Introduction to Information System

Dr. Shimaa Ismail

Information System Department
Faculty of Computers and Artificial Intelligence
 Assessments
• Prerequisite Course :Computer Science Fundamentals
• Weighing of assessment
Final term examination 50
Oral exam 10
Practical examination 10
Midterm exam 15
Section Tasks 15
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Total 100
To pass the course, you must get at least 50%
i.e. 50 grades and 30% from final written exam i.e. 15 grades
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 Book and Contents
• Information Systems in Perspective
• Information Technology Concepts
• Business Information Systems
• Planning, Acquiring, and Building Systems
• Information Systems in Business and Society

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 Information Systems in Perspective
Chapter 1
An Introduction to Information Systems Part1
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Principles & Learning Objectives
• The value of information is directly linked to how it helps decision makers achieve the
organization’s goals
• Distinguish data from information and describe the characteristics used to evaluate the quality
of data.
• Knowing the potential impact of information systems and having the ability to put this
knowledge to work can result in a successful personal career, organizations that reach
their goals, and a society with a higher quality of life
• Identify the basic types of business information systems and discuss who uses them, how they
are used, and what kinds of benefits they deliver.
• System users, business managers, and information systems professionals must work
together to build a successful information system
• Identify and briefly describe the role of each component of an organization’s technology
infrastructure.

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Principles & Learning Objectives

• The use of information systems to add value to the organization can also give an
organization a competitive advantage
• Identify the value-added processes in the supply chain and describe the role of information
systems within them.
• Identify some of the strategies employed to lower costs or improve service
• Define the term competitive advantage and discuss how organizations are using information
systems to gain such an advantage
• Describe how organizations are using business intelligence and business analytics to capitalize
on the vast amount of data becoming available.
• Discuss why it is critical for business objectives and IS activities to be well aligned through
system planning, development, and acquisition.

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Why learn about Information System
• We live in an information economy. Information itself has real value.
• To stay competitive, organizations require a steady flow of information about their business partners,
competitors, customers, employees, markets, and suppliers.
• Information systems are increasingly being used to gather, store, digest, analyze, and make sense out of all
this information.

• Information systems are even embedded in and control many of the products we use on a daily basis.
• Using information systems:
• Individuals communicate instantaneously with one another;
• Consumers make purchases online using mobile devices;
• Project members dispersed globally and across multiple organizations collaborate effectively;
• Financial institutions manage billions of dollars in assets around the world;
• Manufacturers partner with suppliers and customers to track inventory, order supplies, and distribute
goods faster than ever before.

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Data, Information & Knowledge
Data ➔ Raw Facts
For Examples: an employee number, total hours worked in a week, an inventory part number, or the number of
units produced on a production line.

Information ➔ A collection of data organized and processed

So that it has additional value beyond the value of the individual facts.
For examples, a sales manager may want individual sales data summarized so it shows the total sales for the month.
A grocery list—crackers, bread, soup, cereal, coffee, dishwashing soap, and so on , the items in the list are arranged
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Data, Information & Knowledge
Process ➔ A set of logically related tasks performed to achieve a defined outcome.

{The process of defining relationships among data to create useful information requires knowledge}

Knowledge ➔ The awareness and understanding of a set of information and the ways that
information can be made useful to support a specific task or reach a decision.

Information is One of an Organization’s Most Valuable Resources to Achieve Their Goals

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Process of transforming data into information
• In some cases, people organize or process
data mentally or manually.
• In other cases, they use a computer.

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Characteristics of Quality Information

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Information Systems
Information System (IS) ➔
• A set of interrelated components that collect,
process, store, and disseminate data and
information.
• An information system provides a feedback
mechanism to monitor and control its
operation to make sure it continues to meet
its goals and objectives.
• The feedback mechanism is critical to helping
organizations achieve their goals, such as
increasing profits or improving customer
service
Computer-Based Information system (CBIS) ➔
• A single set of hardware, software, databases,
networks, people, and procedures that are
configured to collect, manipulate, store, and
process data into information.
• Examples:
Watches, digital cameras, mobile phones, music
players, and other devices to bring their users
the latest and greatest feature
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Information Systems Types in Organizations
Personal IS :
An information system that improves the productivity of individual users in performing stand-alone tasks.
Examples include personal productivity software, such as word-processing, presentation, and
spreadsheet software.

Group IS:
An information system that improves communications and support collaboration among members of a
workgroup. Examples include Web conferencing software, wikis, and electronic corporate directories.

Enterprise IS:
An information system that an organization uses to define structured interactions among its own
employees and/or with external customers, suppliers, government agencies, and other business partners.
Examples of enterprise IT are transaction processing, enterprise, and interorganizational systems.

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Business Technology Infrastructure
An organization’s technology infrastructure includes all the hardware, software, databases, networks,
people, and procedures that are configured to collect, manipulate, store, and process data into
information. Businesses can use information systems to increase revenues and reduce costs.

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Information Technology Concepts
Hardware and Mobile Devices

Software and Mobile Applications

Database Systems and Big Data

Networks and Cloud Computing.

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1.Hardware and Mobile Devices
Hardware ➔ Computer equipment used to perform input, processing, storage, and output activities.
• The trend in the computer industry is to produce smaller, faster, and more mobile hardware, such as
smartphones, laptops, and tablet computers.

• While desktop, laptop, and tablet computers continue to be used in a variety of settings, smartphones
have become the primary device used by people around the world to communicate, go online, and
access and share information.

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2.Software and Mobile Applications
Software ➔ The computer programs that govern the operation of a particular computing device,
be it desktop, laptop, tablet, smartphone, or some other device.
• There are two types of software:
System Software And Application Software,
• System Software
• Google’s Android or Apple’s iOS—oversees basic
computer operations such as start-up, controls access
to system resources, and manages memory and files.

• Application Software
• Microsoft Office, allows you to accomplish specific tasks,
including editing text documents, creating graphs, and
playing games.

Consumerization of IT: The trend of consumer technology

practices influencing the way business software is designed and
delivered. (upgrade & update)
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3.Database Systems and Big Data
Database ➔ An organized collection of facts and information, typically consisting of two or more
related data files.
• An organization’s database can contain facts and information on customers, employees, inventory, sales,
online purchases, and much more.
• A database is essential to the operation of a computer-based information system.

Data Warehouse ➔ is a database that stores large amounts of historical data in a form that readily supports
analysis and management decision making.

Big Data ➔ A term used to describe data collections that are so enormous (think petabytes or larger) and
complex (from sensor data to social media data) that traditional data management software, hardware, and
analysis processes are incapable of dealing with them.

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4.Networks and Cloud Computing
Network➔ A group or system of connected computers and equipment—in a room, building, campus,
city, across the country, or around the world—that enables electronic communication.

Internet➔ The world’s largest computer network, consisting of

thousands of interconnected networks, all freely exchanging information.

World Wide Web (WWW)➔ A network of links on the Internet to files containing text, graphics,
video, and sound.

Intranet➔ A network that enables communication, collaboration, search functions, and information sharing
between the members of an organization’s team using a Web browser. For example, the Swiss Medical Group.

Extranet ➔ A network based on Web technologies that allows selected outsiders, such as business partners
and customers, to access authorized resources of a company’s intranet. Such as Federal Express (FedEx).
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4.Networks and Cloud Computing
Internet of Things (IoT) ➔ A network of physical objects or “things” embedded with sensors, processors,
software, and network connectivity capability to enable them to exchange data with the manufacturer of the
device, device operators, and other connected devices

Internet of Everything ➔ A network that encompasses not only machine-to-machine but also people-to-
people and people-to-machine connections.

Public Cloud Computing➔ A means of providing computing services wherein a service provider organization
owns and manages the hardware, software, networking, and storage devices, with cloud user organizations
(called tenants) accessing slices of shared resources via the Internet.
Public Cloud Computing is a great solution for organizations whose computing needs vary greatly depending on
changes in demand. Such as Amazon, Cisco Systems, IBM, Microsoft, Rackspace, Verizon Communications Inc.,
and VMWare are among the large cloud computing service providers.

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5.People
• Information systems personnel include all the people who manage, run, program, and maintain
the system, including the chief information officer (CIO), who leads the IS organization. End users
are people who work directly with information systems to get results. They include financial
executives, marketing representatives, and manufacturing line operators.

• They make the difference between success and failure for most organizations

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6.Procedures
Procedure ➔ A set of steps that need to be followed to achieve a specific end result, such as enter a
customer order, pay a supplier invoice, or request a current inventory report.

• Procedures include the strategies, policies, methods, and rules for using the CBIS, Including the
operation, maintenance, and security of the computer.

• Good procedures describe how to achieve the desired end result, who does what and when, and
what to do in the event something goes wrong.

• When procedures are well documented, they can greatly reduce training
costs and shorten the learning curve.

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