Systems Analysis & Design

Sixth Edition

Toolkit Part 6
Toolkit Objectives
● Describe the characteristics of
the Internet and the World Wide
Web
● Formulate an Internet search
strategy, and evaluate your
requirements, choose a proper
tool, assess the quality of the
results, and download virus-free
results
● Explain how to use search
engines, subject directories, and
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the invisible Web to locate the
Toolkit Objectives
● Demonstrate advanced search
techniques, including Boolean logic
and Venn diagrams
● Describe other Internet
communication resource tools,
including newsgroups, newsletters,
mailing lists, Web-based discussion
groups, chat rooms, and instant
messaging
● Provide examples of IT community
resources and their value to a
systems analyst
● Explain the benefits and
disadvantages of online learning
opportunities 3
Introduction
● The Internet offers a wealth of
information about every
conceivable subject
● Will describe various Internet
resources, assist you in
formulating an effective
information gathering strategy,
and explain Internet resource
tools and techniques that you can
use to access the information you
need
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Overview
● Internet
● World Wide Web or Web
● Web pages
● Web site
● Web server
● Web browser or browser

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Overview
● Some Characteristics of the
Internet
– According to a recent Federal
Communications Commission estimate,
the Internet has more than 40 million
Web sites
– Internet mapping
– According to Lumeta, this data makes it
possible to analyze, document, and
predict the Internet’s growth and
behavior

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Overview
● Summary of Internet Resources
and Tools
– Many navigation tools are available to
you
– Search Engines
• Meta-search engines
– Subject Directories
– The Invisible Web
– Internet Communication Resources

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Formulating an Internet
Research Strategy
● To be effective, you should
consider a four-step approach:
1. Evaluate your information requirements
2. Match your information requirements to
the proper tool
3. Assess the quality of the results
4. Download the results and perform a virus
scan

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Formulating an Internet
Research Strategy
● Evaluate Your Information
Requirements
– The first step to finding the information
you need is to make sure you really
understand what you are seeking
– Start with a more generalized search
instead of going directly to vendor sites

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Formulating an Internet
Research Strategy
● Match Your Information
Requirement to the Proper Tool
– Once you feel that you understand the
information required, it is time to pick an
initial tool
– As with most skills, the more you use
them, the more expertise you acquire
– Will develop your own list of favorite sites
and resources

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Formulating an Internet
Research Strategy
● Assess the Quality of the Results
– By definition, the Internet is essentially
open and unregulated
– Questions to ask when accessing content
include:
• Source
• Accuracy
• Scope - Sub-search
• Currency
• Look and Feel

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Formulating an Internet
Research Strategy
● Download the Results and
Perform a Virus Scan
– Once you have discovered the
appropriate information, you can save
it to your hard drive or network
– Many sites allow you to click a link and
download the file directly to your hard
drive
– It is important to protect your network
and computer system from any
unwanted viruses

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Search Engines
● Search Engine Basics
– Spider
– Indexing
– Keywords
– Hits
– Pay for performance

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Search Engines
● Search Engine Basics
– Sponsored links
– Subject-Specific Popularity
– Indexed Search Engines
– Meta-Search Engines

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Search Engines
● Search Techniques
– Consider the following suggestions when
you begin a search:
• Refine your topic
• Translate your question into an effective search
query
• Review the search results and evaluate the
quality of the results

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Search Engines
● Advanced Search Techniques
– These features can include the option to
search within returned results and the
ability to search within specific areas, such
as newsgroups
– Boolean logic
– Logical operators
– Venn diagram

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Search Engines
● Advanced Search Techniques
– OR
– AND
– NOT
• You should use the NOT operator carefully,
because the term you want to exclude may be
intertwined with the term you seek in many
documents that would be useful to you

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Search Engines
● Advanced Search Techniques
– Using phrases
• Phrase
• Implied Boolean logic
• Advanced search

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Search Engines
● A Search Checklist
1. Does the topic have any unique words,
phrases, or acronyms?
2. Do any of the search terms have other
spellings or names?
3. Are certain additional words or phrases
likely to appear in any Web document?

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Search Engines
● A Search Checklist
1. Is there any unrelated material that my
search terms might pick up?
2. Are any organizations, publications, or
institutions likely to have an interest in
my topic?
3. Is the search returning results too
numerous to examine?

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Subject Directories
● A subject directory collects and
organizes Web sites in a top-down
format
● Portal
● Many subject directories are
reviewed by human experts,
rather than computer robots, to
ensure relevance and quality of
links

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Subject Directories
● A Subject Directory Example
– Subject directories organize information
into various categories and provide an
overall framework for finding information
– In addition to Yahoo!, other popular
subject directories include About.com and
the Librarians’ Index to the Internet

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Subject Directories
● Advantages and Disadvantages
of Subject Directories
– The main advantage of a subject
directory is that it provides an overview
– Many subject directories use human
expertise
– This process involves subjective
decisions
– A subject directory forces you to work
your way through a series of levels,
rather than using specific words and
phrases to locate directly the material
you seek
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The Invisible Web
● Visible Web
● Hidden Web or deep Web
● Much of the invisible Web is open
to the public, but some databases
are password protected
● Spidering

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The Invisible Web
● Invisible Web Examples
– Specialized topic databases
– Hardware and software vendors
– Publications
– Libraries
– Government databases
– Auction sites
– Locators
– Career opportunities

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The Invisible Web
● Navigation Tools for the
Invisible Web
– Use a search engine to locate a portal
– Using specialized portals
– You might want to use special
navigation software to assist you
– Z39.50 protocol

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Internet Communication
Resources
● Suppose that you are asked to
analyze your organization’s virus
protection requirements
● As part of your research you would
want to learn about relevant
news, developments, and the
latest virus threats
● You can consider using
newsgroups, newsletters, mailing
lists, Web-based discussion
groups, chat rooms, and instant
messaging
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Internet Communication
Resources
● Newsgroups
– Usenet
– Threads
– Newsreader
– FAQs
– Netiquette

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Internet Communication
Resources
● Newsletters
– Some newsletters are published daily,
others weekly
– Although newsletters are not interactive,
they can provide a convenient way to
keep current on subjects of interest and
developments of interest to the subscriber

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Internet Communication
Resources
● Mailing Lists
– Listserv
– Users can post messages and view
postings made by others
– A mailing list uses e-mail to communicate
with users
– List server
– Digest

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Internet Communication
Resources
● Web-Based Discussion Groups
– Most Web-based discussion groups can be
accessed through a portal
– In addition to text messages, group Web
sites often include membership lists and
contact information, photo galleries, and
links of interest to members
– Web-based discussion groups are popular

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Internet Communication
Resources
● Chat Rooms
– Channel
– IRC – Internet Relay Chat
– Various companies also provide chat
rooms that are available to IT
professionals interested in specific topics

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Internet Communication
Resources
● Instant Messaging
– Although instant messaging began as a
popular feature in home-oriented services
such as AOL and Yahoo!, it has become an
important business communication tool
– Raises serious security and privacy
concerns because it is relatively
uncontrolled

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Information Technology
Community Resources
● Information technology (IT)
community
● This vast collection includes many
sites that IT professionals can use
to research specific questions or
obtain background information
● Four important components of the
IT community are corporate
resources, government resources,
professional resources, and online
learning resources 34
Information Technology
Community Resources
● Corporate Resources
– An important corporate resource to
systems analysts is their own internal
company Web site or intranet
– An intranet must be easy to access and
provide access to valuable information
– Intranets can contain company policies
and procedures, lessons-learned files, and
financial information

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Information Technology
Community Resources
● Government Resources
– Government sites can provide information
on federal, state, and local business
policies and regulations
– The General Services Agency (GSA) is a
good source for federal policies and
regulations, especially for firms that do
business with the government

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Information Technology
Community Resources
● Professional Resources
– Many associations focus on a specific topic
– Information Technology Association of
America (ITAA)
– Many associations offer electronic
newsletters

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Information Technology
Community Resources
● Online Learning Resources
– Advances in bandwidth and processing
power have made online learning an
increasingly attractive option for many
IT professionals
– Online learning - e-learning
– Gov Online Learning Center

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Information Technology
Community Resources
● Online Learning Resources
– Benefits of online learning
• Convenient
• Economical
• Customizable

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Information Technology
Community Resources
● Online Learning Resources
– Disadvantages of online learning
• Interaction
• Interface
• Suitability

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Toolkit Summary
● The Internet is a worldwide
network that integrates many
thousands of other networks
● The primary research tools
include search engines, subject
directories, and a collection of
searchable database resources
called the invisible Web
● An Internet research strategy
should use a four-step approach
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Toolkit Summary
● The IT community includes
corporate, government,
professional, and online learning
resources
● Professional development
through online learning is a way
for IT workers to remain current
in their chosen areas

● Toolkit Part 6 complete 42