) longterm benefit to a
company over its competition
competitive intelligence
a continu
ous process involving the legal and eth
ical collection of information, analysis,
and controlled dissemination of infor
mation to decision makers
compiler
a special software program
that converts the programmer’s source
code into the machine language
instructions consisting of binary digits
complex instruction set computing
(CISC)
a computer chip design that
places as many microcode instructions
into the central processor as possible
computer literacy
knowledge of
computer systems and equipment and
the ways they function; it stresses
equipment and devices (hardware),
programs and instructions (software),
databases, and telecommunications
computer network
the communica
tions media, devices, and software
needed to connect two or more com
puter systems and/or devices
computer programs
sequences of
instructions for the computer
computer server
a computer
designed for a specific task, such as
network or Internet applications
computer system architecture
the
structure, or configuration, of the hard
ware components of a computer system
computer system platform
the
combination of a particular hardware
configuration and systems software
package
computeraided software engi
neering (CASE)
tools that automate
many of the tasks required in a systems
development effort and enforce adher
ence to the SDLC
computerassisted manufactur
ing (CAM)
a system that directly con
trols manufacturing equipment
computerbased information
system (CBIS)
consists of hardware,
software, databases, telecommunica
tions, people, and procedures that are
configured to collect, manipulate, store,
and process data into information
Glossary
661
computerintegrated manufac
turing (CIM)
using computers to link
the components of the production
process into an effective system
concurrency control
a method of
dealing with a situation in which two or
more people need to access the same
record in a database at the same time
consumertoconsumer (C2C)
ecommerce
a form of ecommerce
in which the participants are individu
als, with one serving as the buyer and
the other as the seller
content streaming
a method for
transferring multimedia files over the
Internet so that the data stream of
voice and pictures plays more or less
continuously without a break, or very
few of them; enables users to browse
large files in real time
continuous improvement
constantly
seeking ways to improve the business
processes to add value to products and
services
contract software
software devel
oped for a particular company
control unit
part of the CPU that
sequentially accesses program instruc
tions, decodes them, and coordinates
the flow of data in and out of the ALU,
the registers, primary storage, and even
secondary storage and various output
devices
cookie
a text file that an Internet com
pany can place on the hard disk of a
computer system
coprocessor
part of the computer
that speeds processing by executing
specific types of instructions while the
CPU works on another processing
activity
cost centers
divisions within a com
pany that do not directly generate
revenue
cost/benefit analysis
an approach
that lists the costs and benefits of each
proposed system. Once expressed in
monetary terms, all the costs are com
pared with all the benefits
counterintelligence
the steps an
organization takes to protect informa
tion sought by “hostile” intelligence
gatherers
creative analysis
the investigation of
new approaches to existing problems
criminal hacker (cracker)
a com
putersavvy person who attempts to
gain unauthorized or illegal access to
computer systems
critical analysis
the unbiased and
careful questioning of whether system
elements are related in the most effec
tive or efficient ways
critical path
activities that, if delayed,
would delay the entire project
critical success factors (CSFs)
factors that are essential to the success
of a functional area of an organization
crossplatform development
development technique that allows pro
grammers to develop programs that
can run on computer systems having
different hardware and operating sys
tems, or platforms
cryptography
the process of convert
ing a message into a secret code and
changing the encoded message back to
regular text
culture
set of major understandings
and assumptions shared by a group
customer relationship manage
ment (CRM) system
a collection of
people, processes, software, and
Internet capabilities that help an enter
prise manage customer relationships
effectively and systematically
cybermall
a single Web site that offers
many products and services at one
Internet location
data
raw facts, such as an employee’s
name and number of hours worked in
a week, inventory part numbers, or
sales orders
data administrator
a nontechnical,
but important role that ensures that
data is managed as an important orga
nizational resource
data analysis
manipulation of the
collected data so that it is usable for the
development team members who are
participating in systems analysis
data cleanup
the process of looking
for and fixing inconsistencies to ensure
that data is accurate and complete
data collection
the process of captur
ing and gathering all data necessary to
complete transactions
data communications
a specialized
subset of telecommunications that refers
to the electronic collection, processing,
and distribution of data—typically
between computer system hardware
devices
data correction
the process of reen
tering miskeyed or misscanned data
that was found during data editing
data definition language (DDL)
a
collection of instructions and commands
used to define and describe data and
data relationships in a specific database
data dictionary
a detailed descrip
tion of all the data used in the database
data editing
the process of checking
data for validity and completeness
data entry
process by which human
readable data is converted into a
machinereadable form
data input
process that involves
transferring machinereadable data
into the system
data integrity
the degree to which
the data in any one file is accurate
data item
the specific value of an
attribute
data manipulation
the process of
performing calculations and other data
transformations related to business
transactions
data manipulation language
(DML)
the commands that are used
to manipulate the data in a database
data mart
a subset of a data warehouse
data mining
an information analysis
tool that involves the automated discov
ery of patterns and relationships in a
data warehouse
data model
a diagram of data entities
and their relationships
data normalization
the process of
taking a complex set of data and con
verting it into a set of simple two
dimensional tables
data preparation, or data
conversion
conversion of manual
files into computer files
data redundancy
duplication of data
in separate files
data storage
the process of updating
one or more databases with new
transactions
data store
representation of a storage
location for data
data warehouse
a database that col
lects business information from many
sources in the enterprise, covering all
aspects of the company’s processes,
products, and customers
dataflow diagram (DFD)
a model
of objects, associations, and activities
by describing how data can flow
between and around various objects
662
Glossary
dataflow line
arrows that show the
direction of data element movement
database
an organized collection of
facts and information
database administrator (DBA)
a
highly skilled and trained systems pro
fessional who directs or performs all
activities related to maintaining a suc
cessful database environment
database approach to data
management
an approach whereby
a pool of related data is shared by
multiple application programs
database management system
(DBMS)
a group of programs that
manipulate the database and provide
an interface between the database and
the user of the database and other
application programs
decentralized processing
process
ing alternative in which processing
devices are placed at various remote
locations
decision room
a room that supports
decision making, with the decision
makers in the same building, combin
ing facetoface verbal interaction with
technology to make the meeting more
effective and efficient
decision structure
a programming
structure that allows the computer to
branch, depending on certain condi
tions. Normally, there are only two pos
sible branches
decision support system (DSS)
an
organized collection of people, proce
dures, software, databases, and devices
used to support problemspecific deci
sion making
decisionmaking phase
the first
part of problem solving, including three
stages: intelligence, design, and choice
dedicated line
a communications line
that provides a constant connection
between two points; no switching or
dialing is needed, and the two devices
are always connected
delphi approach
a decisionmaking
approach in which group decision mak
ers are geographically dispersed; this
approach encourages diversity among
group members and fosters creativity
and original thinking in decision making
demand reports
reports developed
to give certain information at a manag
er’s request
denialofservice attack
an online
attack of a Web site in which the
attacker takes command of many com
puters on the Internet and causes them
to flood the target site with requests
for data and other tasks, keeping it too
busy to serve legitimate users
design report
the primary result of
systems design, reflecting the decisions
made for system design and preparing
the way for systems implementation
design stage
the second stage of deci
sion making, in which alternative solu
tions to the problem are developed
deterrence controls
rules and pro
cedures to prevent problems before
they occur
dialogue manager
user interface that
allows decision makers to easily access
and manipulate the DSS and to use
common business terms and phrases
digital certificate
an attachment to
an email message or data embedded in
a Web page that verifies the identity of
a sender or a Web site
digital computer camera
input
device used with a PC to record and
store images and video in digital form
digital signal
a signal represented
by bits
digital signature
encryption tech
nique used to verify the identity of a
message sender for processing online
financial transactions
digital subscriber line (DSL)
a
communications line that uses existing
phone wires going into today’s homes
and businesses to provide transmission
speeds exceeding 500 Kbps at a cost of
$20 or more per month
digital versatile disk (DVD)
stor
age medium used to store digital video
or computer data
direct access
retrieval method in
which data can be retrieved without the
need to read and discard other data
direct access storage device
(DASD)
device used for direct access
of secondary storage data
direct conversion (also called
plunge
or
direct cutover
)
stopping
the old system and starting the new
system on a given date
direct observation
watching the
existing system in action by one or
more members of the analysis team
disaster recovery
the implementa
tion of the business resumption plan
disintermediation
the elimination of
intermediate organizations between the
producer and the consumer
disk mirroring
a process of storing
data that provides an exact copy that pro
tects users fully in the event of data loss
distance learning
the use of
telecommunications to extend the
classroom
distributed database
a database in
which the data may be spread across
several smaller databases connected via
telecommunications systems
distributed processing
processing
alternative in which computers are
placed at remote locations but con
nected to each other via telecommuni
cations devices
document production
the process of
generating output records and reports
documentation
text that describes
the program functions to help the user
operate the computer system
domain
the allowable values for data
attributes
domain expert
The individual or
group who has the expertise or knowl
edge one is trying to capture in the
expert system
downsizing
reducing the number of
employees to cut costs
drill down reports
reports provid
ing increasingly detailed data about a
situation
dumpster diving
searching through
the garbage for important pieces of
information that can help crack an
organization’s computers or be used to
convince someone at the company to
give them access to the computers
dynamic Web pages
Web pages con
taining variable information that are
built in response to a specific Web visi
tor’s request
ecommerce
any business transaction
executed electronically between parties
such as companies (businesstobusiness),
companies and consumers (businessto
consumer), business and the public sec
tor, and consumers and the public sector
ecommerce software
software that
supports catalog management, product
configuration, shopping cart facilities,
ecommerce transaction processing,
and Web traffic data analysis
ecommerce transaction process
ing software
software that provides
the basic connection between partici
pants in the ecommerce economy,
enabling communications between
trading partners, regardless of their
technical infrastructure
Glossary
663
economic feasibility
determination
