MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

✅
All of the following individuals would likely be SDLC
participants EXCEPT

SDLC? ✅
User test and acceptance is part of which phase of the

A.​ general systems design

A.​ accountants. (4th ed., Page 174)
B.​ shareholders
C.​ management. (4th ed., Page 174)
B.​ program specification and implementation planning D.​ programmers. (4th ed., Page 174)
C.​ implementation E.​ all of the above.
D.​ detailed systems design
Accountants and auditors, managers, users, and IT staff
Fourth Edition, page 205 to 207 and programmers all play active SDLC roles;
shareholders, being external investors, have no direct or
hands-on part in system analysis or design activities.
be completed in an acceptable time frame is
A.​ a schedule feasibility study.
✅
The TELOS study that determines whether a project can
Fourth Edition, page 174

B.​ a time frame feasibility study. A systems development approach that starts with broad
C.​ an on-time feasibility study.
D.​ an economic completion feasibility study.
E.​ a length of contract feasibility study.
organizational executives make is called
A.​ bottom-up.
✅
organizational goals and the types of decisions

B.​ network.
C.​ sequential.
Examines whether the planned project tasks and
D.​ strategic.
deliverables or milestones can be accomplished within
E.​ top-down.
the required time constraints or deadlines. Fourth
Edition, page 189.
It begins at the highest strategic level or goals and
decisions then decomposes into increasingly detailed
refers to whether ✅
In the context of the TELOS acronym, technical feasibility

A.​ the systems manager can coordinate and control

components or requirements—precisely the approach
that starts with executive objectives. Fourth Edition, page
185
the activities of the systems department.
B.​ an adequate computer site exists for the proposed
system.
C.​ the proposed system will produce economic
Which of the following is NOT a one-time cost?
A.​ site preparation
✅
benefits exceeding its costs. B.​ data conversion
D.​ a proposed system is attainable, given the existing C.​ software acquisition
technology. D.​ insurance
E.​ the system will be used effectively within the
operating environment of an organization.
Site preparation, data conversion, and software and
hardware acquisition are incurred once up front;
Technical feasibility asks “Can we build/run it with our insurance premiums recur annually. One-time costs
current hardware, software, skills, and infrastructure?”; include capital expenditures. Fourth Edition, page 190
are these skills sufficient to support the proposed
system? Fourth Edition, page 189
✅
Which of the following is NOT an advantage of commercial
software?

of this systems survey?

A.​ Equipment
✅
Which of the following steps is NOT considered to be part

sold by various computer

A.​ cost
B.​ reliability
C.​ implementation time
manufacturers is reviewed in terms of capability, D.​ independence
cost, and availability. E.​ internal controls
B.​ Interviews are conducted with operating people
and managers. (4th ed., Page 183)
Fourth Edition, page 177
C.​ The complete documentation of the system is
obtained and reviewed. (4th ed., Page 183)
D.​ Measures of processing volume are obtained for
each operation. (4th ed.,Page 182)
E.​ Work measurement studies are conducted to
role in the SDLC?
A.​ programmer
✅
Which of the following is least likely to be an accountant’s

determine the time required to complete various B.​ user (4th ed., Page 174)
tasks or jobs. (4th ed., Page 182) C.​ consultant (4th ed., Page 174)
D.​ auditor (4th ed., Page 174)
E.​ all of these are likely roles
Process of elimination.

Accountants frequently serve as users, consultants or

A feasibility study for a new computer system should
auditors, but seldom do they take on the technical role of
A.​ include a report by the internal audit department
writing production code. Fourth Edition, page 174
that evaluated internal control features for each
planned application.
B.​ provide the preliminary plan for converting existing Which of the following is the most important factor in
manual systems and clerical operations. planning for a system change?
C.​ consider costs, savings, controls, profit A.​ having an auditor as a member of the design team
improvement, and other benefits analyzed by B.​ involving top management and people who use the
application area. system
D.​ provide management with assurance from C.​ using state-of-the-art techniques
qualified, independent consultants that the use of a D.​ concentrating on software rather than hardware
computer system appeared justified. E.​ selecting a user to lead the design team

A thorough and proper feasibility report analyzes and Engagement of leadership (stockholder engagement)
addresses quantitative (tangible costs/benefits) and and end-users ensures requirements are realistic and
qualitative (controls and performance improvements) builds buy-in for the new system; the sponsorship of top
factors for each proposed or organized application area. management and the active involvement of end users
throughout the project.
 At which phase in the SDLC are errors most costly to
The TELOS acronym is often used for determining the correct?

feasibility studies are elements of TELOS?

A.​ legal, environmental, and economic
✅
need for system changes. Which of the following types of A.​ programming
B.​ conceptual design
C.​ implementation (4th ed., Page 207)
B.​ environmental, operational, and economic D.​ analysis
C.​ technical, operational, and economic
D.​ technical, economic, legal, and practical
Errors found during implementation (i.e. coding or
E.​ practical, technical, and operational
installation) often require extensive rework (i.e. recoding,
F.​ accounting rate of return method
retesting, and reinstalling) which drives up time and
expense than those caught earlier.
TELOS stands for Technical, Economic, Legal,
Operational, and Schedule; the core three are Technical,
What name is given to the time value of money technique
Operational, and Economic. Fourth Edition, page 189.
that discounts the after-tax cash flows for a project over its

In conducting a cost–benefit analysis, the estimated desired rate of return?✅

life to time period zero using the company’s minimum

to its precise value is ✅

category that ordinarily would have the least uncertainty as

A.​ the tangible costs.

A.​ payback method
B.​ capital rationing method
C.​ net present value method
B.​ the intangible costs. D.​ average rate of return method
C.​ the tangible benefits.
D.​ the intangible benefits.
NPV takes all future cash flows (after tax), discounts
E.​ none of the above because they are equally
them back to today using the organization’s hurdle rate,
precise.
and compares the sum to the initial investment to judge
project viability. Fourth Edition, page 193
Fourth Edition, page 191

Which of the following represents the correct order in

problem resolution? Backbone System—basic system structure on which to
A.​ recognize the problem, define the problem, specify build.
system objectives, perform feasibility studies, and
prepare a project proposal Break-even Point—the point where total costs equal total
B.​ define the problem, recognize the problem, benefits.
perform feasibility studies, specify system
objectives, and prepare a project proposal Class—it is a blueprint that defines the attributes and the
C.​ recognize the problem, define the problem, methods common to all objects of a certain type.
perform feasibility studies, specify system
objectives, and prepare a project proposal Cold Turkey Cutover—under this approach, the firm
D.​ define the problem, recognize the problem, specify switches to the new system and simultaneously terminates
system objectives, perform feasibility studies, and the old system.
prepare a project proposal
Conceptual Design—the production of several alternative
designs for the new system.
(1)​ Identify/spot an issue
(2)​ Clarify the issue/define its scope
Cutover—the process of converting from the old system to
(3)​ Test or assess its feasibility
the new system.
(4)​ Set goals or system objectives
(5)​ Formalize the plan (project proposal)
Data Flow Diagrams (DFDs)—the top-down
decomposition of a hypothetical business process.
Which of the following aspects of a cost–benefit study

✅ A.​ the intangible benefits

would have the greatest uncertainty as to its precise value? Database Conversion—the transfer of data from its
current form to the format by the new system.

B.​ the tangible costs Detailed Design—design of screen outputs, reports, and
C.​ the intangible costs operational documents; entity relationship diagrams;
D.​ the tangible benefits normal form designs for database tables; updated data
dictionary; designs for all screen inputs and source
documents; context diagrams for overall system; low-level
Benefits like improved morale (user satisfaction) or data flow diagrams; structure diagrams for program
decision-making speed are much harder to quantify than modules.
straight costs and hold higher uncertainty. Fourth Edition,
page 192 to 193 Detailed Design Report—depict the top-down
decomposition of a hypothetical business process.

following EXCEPT ✅
One-time costs of system development include all of the

A.​ site preparation. (4th ed., Page 190)

Economic Feasibility—financial analysis to the project in
view of other competing capital projects under
B.​ hardware maintenance. consideration.
C.​ programming. (4th ed., Page 190)
D.​ hardware acquisition. (4th ed., Page 190) Encapsulation—the act of placing data and methods in
E.​ data conversion. (4th ed., Page 190) the same class and thus restricting access to the object’s
F.​ none of the above because they are equally components.
precise.
End User—users for whom the system is built.
Maintenance is an ongoing/recurring operating expense, Event-driven Language—designed to respond to external
whereas programming, hardware purchase, site actions commenced by the user.
preparation, and data conversion are one-time. Fourth
Edition, page 190 Frequent Light User—tends not to explore beneath the
surface and lack depth of familiarity with limited aspects of
the system knowledge.
 Procedural Language—well-structured steps and
Frequent Power User—users who understand the existing procedures within its programming context to compose a
system and will readily adapt to new systems. They are program.
intolerant of detailed instructions that waste their time.
They like to find shortcuts and use macro commands to Project Planning—allocation of resources to individual
improve performance. This group requires only abbreviated applications within the framework of the strategic plan.
documentation.
Project Proposal—document provides management with
General Accounting System—designed to serve a wide a basis for deciding whether to proceed with the project.
variety of user needs.
Project Schedule—document that formally presents
Help Features—analyzes the context problem and management’s commitment to the project.
displays error messages on the screen.
Quality Assurance Group—programmers, analysts,
Inheritance—each object instance inherits the attributes users, and internal auditors to simulate the operation of the
and methods of the class to which it belongs. system to uncover errors, omissions, and abiguities in the
design.
Instance—single occurrence of an object within a class.
Documentation—written description of how the system
Intangible Benefits—overriding importance in information works.
system decisions.
Run Manual—computer operators use documentation
Iterative Approach—modules cycle through all of the transaction (input) files, master files, and output files used
SDLC phases rather rapidly, with a short time frame from in the system.
beginning to end.
Schedule Feasibility—the firm’s ability to implement the
Legal Feasibility—the company’s ability to discharge its project within an acceptable time.
legal responsibilities between the conceptual systems.
Special-purpose System—software vendors create
Net Present Value Method—projects with a positive net accounting procedures to selected target segments of the
present value are economically feasible to present the economy.
value of the costs deducted from the present value of the
benefits over the life of the system. Stakeholders—entities either inside or outside an
organization that have direct or indirect interest in the firm.
New Systems Development—a process that involves five
steps: identifying the problem, understanding what needs Steering Committee—an organizational committee
to be done, considering alternative solutions, selecting the consisting of senior-level management responsible for
best solution, and implementing the solution. systems planning.

Novice—little or no experience with computers and about Strategic Systems Planning—budgeting resources for
their assigned tasks. other strategic activities of systems resources at the macro
level.
Object—equivalent to nouns in the English language.
Structure Diagram—design is usually documented by
Object-oriented Design (OOD) Approach—building data flow and structure diagrams to depict the top-down
information systems from reusable standard components decomposition of a hypothetical business process.
or modules.
Structured Design—disciplined way of designing systems
Object-oriented Programming (OOP) Language—based from the top down.
on high-level programming language and processes with
the design of software and applications. System Implementation—development process new
system is installed; database structures are created and
Occasional Users—users who once understood the populated with data.
system but have forgotten some essential commands and
procedures. System Survey—determination of what elements, if any, of
the current system should be preserved as part of the new
Office Automation System—computer systems that system.
improve the productivity of office workers automation
systems include word processing packages, database Systems Analysis—two-step process that involves a
management systems, spreadsheet programs, and survey of the current system and then an analysis of the
desktop publishing systems. user’s needs.

Operational Feasibility—the new system may require Systems Analysis Report—analysis and
adopting new procedures and retraining operations recommendations for the new system.
personnel skills and the operational requirements of the
new system. Systems Development Life Cycle—formal process
consisting of two major phases: new systems development
Parallel Operation Cutover—running two systems in and maintenance.
parallel essentially doubles resource consumption.
Systems Evaluation and Selection—an optimization
Payback Method—product life cycles and rapid advances process that seeks to identify the best system.
in technology, the effective lives of information systems
tend to be short. Systems Maintenance—modifying the system to produce
a new report or changing the length of a data field.
Phased Cutover—operating the new system in modules
phasing in the new system in modules reduces the risk of a Systems Planning—linking of individual system projects
devastating system failure. or applications to the strategic objectives of the firm.

Polymorphism—ability of a variable, function, or object to Systems Professional—system analysts, systems

take on multiple forms. It allows multiple and different engineers, database designers, and programmers gather
objects to respond to the same message. facts about problems with the current system, analyze
these facts, and formulate a solution to solve the problems.
Systems Selection Report—the deliverable product of the
systems selection process.

Tangible Benefits—organization to reduce inventories and

at the same time improve customer service by reducing
stock outs.

Technical Feasibility—the physical basis for most of the

system’s design features, this aspect bears heavily on the
overall feasibility of the competing system.

Third-generation Languages (3GLs)—program logic is

executed by the programmer to specify the precise order in
procedural language.

Turnkey System—completely finished and tested systems

that are ready for implementation.

Tutorial—train the novice or the occassional user.

User Handbook—documentation will guide the user

interactively in the use of the system.

Vendor-supported System—custom systems that

organizations purchase from commercial vendors.

Walkthrough—analysis of system design to ensure the

design is free from conceptual errors that could become
programmed into the final system.