Chapter 10 Definitions

(1) Traditionally, the process of allowing future system users to try out the new system on their own. Used to locate program failures just prior to final program shipment; (2) In the Web-2.0 world, a tactic used by vendors of license-free software to enable the vendor to perpetually change the program, principally its user interface, at its own discretion and on its on time-frame. Such programs are labeled "beta" for many years with no announced schedule for making them "non-beta"

The famous adage that states: Adding more people to a late project makes the project later. BLANK is true not only because a larger staff requires increased coordination, but also because new people need to be trained. The only people who can train the new employees are the existing team members, whoa re thus taken off productive tasks. The costs of training new people can overwhelm the benefit of their contribution.

A set of management policies, practices, and tools that developers use to maintain control over the projects resources

Whether an information system can be developers within budget

The sequence of activities that determine the earliest date by which the project can be completed

A project management planning process by which tasks and resources are re-assigned to tasks so as to reduce the total length of the projects critical path.

The result of each task in a project plan

A principle that states as development teams become larger, that average contribution per worker decreases

A feature of an application program

A chart that shows tasks, dates, dependencies, and possibly resources

The number of lines of text in a computer program

In the context of information systems, (1) to fix the system to do what it was suppose to do in the first place of (2) to adapt the system to a change in requirements

Whether an information system fits within an organization's customer, culture, or legal requirements

A type of system conversion in which the new system runs in parallel with the old one for a while. Parallel installation is expensive because the organization incurs the costs of running both systems

A group of fixes for high-priority failures that can be applied to existing copies of a particular product. Software vendors supply BLANK to fix security and other critical problems

A type of system conversion in which the new system is installed in pieces across the organization. Once a given piece works, then the organization installs and tests another piece of the system, until the entire system has been installed

A type of system conversion in which the organization implements the entire system on a limited portion of the business. The advantage of pilot implementation is that if the system fails, the failure is contained within a limited boundary. This reduces exposure of the business and also protects the new system from developing a negative reputation throughout the organization

A type of system conversion in which the organization shuts off the old system and starts the new system. if the new system fails, the organization is in trouble: Nothing can be done until either the new system is fixed or the old system is reinstalled. Because of the risk, organizations should avoid this conversion style if possible. Sometimes called direct installation

The testing of a system. BLANK personnel usually construct a test plan with the advise and assistance of users. BLANK test engineers perform testing, and they also supervise user-test activity. Many BLANK professionals are programmer who write automated test programs

The process by which users agree to one set of requirements, then add a bit more, then add a bit more, and so forth

Whether an information system will be able to be developed on the timetable needed

A large group of fixes that solve low-priority software problems. Users apply service packs in much the same way that they apply patches, except that service packs typically involve fixes to hundreds or thousands of problems

The process of converting business activity from the old system to the new

The process of creating and maintaining information systems. It is sometimes called systems development

The process of creating and maintaining information systems. It is sometimes called systems analysis and design

The classical process used to develop information systems. These basic tasks of systems development are combines into the following phases: system definition, requirements analysis, component design, implementation, and system maintenance (fix or enhance)

Whether existing information technology will be able to meet the needs of a new information system

Groups of sequences of actions that users will take when using the new system

In project management, a choice among scarce resources such as scope, time, cost, quality, risk, people, and other resources, Managers may need to trade off a delay in the project due date to reduce expense and keep critical employees

The fiction that one phase of the SDLC can be completed in its entirety and the project can progress, without any backtracking, to the next phase of the SDLC. Projects seldom are that simple; backtracking is normally required.

A hierarchy of the tasks required to complete a project