BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
• System concepts
– A system can be described as a set of elements joined together
for a common objective. A system is defined as a number of
components, entities that form a whole. These entities interact in
such a way as to achieve a common goal.
– Systems boundary: A boundary delineates an area of
responsibility. It sets the scope of activities to be supported by
the system. It separates the system from its environment.
– Systems and subsystems: A subsystem is a component of a
system which performs its own specialized task that is related to
the overall objective of the total system.
– Outputs and Inputs: The inner workings of a system or
subsystem are organized to produce outputs from inputs.
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
– An interface is a connection at system or subsystems boundaries.
– Systems and Their Environment: The system's environment consists of its
goals, needs and activities.
– Open and closed Systems: Open systems operate in an external environment
and exchange information and material with that environment. The external
environment consists of the activities external to the system boundary with which
the system can interact.
• An open system needs to receive feedback to change and continue to exist in its
environment.
• A closed system is relatively self-contained; exchange with its environment does not
occur.
– Closed systems do not get the feedback they need from the external environment and tend to
deteriorate.
– Systems Feedback: Feedback is required to show whether the system is
performing as expected. It tells whether the objective set for the system are met
or not. That is, feedback is form of control, because it requires continuing
adjustments in the activities of the system. The good thing about feedback it that
it usually increases effort.
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
– System Entropy and Negative Entropy: Entropy is a measure
of disorder that exists in systems. Systems can become run
down if they are not maintained. The process of maintaining a
system is negative entropy.
– Abstract and physical systems. An abstract system is
conceptual, a product of the human mind.
• Social, theological, cultural systems are abstract systems.
– A physical system is a set of elements--- rather than ideas or
constructs--- that operate in relation to one another to
accomplish a common goal or purpose.
• Examples of physical systems include:
– Computer systems: Collection of hardware elements that work interdependently
under some means to control, to process data, and produce output reports .
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
• Communication system: Collections of components that can represent and transmit
bits of information from one point to another .
• Marketing systems: Collection of people, equipment, and procedures that develop,
produce, and distribute commodities, ideas and other entities to consumers or users.
– A system must have an objective or goal.
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
• Information systems
– An information system is an information processing
system that:
• Receives information and requests for information from its
environment and
• provides information and answers to requests to its
environment.
– The environment can include the user, developer, other
systems, etc.
• can store information in time;
• can derive a new information from a given information;
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
– An Information System consists of the
following components:
• Messages - The information exchange between
the users and the information system is
accomplished by means of messages. These
messages involve:
– - Questions the users have about the information
described by the information base or the grammar.
– - Requests from the users to change the information
base.
– - Answers and questions from the information system in
response to the questions
– and other requests of the users.
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
• Information base state - The contents of the
information base at a certain moment.
• Information base state transition - A change in the
contents of the information base.
• Grammar - The description of all the rules which prescribe
which information base states and information base state
transitions may occur and the meaning of the data stored in
the information base.
• Information processor - The active component of an
information system which:
– - Interprets and executes the questions and
requests of the users.
– - Addresses questions and answers to the
users.
– - Checks that the rules of grammar are not
violated in carrying out these operations.
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
• Put in a more general form, an information system:
– Takes in data from the environment using one of the sensing
and communication technologies (INPUT);
– Analyzes this information using computer hardware and software
(PROCESS);
– Displays the product as useful information (OUTPUT);
– Either you or the computer uses this information to act on the
environment (FEEDBACK).
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
• The steps put in sequence
diagrammatically:
Data Process Information
Feedback
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
• Elements of an information system
– Computer Hardware
• Microcomputers
• Desktops
• Portables
• Workstations
• Minicomputers
• Mainframes
• Supercomputers
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
– Software
• System software
• Applications software
– Procedures
• Formal operating procedures are physical components
because they exist in a physical form such as a manual or
instruction booklet. Three major types of procedures are
required:
– User instructions (for users of the application to record data,
employ a terminal to enter or retrieve data, or use the result)
– Instructions for preparation of input by data preparation
personnel
– Operating instructions for computer operations personnel
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
– Human Resources
• computer operators,
• systems analysts,
• programmers,
• data preparation personnel,
• information systems management,
• data administrators, etc.
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
• Classification of information systems
– Transaction Processing Systems (TPS)
• Transaction processing systems’ focus is data.
• Transaction processing systems (TPS) form the basis of
many of the information processing applications in
organizations of today.
• The processing of transactions can be accomplished in a
– batch mode, wherein all similar items are grouped or bundled
and processed together daily or weekly,
– or on-line, wherein each transaction is processed as it is
generated.
– The essential activities of transaction processing system
includes data capture and validation, transaction-dependent
processing steps, and database maintenance.
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
– Knowledge Work Systems (KWS)
• Serve information needs at the knowledge and
other levels of the organization.
• Knowledge work systems, such as scientific or
engineering design applications,
– promote the creation of new knowledge and
– ensure that new knowledge and technical expertise are
properly integrated into the business.
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
– Office Automation Systems (OAS)
• Office automation systems are information
technology applications designed to
– increase data workers’ productivity by supporting the
coordinating and communicating activities of the typical
office.
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
– Management Reporting Systems
• The focus of these systems is information.
• They are designed to supply information for routine
responsibility reporting from databases.
• The principal identifying attribute of management reporting
systems (MRS) are:
– they are built for situations where information requirements are
reasonably well known,
– they are oriented toward reporting on the past and present,
and,
– they generally report on internal operations.
• These characteristics clearly deal with operational and
tactical types of activities.
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
– Decision Support System (DSS)
• Decision support systems provide managers with
opportunities to evaluate alternatives related to a given
problem or task.
• The principal identifying attributes of decision support
systems (DSS) are:
– directly support the decision-making process permitting
projection.
– clearly relate to managers, their information needs, and
activities.
• Group decision support systems (GDSS) use computer
mediated-communication tools, such as networks,
anonymous input and voting, and whiteboards, to support
groups as they make decisions.
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
– Executive information systems
• The focus of these systems is accessibility. That is,
senior executives need access to internal and
external information.
• Principal identifying attributes of executive
information system (EIS) are:
– they provide immediate access to information reflecting:
» Key success factors and access to internal and
external information
– easily tailored to user’s preferences.
– critical for senior executive’s types of activities and
decisions.
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
– Expert Systems
• Are computer programs designed to operate within a narrow
problem domain and to capture and present to the user
expert knowledge.
• These systems can be developed to assist decision- makers
in such diverse areas as classification, diagnosis, and
monitoring, among others.
• Consist of
– a knowledge base,
– a friendly user interface,
– an inference engine to control the system operation as well as
the application of the system’s knowledge,
– and an explanation subsystem to permit the system to explain
to the user how it arrived at conclusions.
