Information System Development Methodolgies

Once you have decided on an Information system to use in an organization, to install it, and to be ready to use it, you need the help of an IS Development Methodology. This is simply a step by step guide on what steps need to be taken when installing an IS, how to take those steps and why we need top take those steps. IS development Methodology is a collection of procedures, tools and documentation aids that will help the system developers implement a new information system.

 

The reason why we need to use IS development Methodology is because it makes it easier for non-experts to follow the process and it also makes the implementation more manageable.
There is a great number of methodologies in IS development. But as discussed in our class, I will only discuss five of the most common ISD methodologies.

1. Gane and Sarsons (STRADIS) ISDM
Christ Gane and Trish Sarson introduced this in the late 1970s. This methodology involves designing a system top-down by successive refinement. First, an overall system data flow is created. Then, detailed data flows are created. Next, the details of the data structures and the process logic is determined. In this methodology, the main focus is to explain the processes of the system. And how the processes transform the data.

2. Information Engineering (IE)
his methodology takes an architectural approach to planning, analyzing, designing and implementing applications within an enterprise.

3. Jackson System Development
This methodology explains more of the features of the system to be built. It also focuses on the software life cycle of the system. JSD is a technical method which means that it gives the developer assistance in thinking about the structure of software development problem and its solution, what functions and processes the system must perform, what data it must remember, the events that trigger the running of the processes, and so on.

4. Prototyping/Iterative approach
This methodology involves pre-planning or prototyping the whole system to be built before implementing the actual process. This prototype includes the demonstration of a planned software system, its interface and input/output functionality.

5. Structured approach (SDLC)
It was agreed in class that this was the most reliable ISDM of all because of its long usage and wide popularity. This methodology is nick name as ‘waterfall’. This methodology gives a step by step approach to what needs to be done to complete the implementation of IS.This methodology can be defined as the process (as a whole) of developing system or software to meet certain requirements.

 

During this week, each group was supposed to propose an IS and an ISDM to implement the IS for AIU for student registration, hostel registration and preparation of exam slips. Our group proposed TPS for the system and SDLC for the ISDM. We proposed TPS as it was the only IS that satisfied the requirements asked for and we proposed the SDLC as it was the clearest and the most known methodology among all……