ISM 58 Final Exam – Review Sheet
Exam Format: Multiple Choice and Short Answer Questions
Topics Covered:
You are responsible for ALL material presented in lecture and in the assigned reading for
the entire course. This review sheet and the PowerPoint presentations (posted on the
website) are intended as aids only. They are NOT a substitute for doing the reading and
attending class.
The Final is worth 25% of your grade. Also, some of the material covered on the Final
will definitely and absolutely help you when you graduate and hit the job market!
Therefore, time spent on studying for the final has very high immediate and longer-term
“return on investment.” Don’t blow it off!
Here is some advice for scoring well on the Final. Suggested actions are listed roughly in
priority order. That is, item #1 is more important than item #2 which is more important
than item #3 and so on. Ideally you will plan your time and begin studying NOW so that
you can cover all seven items before the Final.
1) Review the Mid-Term Exam. Are there any questions you still could not answer
correctly?
2) Review this review sheet and your notes from class lectures. Compare notes with
others in your milestone group. Meet as a group to go through the review sheet
and help each other understand all the topics. Is there anything the group still
doesn’t understand?
3) Re-read the chapter summaries for every assigned chapter in the text. Do you
understand the summary?
4) Review the list of key terms at the end of each assigned chapter. Can you explain
each term?
5) Read the Mythical Man-Month. AT LEAST READ CHAPTER 18 where Fred
Brooks summarizes the entire book.
6) Review your milestones and Ian’s comments. Could you score well if similar
questions appeared on the final?
7) Read the review questions at the end of each assigned chapter. Are there any you
could not answer?
Here are some of the topics you should make sure you understand:
Players in the Systems Game
Stakeholders
Role of System Analyst
Managing Expectations
Faster, Cheaper, Better
All key terms on pg. 31, All review questions on pg. 31-32
Information System Building Blocks
Types of information systems
Zachman Framework
Six perspectives, three foci of the Zachman model
All key terms on pg. 68, All review questions on pg. 68
Information Systems Development
CMM model
Model Driven Development (MDD)
RAD, COTS, FAST, ERP, BPR
System lifecycle
System development phases
Cross-life cycle activities
CASE
ADE
All key terms on pg. 113, All review questions on pg 113
Project Management
Scope
Scope creep
Serial v.s. parallel development phases
Resource leveling
Right-to-left schedule
Gantt charts, Pert charts
Good v. Poor management
Change management
Deliverables, Schedule, Budget
Systems Analysis
Model-Driven Analysis
Accelerated systems analysis
Prototyping
Phases of systems analysis
All key terms on pg. 206, All review questions on pg 207
Requirements Discovery
Requirements elicitation methods
All key terms on pg. 251, All review questions on pg 251
System Concepts, Logical Data Modeling, Constructing Data Models
Logical v.s. physical models
ERD
Entities
Attributes
Keys (primary, foreign)
Cardinality
Associative entities
Identifying and non-identifying relationships
Non-specific relationships, resolving them
Generalization
Stages in constructing a logical data model
Normalization
All key terms on pg. 299, All review questions on pg. 300
System Concepts, Logical Process Models, Constructing Process Models
Why process models? Why data models?
DFD
System decomposition
Data flows, Processes, Data stores
Context flow diagrams
Functional decomposition diagram
Event list
Structured English
Decision table
Use cases
CRUD
All key terms on pg 356, All review questions on pg. 357
Feasibility Analysis
Four tests for Feasibility
Cost-Benefit Analysis Techniques
Candidate Systems Matrix
Feasibility Analysis Matrix
System Proposals
Key terms pg. 388; Review questions 389
System Design Methods
RAD
FAST
Build vs. Buy
Key terms pg. 416; Review questions pg. 416
Application Architecture & Modeling
Physical DFDs
Five Architectural Styles (from Lecture)
Data architecture
Interface architecture
Process architecture
Client – Server architectures
When to use what type of architecture
Key terms pg. 462; Review questions pg. 462.
Database Design
Conventional files vs. the database
Database concepts: fields, records, tables, and databases
Normalization
Database schemas
Data integrity / referential integrity
Key terms pg. 496; Review questions pg. 497
Output Design & Prototyping
Types of outputs
When to use what type of output
Output design guidelines
Your ability to argue for a given output design given a scenario
Key terms pg. 529; Review questions pg. 529
Input Design & Prototyping
Concepts / guidelines
GUI design issues
Automated tools for input design / prototyping
Key terms pg. 563; Review questions 563-564
User Interface Design
Three golden rules of usability (from lecture)
UI Design concepts / guidelines (text)
Human Factors
UI for the web; GUI issues
How to design/prototype a UI
How would you improve the Sliders system you used for homework and in group lab?
Key terms pg. 598; Review questions 598-599
Mythical Man Month
Material covered in lecture (see slides on web)
Chapter 18 (summary)
Other material in the book
Craig’s Key Concepts That will Help You in Your Career and Your Life
Managing expectations / Building & maintaining credibility
Right to left schedule
Risk / Reward
Buy-in / User involvement
Cost of Quality
Prioritization
ROI
Capsule course in human relations (from Coca Cola’s ex-chairman)
Elevator pitch / expandable presentations
Good vs. poor management techniques