Information Systems
USING
INFORMATION
Information – Section 1
Data, Information, Knowledge, Metadata
Categories of Information –
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Source, nature, level, time, frequency, use, form
and type.
Characteristics of information

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Availability/ accessibility, accuracy, reliability/
objectivity, relevance/ appropriateness,
completeness, conciseness/ level of detail,
presentation, timing, value and cost.
Data-Information-Knowledge
 Data is raw unprocessed facts and figures that have no context or purposeful meaning.
 Information is processed data that has meaning and a context.

Data
Information
36.41
£36.41 – bill for DVDs
Binary patterns on a disc
Processed data – e.g. display on screen, icons, etc.
Knowledge is gained from Information. -We gain knowledge from information
and we use that information to make decisions.
 Explicit Knowledge - is rules or processes or decisions that can be recorded either
on paper or in an information system.

Tacit knowledge exists inside the minds of humans and is harder to record. It tends
to be created from someone’s experiences, so again is a set of rules or experiences.
Different people may interpret the same info in different ways.
Example
The numbers
M74 and A8
are stored on
a computer
as data
The numbers M74
and A8 are
processed by a
route finder
program and
displayed as
possible ways of
getting to
Glasgow from
Bellshill.
The user knows
that there is
roadworks on the
A8 and chooses to
go via the M74
Metadata
 Metadata can be thought of as data that describes data. Structured information about a
topic
 Eg. a library index card, A data dictionary in unit 2 is metadata

The department of transport uses metadata (data stored on car details) gathered from
insurance companies to find cars that are not insured.

Forecasters use metadata (data stored on weather data) to look at trends in weather.

Metadata is structured and consistent and easy to search.
Categorisation of Information
to determine its overall usefulness.
Source
 Nature
 Level
 Time
 Frequency
 Use
 Form
 Type.

Source
The origin of the information
Primary/secondary
Internal/external
Source - Primary/ Secondary
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A primary source - Data from the original source document –Where the information appears for the
first time. Straight from the horses mouth.
•
e.g. A customer order form (written by the customer).
•
An Internet order (straight from the customer)
A secondary source of information is one that provides information from a source other than the
original.
•
An order processed by a telesales operator. (not straight from customer)
•
Where statistical information is gathered, such as in surveys or polls, the survey data or polling data
is the primary source and the conclusions reached from the survey or the results of the poll are
secondary sources
• Primary sources are less likely to contain errors, not been misinterpreted.
Source Internal/ External

Internal –Generated and processed within the organisation
 Examples of internal sources:
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Marketing and sales information on performance, revenues, market share, distribution channels,
etc.
Production and operational information on assets, quality, standards, etc.
Financial information on profits, costs, margins, cash flows, investments, etc.
Internal documentation such as order forms, invoices, credit notes, procedural manuals
An external source of information is concerned with what is happening beyond the
boundaries of the organisation. Generated outwith the organisation
•
census figures
•
telephone directories
•
judgments on court cases
•
computer users’ yearbook
•
legislation, e.g. the Data Protection A.ct
•
gallup & national opinion polls
•
trade journals
•
Ordnance Survey maps
professional publications
•
•
Financial services agencies such as
Dunn and Bradstreet
•
industry standards
•
the Internet
Nature of information –
Formal/ Informal
Formal – official, taken seriously
 information presented in a structured and consistent manner
 main methods
 the formal letter, properly structured reports, writing of training materials, etc.
in cogent, coherent, well-structured language.
 Informal
 less well-structured information
 transmitted within an organisation or between individuals who usually know
each other. Conversations, text, e-mails etc

 Formal information is prepared carefully, is accurate and reliable
Nature of information 
Quantitative Information
 information that is represented numerically.
 Test scores, statistics, not open to interpretation, hard facts.

Qualitative Information
 information that is represented using words.
 Case studies, essays, reports, interviews, focus groups.
 Gathers emotions, human reactions, cannot be measure objectively
Questions on section 1
Levels of Information
Long-term decisions - both
internal & external sources
Top level of management
STRATEGIC
TACTICAL
Medium-term decisions mostly internal but some
external sources
Middle management
Day-to-day decisions largely internal sources
OPERATIONAL
Lowest level of staff
Time
 Historic
 Information gathered and stored over a period of time.
 It allows decision makers to draw comparisons between previous and
present activities.
 Historic information can be used to identify trends over a period of time.
 Present
 Information created from activities during the current work-window (day,
week or month).
 In real-time systems this information would be created instantly from the
data gathered (e.g. the temperature in a nuclear power plant turbine) giving
accurate and up-to-date information.
 Future
 Information that is created using present and historic information to try to
predict the future activities and events relating to the operation of an
organisation.
Frequency of Information
 Continuous
 This is information created from data gathered several times a second. It is the type
of information created by a real-time system.
 Periodic

Information created at regular time intervals (hourly, daily, monthly, annually).
 Annually – On an annual basis a company must submit its report and accounts
to the shareholders.
 Monthly – Banks and credit card companies produce monthly statements for the
majority of their customers.
 Daily – A supermarket will make daily summaries of its sales and use the
product information to update its stock levels and reorder stock automatically.
 Hourly – A busy call centre will often update totals for each operator on an
hourly basis and give the top employee for the hour some reward.
Uses of Information within Organisations
 Planning is the process of deciding, in advance, what has to be done and how it
is to be done.

Planning is decisions by management about:
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What is to be done in the future
How to do it
When to do it
Who is to do it
 An objective is something that needs to
be achieved.
 A plan describes the activities or actions required to achieve the objective.
Uses of Information within Organisations

Control is the monitoring and evaluation of current progress against
the steps of a pre-defined plan or standard.
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Operational level
 the manager’s time will be spent on control activities
At higher levels
 planning and control are more closely linked, with management being
concerned with the monitoring of progress against the plan, assessing the
suitability of the plan itself, and predicting future conditions.
Decision-making –
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means selecting an action or actions from those possible based on the
information available.
involves determining and examining the available actions and then selecting
the most appropriate actions in order to achieve the required results.
is an essential part of management and is carried out at all levels of
management for all tasks.
is made up of four phases:
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Finding occasions for decision making
Finding possible courses of action
Choosing among these courses of action
Evaluating past choices.
Forms of Information
Written
 Hand-written, word-processed, e-mails.
 Reports from different classes of software.
 Reports, memos and tables, receipts, invoices, statements,
summary accounting information.
 Aural
 Speech, formal meetings, informal meetings, talking on the
phone and voice-mail messages.
 Employee presentations to a group where there may be use
made of music and sound effects as well as speech.
 Visual
 pictures, charts and graphs.
 Presentations via data projects, DVDs, etc.

Types of Information
Detailed
 An inventory list showing stock levels
 Actual costs to the penny of goods
 Detailed operating instructions
 Most often used at operational level
 Sampled
 Selected records from a database
 Product and sales summaries in a supermarket
 Often used at a tactical level (maybe strategic)
 Aggregated
 Totals created when detailed information is summed together
 Details of purchases made by customers totalled each month
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Characteristics of Information
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Availability / Accessibility

Information should be easy to obtain or access
Accuracy

Information needs to be accurate enough for the use to which it is going to be put.
Reliability or Objectivity

Reliability deals with the truth of the information or the objectivity with which it is presented.
Relevance / Appropriateness

Information should be relevant to the purpose for which it is required. It must be suitable.
Completeness

Information should contain all details required by the user.
Level of Detail / Conciseness

Information should be in a form that is short enough to allow for its examination and use. There should be no extraneous
information.
Presentation

Information can be more easily assimilated if it is aesthetically pleasing.
Timing
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Information must be on time for the purpose for which it is required. Information received too late will be irrelevant.
Value
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The relative importance of information for decision-making can increase or decrease its value to an organisation.
Cost
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Information should be available within set cost levels that may vary dependent on situation.
The difference between value and cost

Valuable information need not cost much.

Information costly to obtain may not have much value.
Organisational Information Systems
 Collection of information systems
 Processes data – mostly interconnected.
 Some are just for admin – some collate data
from departments and some process data
‘intelligently’ to assist SMT.
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There are 4 main types:
DPS – Data Processing systems
MIS – Management Info Systems
DSS – Decision Support systems
EIS – Executive Info Systems
Categories of Information Systems
Data Processing Systems (DPS) - Operational
 Management Information Systems (MIS) - Tactical
 Decision Support Systems (DSS) - Tactical
 Executive Information System (EIS) - Strategic
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Data Processing Systems
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Deals with day-to-day transactions
Accountancy, invoicing, stock control
Items scanned by bar code reader
Predefined structured tasks.
Provides summarised info for higher levels of management.
Needs to be fault tolerant
High volume of Input/output
 DPS are the tools used at the Operational level of an organisation
 DPS involves use of a computer
Data Processing Systems
 Eg Manufacturing and Production Systems

DPS are used to control/ operate/ monitor manufacturing and industrial processes
eg.Purchasing materials, shipping items, robotic systems/ inventory of goods.
 Sales and Marketing –

Supports sales – holds customer records – telemarketing – processes sales – invoices
– used in POS (electronic scanner)
 Finance Systems

Records flow of funds in an organisation. – payrolls – income statements – balance
sheets.
All computerised due to repetitive nature of task.
Management Information Systems
 The source of data for an MIS usually comes from numerous databases.
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These databases are usually the data storage for Data Processing Systems.
MIS summarise and report on the organisation’s basic operations.
MIS produce reports for managers interested in historic trends on a regular
basis.
MIS operate at the tactical level.
Dedicated to one particular area of an organisation.
Large input – summarised output.
Can custom report to meet needs.
Good for producing reports on repetitive tasks.
Eg. Total sales figures for each product.
Decision Support Systems
 Interactive computer based systems to help management (usually at tactical
level) make unique, non-recurring, unstructured decisions. One off
decisions.
 Supports tactical level.
 Allows the manager to explore a range of possibilities eg the effect on
profit and loss if the costs decrease.
 the source of data is a combination of summary info gathered by the dps
and mis as well as significant external info.
Executive Information Systems
EIS provide senior managers with systems to assist in taking strategic and tactical
decisions.
 Purpose – to analyse, compare and identify trends to help the strategic direction of the
organisation.
 EIS incorporate data about external events. They:
 draw summarised information from internal MIS and DSS.
 filter, compress, and track critical data.
 reduce time and effort required to obtain information useful to strategic management.
 employ advanced graphics software to provide highly visual and easy-to-use
representations of complex information and current trends.
 EIS allow the user to look at specific data that has been summarised from lower levels
within the organisation and then drill down to increase the level of detail.

Expert Systems
An expert system is a computer program that tries to emulate human reasoning. It does
this by combining the knowledge of human experts and then, following a set of rules, draws
inferences.
 An expert system is made up of three parts:
 A knowledge base stores all of the facts, rules and information needed to represent
the knowledge of the expert.
 An inference engine interprets the rules and facts to find solutions to user queries.
 A user interface allows new knowledge to be entered and the system queried.
 Expert systems are used for the following purposes:
 To store information in an active form as organisational memory.
 To create a mechanism that is not subject to human feelings, such as fatigue and worry.
 To generate solutions to specific problems that are too substantial and complex to be
analysed by human beings in a short period of time.
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Interrelationships between Information Systems
EIS
MIS
DSS
DPS
Expert Systems
performs tasks that would otherwise be
performed by human experts
 used to replace or help experts
 three components
1. Knowledge base – problem and domain specific
2. Inference engine - implements the reasoning
mechanism and controls transactions
3. User interface – gathers input and outputs results

Advantages of Expert Systems
 preserves expertise
 information in an active form
 not subject to human traits
 eliminate routine and unsatisfying jobs
 suggest solutions to specific problems
Questions
Organisational Management Strategies
 Network strategy
 Addresses data transfer, distribution, access and security, facilities, storage.
 Security strategy
 Deals with access to the network and keeping unauthorised people out.
 Backup and recovery strategy
 To ensure data is not accidentally erased and that it can be recovered once backed
up.
 Upgrade strategy
 To plan new hardware and software and ensure that everything new will work
properly.
 Software strategy
 Choose between bespoke and standard packages.
Network Strategy
Networks
 LAN (Local Area Network) – in one building.
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WAN (Wide Area Network) – over a city, country or the
wide world.
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Device sharing.
Software sharing.
Data sharing.
Communication.
Uses telecommunications.
Distributed networks

LAN with several servers, data accessible from all over the
network.
Network Hardware
Client-server network
Central server stores data files and log-in details.
workstation
Peer-to-peer network
No central server, all stations equal.
Cheaper, data less secure.
workstation
workstation
Network Hardware
 Network Adapter Card
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Built-in to the computer.
Allows the computer to send and receive data around the network.
 Structured Cabling
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Cables made from copper wire, co-axial cable, fibre-optic cable and twisted
pairs.
Twisted pair Ethernet is the most common.
Fibre optic used to link over longer distances and to carry a very high
bandwidth.
Network Software
 Network Operating System – 2 parts
 The version that runs on the server.
This is needed to control which users and workstations can access
the server, to keep each user’s data secure, and to control the flow
of information around the network.
 It is also responsible for file and data sharing, communications
between users and hardware, and peripheral sharing.
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The version that runs on the personal computers to turn
them into network stations.

Each workstation (computer) connected to the network needs the
Network Operating System installed before it can connect
successfully to the network facilities.
Network Software
 Network Auditing and Monitoring Software
 This software keeps a track of network activity.
 It records user activity and workstation activity.
 In a commercial organisation this sort of auditing and
monitoring can be used to detect fraud and suspicious activity.
Security Strategy
This covers security, integrity and privacy of
data.
 Data security means keeping data safe from physical loss.
 Data integrity means the correctness of the stored data.
 Data privacy means keeping data secret so that unauthorised users cannot access it.
 A virus
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This is a piece of programming code that causes some unexpected and
usually undesirable event in a computer system.
Viruses can be transmitted
 as attachments to an e-mail
 as a download
 on a disk being used for something else.
Some viruses take effect as soon as their code takes residence in a system.
Others lie dormant until something triggers their code to be executed by the
computer.
Viruses can be extremely harmful and may erase data or require the
reformatting of a hard disk once they have been removed.
Security Strategy
Hacking
 This is the gaining of unauthorised access to a computer information system.
 The offence is to maliciously alter data or steal information.
 Denial of service
 This involves flooding an organisation’s Internet server with a large number of requests
for information (traffic).
 This increase in traffic overloads the server, which becomes incapable of dealing with
the backlog of requests, and results in the server crashing or needing to be taken offline
to resolve the problem.
 Codes of conduct
 These apply to users of an information system.
 Most organisations insist that users follow a set of rules for using their system.
 Employees have to sign a code of conduct as part of their conditions of employment.
 A code of conduct can cover basic professional competences as well as obvious
statements like “Never disclose your password to anybody else and change your
password every week.”

Security Strategy
BCS code of ethics covers:
 Professional conduct
 Professional integrity
 Public interest
 Fidelity
 Technical competence.
 Password guidelines
 Minimum length of 5 characters
 Must consist of letters and numbers
 Must not contain any words
 Must not be the same as the previous password
 Must not use easily guessed strings of letters or numbers (e.g. 123456 and abcdef).

Implementing Data Security

Virus protection
 Prevention
 Prevent users from using floppy disks.
 Scan incoming e-mails for viruses.
 Do not open mail or attachments from someone you don’t recognise.
 Detection
 Install anti-virus software.
 Update it regularly to detect new viruses.
 Repair
 Anti-virus s/w can quarantine a virus.
 Can delete the virus code from an infected file.
Firewalls
 Device or software used to prevent unauthorised access to a network.
 Placed between the server and the Internet connection (router).
 Can block sections of the network.
 Only allows authorised users to join the network (dial-in).
 Encryption
 Used by on-line retailers to keep card details secure.
 Needed in order to gain trust of purchasers.
 32-bit encryption almost impossible to crack.

Implementing Data Security

Access rights
 Read – allows users to read files.
 Allows files to be made read only.
 Write – allows users to write (save) files.
 Create – allows users to create new files.
 Erase – allows users to erase files.
 Modify – allows users to modify files.
 Groups of users may have.
 Read/write/create/erase on home drive.

Read only on shared areas.
Back-up Strategy
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Every computer user should have a strategy in place to back-up their data.
Backing up is the process of making a copy of data stored on fixed hard disks to some other
media.
This can be tape, external portable hard disks, writeable CD-ROM or DVD.
The purpose of backing up data is to ensure that the most recent copy of the data can be
recovered and restored in the event of data loss.
Reasons for loss:
 electronic disasters such as a damaged disk head
 files being accidentally erased
 the disk being attacked by a virus.
Archive
 The process of copying data from hard disk drives to tape or other media for long-term
storage.
Data verification
 It is important to check that the data stored on the back-up media can be recovered.
Storage methods
 DAT tape on built-in drives on servers.
 USB removable hard drives.
Frequency and version control
 Full back-up (weekly) and incremental daily.
 Grandfather, father, son method
Upgrade Strategy

Future proofing
 Making sure that a system has a reasonable life and does not need to be totally replaced too soon.
 Hardware & software compatibility
 Will older s/w work with new operating systems, etc?
 Will older h/w work with newer equipment (e.g. printers with computers)?

Integration testing
 Are the peripheral devices compatible with the hardware and operating system?
 Does the network software support the hardware and operating system?
 Is the application software compatible with the operating system and computer?
 Is the hardware compatible with the operating system?
Legacy systems
 Old information systems running on out-of-date hardware and operating systems are often referred
to as legacy systems.
 Problems with legacy systems lead to many computer companies developing software that
conformed to Open Standards.
Emulation
 This allows access to a greater range of applications that might not be available on the given
hardware platform.
 The use of an emulator allows data to be transferred between platforms
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Software Strategy
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Needs to take account of the issues:
 evaluating the software for use, using several key criteria
 the user support for the software
 the training supplied for end users of the software
 the upgrade path of the software.
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Software evaluation should cover:
 Functionality – This refers not only to the number of features an application program has but to
the number of useable features it has. Also the tasks to be completed need to be evaluated against
the features in the software.
 Performance – The performance of software can be measured by several different criteria
depending on the type of software.
 Speed - Measured against benchmarks.
 Usability -Look and feel, choices in menus, etc.
 Compatibility - With operating system.
 Data Migration - Translating from one format to another.
 Reliability - Does the job it is supposed to?
 Resource requirements - Has the computer enough RAM, big enough disks, etc?
 Portability - Will it work on different systems?
 Support - Assistance from vendors or writers?
Training in Using Software
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On-the-job
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A new user needs to be introduced to the software.
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This means working through a tutorial to become familiar with the functions of the software. It usually involves an
online tutorial program or tutorial manual that teaches the user about the software.
In-house
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This is when small groups of staff, within the company, receive a training course delivered by IT staff.
External
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This is offered by specialist training providers for popular application software, such as software created by Microsoft,
Macromedia and Adobe.
Manuals

Installation guide – gives advice on how to install the software and how to configure it to work with various
hardware.
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Tutorial guide – gives step-by-step instructions on how to use the software.
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Reference manual – is an indexed guide detailing all the functions of the software.
On-line help
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Explains to the user what each feature of the software does. It is a part of the program situated on the computer and is
not on the Internet.
On-line tutorials
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Step-by-step instructions on the computer, not on the Internet.
Help desk
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Internal (end user) and external (software vendors).
Newsgroups
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A Newsgroup allows users of a piece of software to post e-mail messages to the wider user community.
FAQs

This stands for Frequently Asked Questions. It is usually a file that contains a list of commonly asked user queries
about a piece of software
Issues Affecting Decisions to Upgrade Software
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Lack of functionality
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Hardware incompatibility
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Upgraded computers do not support old software.
Software incompatibility
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Business changes, new technology outdates software.
New operating system will not run old software.
Perfecting the software
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Removing bugs and improving it – will existing data work with it?
Centralised and Distributed Databases
 Centralised database
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All the data is held on a central computer mainframe or server.
Advantages mean it is
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far easier to manage and control if it is only in one location.
far easier to back up when it is centralised.
 Distributed database
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Consists of two or more files located at different sites on a computer network.
Different users can access it without interrupting one another.
The DBMS must synchronise the scattered databases to make sure they all
have consistent data.
Data Warehousing
 Data warehousing
 Historical data transactions are separated out from the
ongoing business.
 The data is re-organised in such a way as to allow it to be
analysed; the newly structured data is then queried and the
results of the query are reported.
 Data warehousing could be used as a predictive tool, to
indicate what should be done in the future.
 The main use of data warehousing is as a review tool, to
monitor the effects of previous operational decisions made
in the course of a business.
Data Mining
 Data mining
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‘The nontrivial extraction of implicit, previously unknown, and
potentially useful information from data.’
It uses machine learning, statistical and visualisation techniques to
discover and present knowledge in a form that is easily
comprehensible to humans.
Data mining is the analysis of data and the use of software
techniques for finding patterns and regularities in sets of data. The
computer is responsible for finding the patterns by identifying the
underlying rules and features in the data.
The mining analogy is that large volumes of data are sifted in an
attempt to find something worthwhile (in a mining operation large
amounts of low-grade materials are sifted through in order to find
something of value).
Implications of ICT
 Social implications
 Legal implications
 Economic implications
 Ethical implications
Social Implications
 Ease of access and availability
 Information rich / poor
 Impact of IS on social structures
 Educational qualifications and ICT
 Knowledge workers
 Online retail
 Globalisation
 The impact on business of an IS-driven business model
 Identities and personas
 Privacy
Ease of Access and Availability
Access to Internet at work and home.
 Digital satellite TV with all its services.
 Access to magazines, books & newspapers.
 Access in social lives – libraries and Internet
cafes.
 We expect Internet access on holiday and in
hotel rooms.
 Fact – There are more telephones in the city
of New York than the continent of Africa
(and telephones give access to information).

Information rich/Information poor
 Information rich – They will:
 Have easy access to computers and electronic
communications.
 Get information and news from the Internet
 Buy the latest products through on-line shopping.
 Follow computer-based learning and skills training courses
at home.
 Look for jobs that are advertised solely on the Internet.
 Find it easier to get well-paid jobs and will enjoy a more
comfortable and secure life-style.
 Information poor – They will not:
 Have easy access to computers.
 Have the IT skills and confidence to take part in
teleshopping, telebanking, Internet chat and news groups.
Impact of IS on Social Structures
 Families
Feel more secure with two wages coming into the
family.
 More mothers have careers and they may not have
any children till they are 30 or older.
 Is this change in family patterns partly caused by
computerisation?
 Are there any risks to the family and to society as a
whole from this development?
 Banks
 Used to be paper based and only for middle and
upper classes – for reasons of wealth and trust.
 Use of IT means anyone can have a bank account –
transaction processing and high levels of security.
 Now widespread use of plastic money – credit and
debit cards.

Educational Qualifications and ICT
 Educational qualifications
 Qualifications in Computing since the early 1960s,
but these were solely in universities and colleges.
 By mid-1980s computing was available in schools.
 By 1999 the two strands of software and hardware
divided into Computing and Information Systems.
 Now there are very many different courses offered at
degree and NC level, all related to ICT.
 Need for ICT awareness
 ICT lets people vote by text on game shows, shop on
the Internet, use digital TV to order goods.
 Families send digital photos round the world.
 Almost all office jobs and professionals need to use
ICT.
Knowledge Workers
 Knowledge worker
A person who adds value by processing existing
information to create new information that could be used to
define and solve problems.
 Examples of knowledge workers
 Lawyers, doctors, diplomats, law-makers, software
developers, managers and bankers.
 People who use their intellect to convert their ideas into
products, services, or processes.
 Problem solvers rather than production workers.
 Use intellectual rather than manual skills to earn a living.
 Core knowledge workers
 Those in specific ‘knowledge management’ roles.
 Knowledge managers, librarians, content managers,
information officers, knowledge analysts, etc.
 Everyone else
 All the other knowledge workers – everyone engaged in
some form of ‘knowledge work’.

Online Retail
 Internet shopping – the here and
now.
Young people much more likely to shop
online than older people.
 Young people spend on low-value goods (CDs,
DVDs, books and hair straighteners).
 Older people spend on high-value items like
holidays and make repeat grocery orders.

 Why Internet shop?
 Goods can be difficult to buy locally.
 Goods are often much cheaper.
 National chains carry the same goods – the
Internet gives wider choice.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Online Shopping
 Consumer advantages
More choice of goods online.
 Cheaper prices.
 Home delivery – Grocery shopping on-line very useful for
young families.
 Consumer disadvantages
 Often long delivery times.
 Temptation to spend more money than intended.
 Social isolation (supermarkets are the new social scene).
 On-line Retailer advantages
 Can reach a far wider audience.
 Doesn’t need expensive showrooms.
 Doesn’t need to employ trained sales staff.
 On-line Retailer disadvantages
 Must spend money on a website with secure payment
system.
 Must accept a high rate of returns.
 Never meets customers.

The Changing Relationships between
Retailer and Customer
 Shoppers are:


Becoming intolerant of goods being unavailable or out of stock.
Very wary of over-pricing and long delivery times.
 Consumers are:



More willing to go online and order from different retailers.
Willing to use a credit card to buy online
Aware of the stress of waiting for goods bought when presents
don’t turn up on time.
 We still maintain relationships:


With local specialist shops.
Customers who buy their groceries on-line and have the same
delivery driver every week often build up a good relationship
with the driver.
 In general:

The two types of shopping can complement each other, opening
up new markets to specialist retailers and giving more choice to
customers.
Globalisation
 Globalisation
 Is the growing integration of economies and societies
around the world.
 Has been a hotly debated topic in economics.
 Positive aspects
 Rapid growth and poverty reduction in China, India, and
other countries that were poor 20 years ago.
 Negative aspects
 It has increased inequality.
 It contributes to environmental degradation.
 It is most conspicuous in huge companies producing
products as diverse as oil, Cola and burgers.
Impact of IS on Business and Societies

Multinational companies
As diverse as Cola and Oil technology.
 Achieved globalisation through the use of
information systems.
 Originally a few large companies with mainframe
computers.
 Confined to major US networks and European cities.


Present-day examples of globalisation
Smaller companies have global presence.
 Communicate via dedicated worldwide intranet.
 Publish reports, memos, etc & e-mail round the
world.
 Don’t need mainframe systems.
 Use web and mail servers to communicate.

The Impact on Business of an IS-Driven
Business Model
 Traditional businesses
 Have embraced IT with open arms.
 Have had IT forced upon them and adapted.
 Modern IS-driven businesses
 Companies without High Street branches.
 Call centre based companies.
 Advertise heavily on TV.
 Much lower overheads than maintaining a
network of branches.
 Call centres can bring employment to smaller
towns rather than cities.
Identities & Personas
 Using the Internet as a medium of
communication




Change is having a dramatic impact on people’s lives.
Ability to communicate with anyone regardless of age, sex,
location, background, etc.
The Internet allows people to develop different identities
and personas when communicating.
Can join chat rooms and newsgroups and offer an expert
opinion even when not an expert.
 Disadvantages
 Criminal offence of “grooming” via the Internet.
 Parents wary of letting teenagers have use of the Internet.
 Fear of the Internet among certain groups in society.
 Read about
 Jonathan Lebed and Marcus Arnold (either online or in the
notes).
Privacy
 Private communications across the
Internet



Should be secure and safe.
We feel we have a right to this privacy.
Websites we visit should be our business.
 National security or criminal actions
 Terrorists use e-mail, mobile phones and the Internet
to communicate amongst themselves.
 Criminals use the Internet to host websites.
 What about our privacy?
 Security organisations can scan all e-mail and mobile
phone messages looking for tell-tale phrases.
 FBI caught thousands of paedophiles across USA and
Europe via their IP address and phone number.
Legal Implications of Information
Systems
 The Data Protection Act 1998
 Computer Misuse Act 1990
 Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988
 The Regulation of Investigatory Powers
Act 2000
 The Freedom of Information Act
(Scotland) 2002
 Health and safety regulations
The 1998 Data Protection Act
 The 8 data protection principles
 Personal data shall be processed fairly and lawfully.
 Personal data shall be obtained only for lawful purposes.
 Personal data shall be adequate, relevant and not
excessive.
 Personal data shall be accurate and kept up to date.
 Personal data shall not be kept for longer than is
necessary.
 Personal data shall be processed in accordance with the
rights of data subjects.
 Appropriate measures shall be taken against unauthorised
or unlawful processing of data.
 Personal data shall not be transferred to a country outside
Europe.
 In the UK, data must be registered with the Data
Commissioner.
The 1998 Data Protection Act
 Unconditional exemptions:
 Data related to national security.
 Data which by law has to be made public (e.g. the voters’
roll).
 Data held by the Police and National Health Service.
 Conditional exemptions:
 Mailing lists (names and addresses).
 Data used for calculating and paying wages.
 Information used for club memberships.
 Data used by a data subject at home.
The 1998 Data Protection Act
 Rights of data subjects:
 To see any personal data stored either electronically or
manually about them.
 The data controller may ask that a small fee be paid to
cover their costs in providing the data.
 To have their data corrected if it is inaccurate.
 To prevent their data being used by companies to send
them junk mail.
 Responsibilities of data users:
 Have to register with the Data Protection Registrar if they
wish to hold personal information about data subjects.
 They must be willing to let data subjects see data held
about them, and must amend any false data without
charge.
 Data users must also be willing to remove subjects’ names
and addresses from mailing lists if asked to.
The 1998 Data Protection Act
Changes from the 1984 Act:

The 1984 DPA had certain shortcomings:
It only covered data in electronic form.
 Companies could circumvent certain provisions.
 It had no European or worldwide dimension.
 There was no obligation on data users to tell the data
subjects that they held any data about them.


The 1998 Act:
Covers the transmission of data in electronic form,
which was not really an issue in 1984.
 Harmonised the European Union Data Protection
legislation.
 It also made it a requirement of the Act to ask for the
prior consent of data subjects to have data held
about them, and it included paper-based records.

Computer Misuse Act
The Act contains three sections covering:

Unauthorised access to computer material


Unauthorised access with intent to commit or
facilitate commission of further offences


Basic hacking – e.g. breaking into the school network,
locking a user out of the system, etc.
Where a computer system is used to help commit a crime.
Unauthorised modification of computer
material
Expert hacking – modification of data without permission.
 Also covers the transmission of viruses.

Copyright, Designs & Patents Act
 Software licencing
 Software can be legally installed on as many
computers as the licence allows.
 Shareware can be used legally for 30 days then
either paid for or deleted.
 Freeware can be downloaded and used free of
charge.
 Computer applications
 Databases can store vast amounts of copyright
data.
 Act covers extracts from computer databases.
 Plagiarism to copy work directly from the Web.
 Music downloads must be paid for and copyright
checked.
 Software piracy a crime - FAST.
The Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000
 Gives powers to:



Police, Special Branch, GCHQ and MI5.
Organisations are allowed to monitor employees, e-mail
and Web usage.
It also provides powers to help combat the threat posed by
rising criminal use of strong encryption to try to break into
electronic transactions.
 The Act contains 5 parts
 It allows the authorities to monitor our personal e-mail and
Internet usage. So businesses, local authorities and
government departments can and do monitor internal emails. They can also monitor Internet usage of staff,
students and pupils.
 It sounds very “Big Brother”.
 May enrage and disturb many people to realise this.
 But when terrorists can be anywhere in our society it may
be a relief to know that the authorities are taking active
steps to catch them.
The Freedom of Information Act (Scotland) 2002
 From 1 January 2005
General right of public access to all types of 'recorded'
information held by public authorities.
 Sets out exemptions from that general right.
 Places a number of obligations on public authorities.
 The Act applies only to 'public authorities' and not to
private entities.
 Public authorities include Government departments, local
authorities and many other public bodies, and also
schools, colleges and universities.
 The Act is enforced by the Scottish Information
Commissioner.
 Responsibilities of public authorities
 Required to adopt and maintain a Publication Scheme.
 This sets out the classes of information available (e.g.
prospectuses, almanacs and websites); the manner in
which they intend to publish the information; and whether
a charge will be made for the information.

Health and Safety Regulations
 Covers physical aspects of work
 Seating: Is the seating comfortable and not causing
strain?
 Lighting: Is the lighting adequate for the work?
 Employee injuries, etc.
 Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI): Caused by doing the
same repetitive task too long (e.g. typing numbers all day
on the number pad).
 Radiation: Not so much of a problem now but the big old
monitors emitted a lot of radiation and were very
dangerous.
 Eye Strain: Caused by spending too much time looking at
the screen.
Health and Safety Regulations
Requirements on employers:




To carry out a risk assessment.
Employers with five or more employees need to record the
significant findings of the risk assessment.
Risk assessment should be straightforward in a simple
workplace such as a typical office.
To provide a safe and secure working environment.
Economic Implications of ICT
 Type of jobs and costs in ICT
 The effect of new ICT on business
 Business and ICT
 Business costs
Jobs in ICT
Starting positions




Programmer / analyst: Responsible for program
development and modification.
Web administrator: Responsible for developing,
managing and co-ordinating the posting of company
material from departments onto the company
website.
Network administrator: Responsible for the dayto-day management and maintenance of the
network.
Salaries: In the region of £20,000 to £30,000
depending on the level of responsibility.
Jobs in ICT
Advanced development positions




Database manager: Responsible for identifying
needs and developing software accordingly. There
is an increasing role for data mining and data
warehousing experts in this field.
Project leader and senior analyst: Sometimes
separate posts, sometimes a joint post the project
leader will liaise with directors and top managers
and translate ideas into computer related
documentation.
IT manager: Generally in charge of the entire IT
operation, staff and equipment.
Salaries: These senior posts can carry very high
salaries with fringe benefits such as company cars.
The Effect of New ICT on Business
 Costs
 Investing in a new computerised system is very expensive.
 Staff training is a major cost.
 Benefits
 Increased productivity (fewer staff).
 Increased functionality.
 Reports from the computerised system can save the expense of
professionals.
Business and ICT
 Competitive advantage
Businesses want advantage over their
competitors in the same area of business who
have not made a similar investment.
 How to gain competitive advantage
 Employ a systems analyst.
 Complete a feasibility study covering technical
aspects and legal and economic feasibility.
 Huge leap of faith?
 First paper-based mail order company had:




to move over to a call centre and telephone ordering.
to tie in with an “intelligent warehouse”.
to do an exhaustive economic feasibility study to see
if they would gain a competitive advantage over their
rivals.
They did all of this, but was it an even bigger leap of faith to
be the first of these companies to introduce Internet ordering?
Business Costs
 Initial costs
 Huge costs to set up a production line, just-in-time ordering,
or a call centre.
 Computers, software, robots, etc.
 Running costs
 Staff required.
 Paper, ink cartridges, back-up media.
 Software licences.
 Maintenance contracts.
Ethical Implications of ICT
 Netiquette
 Intellectual property rights (IPR)
 Censorship
 Regulating the content of the Internet
 Privacy and encryption
 Global citizenship
Netiquette
 General points
 Treat others the way you expect to be treated.
 Act within the law.
 Act responsibly and ethically.
 Advice
 Do not type e-mails in capitals – shouting.
 Always fill in the subject field.
 Don’t abuse people – flaming.
 Always minimise or compress large files.
 Do not forward stupid jokes and chain letters.
 Do not forward hoax virus warnings.
Intellectual Property Rights
 Written work
 Knowledge is the principal source of competitive
advantage.
 All original work published on the Internet has IPR.
 IPR applies also to software.
 Music, etc
 IPR relates to the Internet sites where music can be
downloaded.
 Copyright material must usually be paid for as the
publishers of the music own the IPRs.
Censorship
 On the Internet
 Current UK censorship laws may not be
adequate.
 Operators of questionable sites can host sites
in countries without such laws.
 Controls can hinder freedom of speech.
 Now if you visit an illegal site (even if it is
legal in its host country) you can be
prosecuted.
 Should “spam” be illegal – freedom of
speech?
 Visiting an illegal site by accident can be a
valid defence (e.g. if its description bears no
resemblance to the actual contents).
Regulating the content of the Internet
 Dubious material on the Internet
 Conscious access needs to be made before ‘offensive’ or
‘unacceptable’ material is displayed.
 Software can be installed that will monitor what accesses
are made from which terminals, when and by whom.
 Internal organisational procedures should deal with this
type of situation.
 Contravening legislation on the Internet
 Internet is no different from other media – it too can
contravene legislation on sensitive matters.
 Successful libel cases have been taken out against bulletinboard operators for the materials published on their
boards.
 Is current legislation enough? Presumably only time will
tell.
 Future governments and public opinion will influence new
legislation.
Privacy and Encryption
 Privacy
 Text messages, mobile calls, e-mail and Internet usage can
all be monitored by security organisations.
 Criminals are using technology to try and intercept and
read personal information.
 If we are to trust online shopping, then the online vendors
must apply security to their site.
 Encryption
 Ensures that a card number is encrypted when it leaves the
shopper’s computer until it arrives safely at the vendor’s
website.
 PGP (Pretty Good Privacy) uses a 32-bit encryption
procedure.
 PGP is unbreakable and is used by good online retailers
who will usually advertise the fact.
 They may also subscribe to a code of practice (like the
Which? Code for Internet Shopping) based on PGP and
32-bit encryption.
ICT and Global Citizenship
 Study of citizenship
 Gives students the knowledge, skills and
understanding to play an effective role in society at
local, national and international levels.
 Global citizenship is generally thought of as being
aware of global issues such as environment, commerce,
politics and society in general.
 Use of ICT in citizenship
 If a student is studying citizenship then the use of the
Internet means that information and discussion papers
can be found and studied very easily.
 Newsgroups exist on a wide range of citizenship topics
– informed and serious discussions.
 E-mail links with schools in foreign countries.