Authorised by Academic Registrar, April 1996
Objectives At the completion of this subject students should know how to design a system from the analysis specifications, using appropriate formal design tools and techniques; understand the need for pre- and post-implementation actions such as reviews, training, tuning for efficiency, and maintenance; and appreciate how to enable effective contribution in team situations and appropriate interactions with clients.
Synopsis Design as part of the system development process: interfaces between design and other development stages. Inputs to design: logical data models; definition of elementary processes; quantitative data; constraints; centralised vs decentralised; benefit analysis; target software and hardware. Scoping the business system: option definition. Transforming the logical data model into a physical data model. Option selection: ways of meeting constraints. Interface design: screen design; user interface design; windows; GUI design principles; reports; user documentation; help; application standards. Standards and designing for reuseability. Packaging: transforming the logical process model into a physical procedure model; concurrency; locking; reuseability of common logic; designer-added procedures. System and acceptance testing; system conversion and file creation; system cutover techniques; client training; post-implementation actions. Physical data models; procedure definitions; interface definitions; system documentation; system configuration details.
Assessment Final examinations (3 hours): 60% + Practical work: 40%