Beyond Systems Analysis and Design
Contents
1. However if the new application calls for new or modified net works they must normally be implemented before building and testing databases and writing or installing computer programs that will use those networks Thus the first task of the construction phase may be to build and test networks This phase involves analysts designers and builders A network designer and net work administrator assume the primary responsibility for completing this task The network designer is a specialist in the design of local and wide area networks and their connectivity The network administrator has the expertise for building and test ing network technology for the new system He or she will also be familiar with net work architecture standards that must be adhered to for any possible new networking technology This person is also responsible for security The network designer and network administrator may be the same person While the systems analyst may be in volved in the completion of this task the analyst s role is more that of a facilitator and ensures that business requirements are not compromised by the network solution gt Task 6 2 Build and Test Databases Building and testing databases are unfamiliar tasks for many students who are accus tomed to having an instructor provide them with the test databases This task must im mediately precede other programming activities because databases are the resources shared by the computer programs2. lt with live data 12 System testing L Testing of through put response time under load spikes 13 Stub testing M Installation strategy i The goal of human interface disigi is to cr ate a system that is intuitive to use To require a users manual is an admission of failure Respond to this statement Do you agree or disagree with iy Explain why gt Many organizations require a cajaitinipleitien tative evaluation report PIER usually somewhere be tween six months and a year after implementation What purpose s does this serve If a project is poorly designed and constructed will a well planned and well executed implementation effort help the project to succeed What about the opposite situation Will a well designed and well constructed system overcome a a poor pra effort If you were the testing manager and were lt given the choice to purchase any automated _ software testing tool which one would you select Or would you prefer to develop your own homegrown automated testing program Explain your answer i What do you see as the primary j advantages to using an automated softwaretesting package You are a systems analyst working on a major project for an organization that has several hundred employees in its headquarters office and about a dozen offices located in this country in Canada and in Mexico The objective of the project is to implement an enterprise wide missi
3. for conformity to standards This group will provide appropriate feedback regarding quality recommendations and requirements The final program documentation is then placed in the project reposi tory for future reference Testing is an important skill that is often overlooked in academic courses on computer programming Testing should not be deferred until after the entire program has been written There are three levels of testing to be performed stub testing unit or program testing and systems testing Stub testing is testing performed on indi vidual events or modules of a program In other words it is the testing of an isolated subset of a program Unit or program testing is testing in which all the events and modules that have been coded and stub tested for a program are tested as an SYSTEMS ANALYSIS amp DESIGN Chapter Eighteen 573 stub test a test performed on a subset of a program unit or program test a test performed on an entire program Introduction to Systems Analysis and Design 574 Part Four Beyond Systems Analysis and Design systems test atest per integrated unit it is the testing of an entire program Systems testing ensures that formed on an entire system application programs written and tested in isolation work properly when they are integrated into the total system A system test plan should be developed and followed for testing the system One or more test scripts are developed for each functional and non
4. it adequate Can enhancements to human engineering be deferred until after the system has been placed into operation d Methods and procedures test During conversion the methods and proce dures for the new system will be put to their first real test Methods and procedures may have to be modified if they prove to be awkward and inefficient from the end users standpoint e Backup and recovery testing All backup and recovery procedures should be tested This should include simulating a data loss disaster and testing the time required to recover from that disaster Also a before and after compari son of the data should be performed to ensure that data was properly recov ered It is crucial to test these procedures Don t wait until the first disaster to find an error in the recovery procedures Audit testing certifies that the system is free of errors and is ready to be placed audit test a test performed into operation Not all organizations require an audit But many firms have an to ensure a new system is independent audit or quality assurance staff that must certify a system s accept _ 20Y to be placed into ability and documentation before that system is placed into final operation ae There are independent companies that perform systems and software certifica tion for end users organizations gt Task 7 3 Iinstall Databases Recall that in a previous phase you built and tested databases To place the system into operatio
5. the audit testing new system a Verification testing runs the system in a simulated environment using simulated data b Validation testing runs the system in a live envi ronment using real data This is sometimes called beta testing c Audit testing certifies that the system is free of errors and is ready to be placed into operation 7 The systems implementation consists of the follow ing activities conducting a system test preparing a systems conversion plan installing databases training system users and conzerming from the old system to the new system 8 There are several commonly used strategies for converting from an existing to a new production 1 You are the lead analyst on the system testing team of a large enterprise system that will touch virtually every business function in the organization Unfortunately design and construction ran behind schedule by about two weeks System testing is scheduled to take four weeks of intensive effort assuming no major problems are found Adding resources will not shorten the time required If you stay on plan implementation will be delayed by two weeks The system owner who is the CEO finds this unacceptable and tells you What do you mean that it is going to take a month to system test I need this system up in two weeks not a day later If you find any problems they can be fixed later What do you do in this situation 2 Consider a variation of the prece
6. the design specifications for the new system a detailed conversion plan can be as sembled The principal deliverable of this activity is the conversion plan The conversion plan may include one of the following commonly used installa tion strategies Abrupt cut over On a specific date usually a date that coincides with an official business period such as month quarter or fiscal year the old system is termi nated and the new system is placed into operation This is a high risk approach because there may still be major problems that won t be uncovered until the system has been in operation for at least one business period On the other hand there are no transition costs Abrupt cut over may be necessary if for instance a government mandate or business policy becomes effective on a specific date and the system couldn t be implemented before that date Parallel conversion Under this approach both the old and the new systems are operated for some time period This ensures that all major problems in the new system have been solved before the old system is discarded The final cut over may be either abrupt usually at the end of one business period or gradual as portions of the new system are deemed adequate This strategy minimizes the risk of major flaws in the new system causing irreparable harm to the business however it also means the cost of running two systems over some period must be incurred Because running two editions o
7. Beyond Systems Analysis and Design SYSTEMS ANALYSIS amp DESIGN Part Beyond Systems Analysis and Design Part Four introduces you to the final process of constructing the system _the tasks involved in the development phases of systems development from physical design specifications installation testing and delivery of Chapter 18 Systems Construction andthe implementation ofthe the final system into production and Implementation presents the constructed system It will examine gees oe Introduction to Systems Analysis and Design Systems onsttuet senator Chapter Preview and Objectives ee In this daper you will learn more about the construction and implementation phases of systems development These two phases construct test install and deliver the final system into operation You will know that you understand the processes of constructing and implementing a system when you can Explain the purpose of the construction and implementation phases of the system s life cycle E Describe the system s construction and implementation Poa in terms of major tasks rales inputs and outputs Explain several application program and system tests Identify several system conversion sean E Identify the chapters in this textbook that can help you actually perform the tasks of systems construction and implementation i Although some of the techniques of s
8. Cliffs NJ Yourdon Press 1993 Brooks E The Mythical Man Montb Reading MA Addison Wesley 1995 Back Matter
9. D Unanticipated sudden gis system shutdown 10 testing o 5 System perfor E Application mance testing program level code ee testing ti 6 Unpopulated E Independently database performed certification level testing 7 Backup and G Module level testing of recovery testing code a 8 Peak performance H Extensive verification testing validation and audit testing 1 Anumber of companies such as Mercury Renters 7 _ of Rational now owned by IBM offer automated software testing packages as stand alone products or as an integrated part of a larger suite Research these software packages on the Web and trade journals Download and try any trial versions you find In _ addition contact the software testing staff in several local organizations and interview them regarding their software testing methods a Describe your research what products did you find Compare and contrast their features and functionality Did the software testers you contacted use an automated software testing tool If so was it a home grown tool or a commercial product Did they indicate any preference as to which one they thought was best b Chapter Eighteen 581 9 Abrupt cut off 1 Environmental level testing of application program s 10 System J Environmentallevel implementation testing by users with Si simulated data 11 Systems K Live environmental acceptance testing level testing by users
10. and test data details are also produced dur ing this task and placed in the project repository for future reference gt Task 6 3 Install and Test New Software Packages if Necessary Some systems solutions may have required the purchase or lease of software pack ages If so once networks and databases for the new system have been built we can install and test the new software This new software will subsequently be placed in the software library This activity typically involves systems analysts designers builders and vendors and consultants This is the first task in the life cycle that is specific to the applications programmer The systems analyst typically participates in the testing of the software package by clarifying requirements Likewise the system designer may be involved in this task to clarify integration requirements and program documentation that is to be used in testing the software Network administrators may be involved in actually Systems Construction and Implementation installing the software package on the network server Finally this task typically in volves participation from the software vendor and consultants who may assist in the installation and testing process The main input to this task is the new software packages and documentation that are received from the system vendors The applications programmer will complete the installation and testing of the package according to integration requirements a
11. and testing of system components Unfortunately systems development is a common synonym We dislike that synonym since it is more frequently used to describe the entire life cycle Systems implemen tation is the delivery of that system into production meaning day to day operation Figure 18 1 illustrates the construction and implementation phases Notice that the trigger for the systems construction phase is the approval of the physical design specifications resulting from the design phase Given the design specifications we can construct and test system components for that design Eventually we will have built the functional system The functional system can then be implemented or delivered as an operational system i This chapter examines each of these phases in detail _ The Construction Phase The purpose of the construction phase is to develop and test a functional system that fulfills business and design requirements and to implement the interfaces between the new system and existing production systems Programming is generally recog nized as a major aspect of the construction phase But with the trend toward system solutions that involve acquiring or purchasing software packages the implementation and integration of software components is becoming an equally if not more common and visible aspect of the construction phase In this section you will learn about several tasks involved in the construction phase of a typical systems develop
12. ations to place the new system into operation Using the design specifications for the new sys tem the systems analyst will develop a detailed conversion plan This plan will identify databases to be installed end user training and documentation that need to be devel oped and a strategy for converting from the old system to the new system SZS THE BUSINESS AND TECHNICAL COMMUNITY SYSTEM OWNERS AND USERS OR STEERING COMMITTEE Operational System User Training and Documentation Conversion Plan Appropriate Restructured Existing Data Database Structured Software Packages Custom Built Programs and any Existing Programs Successful System Required System Test Modifications Test to Programs Data Design Specifications eee Conversion Plan Documenta ee Database Schema Existing Data NDISIG 8 SISATWNV SWSLSAS Introduction to Systems Analysis and Design 576 Part Four Beyond Systems Analysis and Design The project manager facilitates the activity Systems analyst system designer and system builder roles are not typically involved unless deemed necessary by the proj ect manager Finally many organizations require that all project plans be formally pre sented to a steering body sometimes called a steering committee for final approval This activity is triggered by the completion of a successful system test Using
13. ctual use of the new system They will be the source of the majority of the feedback used to measure the system s acceptance The systems analysts designers and builders will assess the feedback received from the system owners and users once the system is in operation In many cases that feedback may stimulate actions to correct identified shortcomings Regardless the feedback will be used to help benchmark new systems projects down the road The key input to this activity is the conversion plan that was created in an earlier implementation phase task The principal deliverable is the operational system that is placed into production in the business 1 Systems construction is the development installa information system including tion and testing of system components 2 Systems implementation is the delivery of the sys tem into production meaning day to day operation 3 The purpose of the construction phase is to de velop and test a functional system that fulfills busi ness and design requirements and to implement the interfaces between the new system and exiting _ production systems 4 The construction phase consists of four tasks build and test networks build and test databases install and test new software packages and write and test Abrupt cut over On a specific date the old system is terminated and the new system is placed into operation b Parallel conversion Both the old and the new systems are
14. ding question You work as a testing analyst for a software de velopment contractor that has been engaged to develop this enterprise system If the project is not completed on schedule your company loses a substantial bonus Since design and construction ran behind you will have to cut system testing in half Your company is putting a great deal of im plicit pressure on you to compress testing so the project can finish on schedule and the company will receive its bonus You have qualms that if testing is compressed some serious problems may be missed even with a risk based testing strategy What do you do 3 You are a systems analyst who will be leading a systems t esting team on another project Your compafiy is adopting a new testing strategy in the Introduction to Systems Analysis and Design past the programmers who constructed the sys tem did the system testing themselves Why was this not a good idea Who should you select for your systems testing team What skills should they have Are the following statements true or false Explain your answer as needed a Building and testing any databases that are needed should occur after programming activities are completed b Training of users should be done long before actual implementation in order to ensure that everybody receives training without being rushed c The purpose of parallel conversionis t reduce business risk d Testing is a highly s
15. ee levels of acceptance conduct verification i ie i R validation and atidit teste testing verification testing validation testing and audit testing Verification testing runs the system in a simulated environment using simulated data This simulated test is sometimes called alpha testing The simulated test is primarily looking for errors and omissions regarding end user and design specifica tions that were specified in the earlier phases but not fulfilled during construction e Validation testing runs the system in a live environment using real data This is sometimes called beta testing During this validation a number of items are tested a Systems performance Is the throughput and response time for processing adequate to meet a normal processing workload If not some programs may have to be rewritten to improve efficiency or processing hardware may have to be replaced or upgraded to handle the additional workload SYSTEMS ANALYSIS amp DESIGN Systems Construction and Implementation Chapter Eighteen 577 b Peak workload processing performance Can the system handle the work load during peak processing periods If not improved hardware and or software may be needed to increase efficiency or processing may need to be rescheduled that is consider doing some of the less critical processing dur ing nonpeak periods c Human engineering test Is the system as easy to learn and use as antici pated If not is
16. enting _ systems Ask them about their experiences what their worst horror story was and what they learned from it Supplement these interviews with research on contingency implementation planning Then use your anecdotal information and research to put together a set of guidelines on planning for and handling the unexpected during system implementation _ tested on its server It takes 12 72 hours for the DNS change to take place and Reliable thought it would have the Web pages up in the lag time It wasn t able to As a result the DNS pointed to the new server for several days before the new site was functioning again Wow Munchies lost an estimated 200 000 in revenues as a result of the sites downtime Comment on what went wrong and how it could have been avoided SYSTEMS ANALYSIS amp DESIGN Systems Construction and implementation Chapter Eighteen 583 Bell P and C Evans Mastering Documentation New York Metzger Philip W Managing a Programming Project John Wiley amp Sons 1989 2nd ed Englewood Cliffs NJ Prentice Hall 1981 This is Boehm Barry Software Engineering IEEE Transactions one of the few books to place emphasis solely on systems on Computers C 25 December 1976 This classic paper implementation demonstrated the importance of catching errors and Mosely D J The Handbook of MIS Application Software omissions before programming begins Testing Englewood
17. f the same system on the computer could place an unreasonable demand on computing resources this may be pos sible only if the old system is largely manual Location conversion When the same system will be used in numerous geograph ical locations it is usually converted at one location first using either abrupt or parallel conversion As soon as that site has approved the system it can be farmed to the other sites Other sites can be cut over abruptly because major errors have been fixed Furthermore other sites benefit from the learning experiences of the first test site The first production test site is often called a beta test site Staged conversion Like location conversion staged conversion is a variation on the abrupt and parallel conversions A staged conversion is based on the version concept introduced earlier Each successive version of the new system is converted as it is developed Each version may be converted using the abrupt parallel or location strategy The conversion plan also typically includes a systems acceptance test plan The sys tems acceptance test is the final opportunity for end users management and infor systems acceptance test mation systems operations management to accept or reject the system A systems a test performed on the acceptance test is a final system test performed by end users using real data over an final system wherein users extended time period It is an extensive test that addresses thr
18. functional requirement Just because a single program works properly doesn t mean that it works prop erly with other programs The integrated set of programs should be run through a systems test to make sure one program properly accepts as input the output of other programs Once the system test is complete and determined to be successful we can proceed to the implementation of the system The implementation Phase What s left to do New systems usually represent a departure from the way business is currently done therefore the analyst must provide for a smooth transition from the old system to the new system and help users cope with normal start up problems Thus the implementation phase delivers the production system into operation The functional system from the construction phase is the key input to the implementation phase see Figure 18 1 The deliverable of the implementation phase and the project is the operational system that will enter the operation and support stage of the life cycle In your information system framework the implementation phase considers the same building blocks as does the construction phase see the chapter home page In this section you will learn about several tasks involved in the implementation phase for a typical systems development project Figure 18 3 depicts the various tasks for the im plementation phase Let s examine each implementation phase task in greater detail gt Task 7 1 Conduc
19. l Design Documentation DECISION ANALYSIS Redesigned Business Application Architecture PHYSICAL DESIGN i Physical INTEGRATION Design Specifications i uBisaq pue s s jeuy SW JS S 03 uoRNponu anne Fa Se eee apanan F 7 FIGURE 18 1 The Context of Systems Construction and Implementation ahd Implemento Soa ey IZS THE BUSINESS AND TECHNICAL COMMUNITY approval to continue project after design phase 1 Design Specifications ____Database i Structure Installed Network Network Details Network Functionat Design System Requirements Revised Database Schemas and Test Data Details Sample Technical Design re Statement Plan For Database Programming and Schemas Test Data Integration Software Requirements Packages amp Program i and Documentation Documentation TECHNOLOGY SALES REPRESENTATIVES Moditied S W Specs amp New Integration _ Software _ Requirements Package Program Documentation New Programs amp Reusable Software Components peee a Reusable Software Components sepa eee ss maeneene 18 2 Systems Construction Tasks _ NDISIG 8 SISATWNV SWALSAS Introduction to Systems Analysis and Design 572 Part Four Beyond Systems Analysis and Design In many cases new or enhanced applications are built around existing networks If so skip this task
20. ment project Figure 18 2 depicts the various tasks for the construction phase Let s examine each construction phase task in greater detail gt Task 6 1 Build and Test Networks if Necessary Recall that in the requirements analysis phase of systems analysis we established net work requirements Subsequently during the design phase we developed distributed data and process models Using these technical design specifications to implement the network architecture for an information system is a prerequisite for the remaining construction and implementation activities Chapter Eighteen 569 systems construction the development installation and testing of system components systems implementation the installation and delivery of the entire system into production ozs BUSINESS COMMUNITY START FINISH Problems Opportunities Working Directives Constraints Business SYSTEM OWNERS AND USERS and Vision Improvement Objectives PROBLEM ANALYSIS Problem Statement Statement Life Cycle Stage of Work Scope amp Vision SYSTEM OPERATION SCOPE REQUIREMENTS amp DEFINITION Documentation ANALYSIS MAINTENANCE Business K Vis Requirements i Statement Documentation Documentation Post Audit Review Operational System Documentation pD E lt Documentation LOGICAL z DESIGN Training Materials Functional System Logica
21. n you will need fully loaded or populated databases Therefore the next task we ll survey is installation of databases The purpose of this task is to populate the new system s databases with existing data from the old system At first this activity may seem trivial But consider the implications of loading a typical table say MEMBER Tens or hundreds of thousands of records may have to be loaded Each must be input edited and confirmed before the database table is ready to be placed into operation Systems builders play a primary role in this activity The task will normally be completed by application programmers who will write the special programs to ex tract data from existing databases and programs to populate the new databases Sys tems analysts and designers may play a small role in completing this activity Their primary involvement will be the calculating of database sizes and estimating of the time required to perform the installation Finally data entry personnel or hired help may often be assigned to do data entry Special programs will have to be written to populate the new databases Existing data from the production databases coupled with the database schema s models and database structures for the new databases will be used to write computer programs to populate the new databases with restructured existing data The principal deliver able of this task is the restructured existing data that has been populated in the da
22. nd program documentation developed during system design The principal deliverable of this task is the installed and tested software package that is made available in the soft ware library Any modified software specifications and new integration requirements that were necessary are documented and made available in the project repository to provide a history and serve as future reference gt Task 6 4 Write and Test New Programs We are now ready to develop or complete any in house programs for the new sys tem Recall that prototype programs are frequently constructed in the design phase These prototypes are included as part of the technical design specifications for com pleting systems construction and implementation However these prototypes are rarely fully functional or complete Therefore this activity may involve developing or refining those programs This task involves the systems analysts designers and builders The systems an alyst typically clarifies business requirements to be implemented by the programs The designer may have to clarify the program design integration requirements and program documentation developed during systems design that is used in writing and testing the programs The system builders will assume the primary responsibil ity for this activity The applications programmer builder is responsible for writing and testing in house software Most large programming projects require a team effort One popula
23. new system from the old system is a significant milestone After conversion the ownership of the system officially transfers from the analysts and programmers to the end users The analyst completes this task by carefully carrying out the conversion plan Recall that the conversion plan includes detailed installation oe FIGURE 18 4 An Outline fora Training Manual Training Manual End Users Guide Outline t Introduction IL Manual A The manual system a detailed explanation of people s jobs and standard operating procedures for the new system B The computer system how it fits into the overall work flow 1 Terminal keyboard familiarization 2 First time end users a Getting started b Lessons C Reference manual for nonbeginners II Appendixes A Error messages SYSTEMS ANALYSIS amp DESIGN Systems Construction and Implementation Chapter Eighteen 579 strategies to follow for converting from the existing to the new production informa tion system This task also involves completing a systems audit The task involves the systems owners users analysts designers and builders The project manager who will oversee the conversion process facilitates it The system owners provide feedback regarding their experiences with the overall project They may also provide feedback regarding the new system that has been placed into op eration The system users will provide valuable feedback pertaining to the a
24. on critical information system The project is now in the construction and implementation phase and you have been assigned responsibility for selecting the conversion strategy and ind developing the 582 Part Four l conversion plan Prepare a summary analysis of the different installation strategies discussed in the book and recommend the one that you feel would be most appropriate Assuming that your recommendation i is acecoeall _ by management draft a detailed conversion plan that addresses the actual implementation strategy for converting to the new system After you complete the draft plan have it reviewed by one or more IT staff members with experience in developing conversion plans Make any needed changes and repeat the review process until the consensus is that your plan is realistic and doable The next step is to prepare the systems acceptance test plan Using the material in the textbook as a general guideline research on the Web some of the more detailed components that go into acceptance testing Select some of the testing templates that should be readily available and modify them as appropriate Then draft the test plan and share it with IT testing staff Make sure that your plan addresses any potential risks Make any needed changes and repeat the review process as necessary with the testing staff until your plan is ready to put into action The textbook describes a traditi
25. onal method for delivering end user training Are there other aa S Wow Munchies has a Web site wwwwowmunchies com which is currently hosted on server 123coolhost at a Web hosting company called Cool Hosting But Wow Munchies has decided to have its Web pages updated and serviced by another hosting company Reliable Host using the server 123reliable The new hosting company pointed the DNS for www wowmunchies com to server 123reliable before it had the Web pages loaded and Introduction to Systems Analysis and Design Beyond Systems Analysis and Design methods which are Web based that may offer more _ effective and or efficient methods for delivering end user training Research some of the Web based training methods that are becoming more widely used Then use the scenario described in Question 2 ta develop 4 Web based end user training plan _ After you draft the plan have some professional trainers review it for completeness and feasibility and make any needed changes Then have some of your fellow students or co workers review your training plan from the perspective of an end user Were you able to develop a feasible plan There is an unwritten principle that says that no matter how much you plan for a system implementation something unanticipated will almost always happen often at the worst possible moment Interview several analysts in local organizations who have expertise in implem
26. operated for some time period to ensure that all major problems in the new system are solved before the old system is discarded c Location conversion When the same system will be used in numerous geographical locations it is usually converted at one location and fol NCW prOgTAmS lowing approval farmed to the other sites 5 AT of testing a Ace p formed E d Staged conversion Each successive version of l the new system is converted as it is developed a Stub testing is testing performed on individual Each version may be converted using the abrupt modules whether they be main program parallel or location strategies subroutine subprogram block or paragraph b Unit or program testing is testing in which all the modules that have been coded and stub gt tested are tested asan integrated unit C Systems testing ensures that application programs written in isolation work properly when they are 9 The systems acceptance test is the final oppor tunity for end users management and informa tion systems operations management to accept or reject the system A systems acceptance test is a final system test performed by end users using real data over an extended period It is an exten intrgratod the total systemi i sive test that addresses three levels of acceptance 6 The purpose of the implementation phase is to testing verification testing validation testing and smoothly convert from the old system to
27. r organization strategy is the use of chief programmer teams The team is managed by the chief programmer a highly proficient and experienced program mer who assumes overall responsibility for the program design strategy standards and construction The chief programmer oversees all coding and testing activities and helps with the most difficult aspects of the programs Other team members include a backup chief programmer program librarian programmers and specialists The applications programmer is often aided by an application or software tester who spe cializes in building and running test scripts that are consistently applied to programs to test all possible events and responses The primary inputs to this activity are the technical design statement plan for programming and test data developed during systems design Since any new pro grams or program components may have already been written and be in use by other existing systems the experienced applications programmer will know to first check for possible reusable software components available in the software library The principal deliverables of this activity are the new programs and reusable soft ware components that are placed in the software library This activity also results in program documentation that may need to be approved by a quality assurance group Some information systems shops have a quality assurance group staffed by special ists who review the final program documentation
28. t System Test Now that the software packages and in house programs have been installed and tested we need to conduct a final system test All software packages custom built programs and any existing programs that comprise the new system must be tested to ensure that they all work together This task involves analysts owners users and builders The systems analyst facilitates the completion of this task The systems analyst typically communicates testing problems and issues with the project team members The system owners and system users hold the ultimate authority on whether or not a system is operating cor rectly System builders of various specialties are involved in the systems testing For example applications programmers database programmers and networking special ists may need to resolve problems revealed during systems testing The primary inputs to this task include the software packages custom built pro grams and any existing programs comprising the new system The system test is done using the system test data that was developed earlier by the systems analyst As with previous tests that were performed the system test may result in required modifica tions to programs thus once again prompting the return to a construction phase task This iteration would continue until a successful system test was experienced gt Task 7 2 Prepare Conversion Plan Once a successful system test has been completed we can begin prepar
29. ta bases for the new system gt Task 7 4 Train Users Change may be good but it s not always easy Converting to a new system necessitates that system users be trained and provided with documentation user manuals that guides them through using the new system Introduction to Systems Analysis and Design 578 Part Four Beyond Systems Analysis and Design Training can be performed one on one however group training is generally pre ferred It is a better use of your time and it encourages group learning possibilities Think about your education for a moment You really learn more from your fellow students and colleagues than from your instructors Instructors facilitate learning and instruction but you master specific skills through practice with large groups where common problems and issues can be addressed more effectively Take advantage of the ripple effect of edu cation The first group of trainees can then train several other groups The task is completed by the systems analyst and involves system owners and users Given appropriate documentation for the new system the systems analysts will provide end user documentation typically in the form of manuals and training for the system users The system owners must support this activity They must be willing to approve the release time necessary for people to obtain the training needed to be come successful users of the new system Remember the system is for the user User invol
30. to be written If new or modified databases are required for the new system we can now build and test those databases This task involves systems users analysts designers and builders The same sys tem specialist that designed the databases will assume the primary responsibility in completing this task System users may also be involved in this task by providing or approving the test data to be used in the database When the database to be built is a noncorporate applications oriented database the systems analyst often completes this task Otherwise systems analysts mostly ensure business requirements compli ance The database designer will often become the system builder responsible for the completion of this activity The task may involve database programmers to build and populate the initial database and a database administrator to tune the database perfor mance add security controls and provide for backup and recovery The primary inputs to this task are the database schema s specified during systems design Sample data from production databases may be loaded into tables for testing the databases The final product of this task is an unpopulated database structure for the new database The term unpopulaied means the database structure is implemented but data has not been loaded into the database structure As you ll soon see programmers will eventually write programs to populate and maintain those new databases Revised database schema
31. tructured activity that should not be scheduled to commence until the entire application program has been written e Systems development and systems construction are frequently used as synonyms but they may not necessarily mean the same thing As a systems analyst you have been involved in a project to develop an inventory tracking system for your business services office The project is now coming to its final stages and you have been asked to write a training manual Using the outline shown in Figure 18 4 write a portion of the usual manual a page or two describing the manual system or the computer system Have one of your fellow students or co workers read and evaluate for clarity the portion you wrote Did she or he SYSTEMS ANALYSIS amp DESIGN Systems Construction and implementation find it understandable and clear Did it provide the appropriate level of detail that an end user would need 7 During systems construction and implemeniation aren t most of the activities technical in nature so that users don t need to be involved oer for system testing 8 Match the terms in the first column with the defi nitions or examples in the second column 1 Beta testing A Production database eee lt without data loaded in 2 Alpha testing B Testing of throughput response time under o normalload 3 Program testing C Migrating completed system into produc tion environment 4 Audit testing
32. vement is also important in this activity because the end users will inherit the successes and failures from this effort Fortunately users involvement during this task is rarely overlooked The most important aspect of their involvement is training and advising the users They must be trained to use equipment and to follow the proce dures required of the new system But no matter how good the training is users will become confused at times Or perhaps they will find mistakes or limitations Thus it is the responsibility of the analyst to help the users through the learning period until they become comfortable with the new system Given appropriate documentation for the new system the systems analyst will pro vide the system users with the documentation and training needed to properly use the new system The principal deliverable of this task is user training and documentation Many organizations hire special systems analysts who do nothing but write user docu mentation and training guides If you have a skill for writing clearly the demand for your services is out there Figure 18 4 is a typical outline for a training manual The Golden Rule should apply to user manual writing Write unto others as you would have them write unto you You are not a business expert Don t expect the reader to be a technical expert Every possible situation and its proper procedure must be documented gt Task 7 5 Convert to New System Conversion to the
33. ystems construction and implementation are introduced in this chapter it is not the intent of this chapter to teach the techniques This chapter teaches only the process of construction and implementation SYSTEMS ANALYSIS amp DESIGN Systems Construction and implementation Introduction Construction has finally begun on the SoundStage Member Services system Bob Martinez is an analyst programmer which means that he is expected to do some programming as well as systems analysis Tasked with writing code to implement some of the use cases Bob is seeing the advantage of all the analysis and design work that has gone on before From the repository of design documents Bob can draw essentially everything he needs to know to write his programs His boss Sandra insisted that he write test scripts before he began programming Again the use cases told him what alternatives needed to be tested and what the results should be Other members of the systems analysis team are working with database programmers application programmers Web designers and administrators software vendors technical writers and an outside firm hired to perform systems testing They are racing to meet the deadline But it is gratifying to see the system they designed becoming a reality What Is Systems Construction and Implementation Let s begin with definitions of systems construction and implementation Systems construction is the development installation
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