Chapter 10

System Analysis and Programming

SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT: The Six Phases of Systems Analysis & Design

System
A system is defined as a collection of related components that interact to perform a task in order to
accomplish a goal.

System Analyst
A systems analyst is an information specialist who performs systems analysis, design, and
implementation.

System Development Life Cycle

The systems development life cycle (SDLC) is the step-by-step process that many organizations follow
during systems analysis and design.

What are the six phases of the systems development life cycle?

Phase 1: preliminary investigation, is to conduct a preliminary analysis, propose alternative solutions, describe
costs and benefits, and submit a preliminary plan with recommendations.
Phase 2 : systems analysis, is to gather data, analyze the data, and write a report.
Phase 3 :systems design, is to do a preliminary design and then a detail design and to write a report.
Phase 4 :systems development, the systems analyst or others in the organization develop or acquire the software,
acquire the hardware, and then test the system.
Phase 5 :systems implementation, consists of converting the hardware, software, and files to the new system
and training the users.
Phase 6 :systems maintenance, adjusts and improves the system by having system audits and periodic
evaluations and by making changes based on new conditions.

Phase 1: preliminary investigation

1. Conduct preliminary analysis. This includes stating the objectives, defining the nature and scope of
the problem.
2. Propose alternative solutions: leave system alone, make it more efficient, or build a new system.
3. Describe costs and benefits of each solution.
4. Submit a preliminary plan with recommendations.

Phase 2 : systems analysis

1. Gather data, using tools of written documents, interviews, questionnaires, and observations.
2. Analyze the data, using modeling tools: grid charts, decision tables, data flow diagrams, systems
flowcharts, connectivity diagrams.
3. Write a report.
Phase 3 :systems design
1. Do a preliminary design, using CASE tools, prototyping tools, and project management software,
among others.
2. Do a detail design, defining requirements for output, input, storage, and processing and system
controls and backup.
3. Write a report.

Phase 4 :systems development

1. Develop or acquire the software.
2. Acquire the hardware.
3. Test the system.

Phase 5 :systems implementation

1. Convert hardware, software, and files through one of four types of conversions: direct, parallel,
phased, or pilot.
2. Train the users.

Modelling Tools
Modeling tools are analytical tools such as charts, tables, and diagrams used by systems analysts to
present graphic, or pictorial, representations of a system.

Data Flow Diagram

Data flow diagram (DFD), which graphically shows the flow of data through a system.

Computer-aided software engineering

CASE (computer-aided software engineering) tools are computer-automated means of designing and
changing systems.

Prototyping
Prototyping refers to using workstations, CASE tools, and other software applications to build working
models of system components so that they can be quickly tested and evaluated.

What is programming, and what are the five steps in accomplishing it?

A program is a list of instructions that the computer must follow to process data into information.
Programming is a five-step process for creating that list of instructions.
The five steps in the programming process are as follows:
1. Clarify/define the problem—include needed output, input, processing requirements.
2. Design a solution—use modeling tools to chart the program.
3. Code the program—use a programming language’s syntax, or rules, to write the program.
4. Test the program—get rid of any logic errors, or “bugs,” in the program (“debug” it).
5. Document and maintain the program—include written instructions for users, explanation of the
program, and operating instructions.
First Step: Problem clarification
The problem clarification step consists of six mini-steps— clarifying program objectives and users,
outputs, inputs, and processing tasks; studying the feasibility of the program; and documenting the
analysis.
Let us consider these six mini-steps in Problem clarification
1. Clarify objectives and users.
2. Clarify desired outputs.
3. Clarify desired inputs.
4. Clarify desired processing.
5. Double-check feasibility of implementing the program.
6. Document the analysis.

Algorithm
An algorithm is a formula or set of steps for solving a particular problem.

Second Step: Design a solution

In the program design step, the software is designed in two mini-steps. First, the program logic is
determined through a top-down approach and modularization, using a hierarchy chart. Then it is designed in
detail, either in narrative form, using pseudocode, or graphically, using flowcharts.

Structured programming
Structured programming takes a top-down approach that breaks programs into modular forms.

DESIGN DETAILS, USING PSEUDOCODE AND/OR FLOWCHARTS

Pseudocode
Pseudocode is a method of designing a program using normal human-language statements to describe
the logic and the processing flow.

Program flowcharts
A program flowchart is a chart that graphically presents the detailed series of steps (algorithm, or logical
flow) needed to solve a programming problem.

Control structure
A control structure, or logic structure, is a structure that controls the logical sequence in which
computer program instructions are executed. In structured program design, three control structures are used to
form the logic of a program: sequence, selection, and iteration (or loop).

COMPARING THE THREE CONTROL STRUCTURES

Sequence control structure: In the sequence control structure, one program statement follows another
in logical order.
Selection control structure: The selection control structure—also known as an IF-THEN-ELSE
structure—represents a choice. It offers two paths to follow when a decision must be made by a program.
 Iteration control structure: In the iteration, or loop, control structure, a process may be repeated as
long as a certain condition remains true. There are two types of iteration structures—DO UNTIL and DO
WHILE. Of these, DO UNTIL is more often encountered.
Third Step: Code the Program

1. Select the appropriate high-level programming language.

2. Code the program in that language, following the syntax carefully.

Coding
Coding consists of translating the logic requirements from pseudocode or flowcharts into a
programming language—the letters, numbers, and symbols make up the program.

Syntax
The rules of the programming language.

Fourth Step: Test the Program

Program testing
Program testing involves running various tests and then running realworld data to make sure the
program works.

Two principal activities are desk-checking and debugging. These steps are called alpha testing.
Desk-checking is simply reading through, or checking, the program to make sure that it’s free of errors
and that the logic works.
To debug means to detect, locate, and remove all errors in a computer program.

Fifth Step: Document & Maintain the Program

1. Write user documentation.

2. Write operator documentation.
3. Write programmer documentation.
4. Maintain the program.
Documentation
Documentation consists of written descriptions of what a program is and how to use it.

FIVE GENERATIONS OF PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES

The five generations of programming languages start at the lowest level with
(1) machine language
(2) assembly language,
(3) high-level languages (procedural languages and objectoriented languages), and
(4) very-high-level languages (problem-oriented languages).
(5) natural languages.

Machine language
Machine language is the basic language of the computer, representing data as 1s and 0s.

Assembly language
Assembly language is a low-level programming language that allows a programmer to write a program
using abbreviations or more easily remembered words instead of numbers.

language translator
A language translator is a type of system software that translates a program written in a second-, third-,
or higher generation language into machine language. Language translators are of three types:
• Assemblers
• Compilers
• Interpreters
Assemblers
An assembler, or assembler program, is a program that translates the assembly-language program into
machine language.

Compilers
A compiler is a language-translator program that converts the entire program of a high-level language
into machine language before the computer executes the program.

Interpreters
An interpreter is a languagetranslator program that converts each procedural language statement into
machine language and executes it immediately, statement by statement.

Self-Test Questions
1. The ________________________ comprises six phases of examining an information system and improving
it.
2. The first major program written in C was the ________________ operating system.
3. ______________________ is a method of creating programs in which the programmer makes connections
between objects by drawing, pointing, and clicking on diagrams and icons and by interacting with flowcharts.
4. Software engineering, or ______________ , refers to creating instructions for computers.
5. A(n) ________________ is a formula or a set of steps for solving a particular problem.
6. A(n) ________________ is a collection of related components that interact to perform a task in order to
accomplish a goal.
7. ________________ is the basic language of the computer, representing data as 0s and 1s.

Multiple-Choice Questions
1. One of the following activities is not an objective of Phase 1 of the SDLC, preliminary investigation. Which
one?
a. conduct preliminary analysis
b. describe costs and benefits
c. acquire new software and hardware
d. submit a preliminary plan
e. propose alternative solutions

2. One of the following activities is not an objective of Phase 4 of the SDLC, systems development. Which one?
a. convert files to the new system
b. acquire software
c. acquire hardware
d. test the system
e. address the make-or-buy decision

3. Third-generation programming languages include all the following languages except which one?
a. FORTRAN
b. BASIC
c. COBOL
d. XML
e. Pascal

True/False Questions

T F 1. Programming errors caused by incorrect use of control structures are called logic errors.
T F 2. CASE tools—programs that automate various activities of the SDLC—are used only in Phase 3.
T F 3. Four methods of systems implementation are direct, parallel, phased, and pilot.
T F 4. User training takes place during Phase 1 of the SDLC.
T F 5. JavaScript is an object-oriented scripting language used in web browsers to add interactive functions to
HTML pages.
T F 6. There are four generations of programming languages.