An information system can be described as a combined group of components that can be used for gathering, storing, and processing information. Many organizations worldwide depend on information systems to manage and control their operations.
The development of an information system occurs in stages referred to as the life cycle of an information system. The life cycle goes through six stages. These stages are the feasibility study, the analysis phase, the design phase, the programming stage, installation and maintenance stage (Sadagopan, 1997).
The feasibility study is always done to have a view of the intended system. This will include coming up with the goals and objectives of the system (Sadagopan, 1997). For the photography printing store, it will do a feasibility study to analyze the business objectives currently and compare it with the objectives after developing the system.
The analysis phase then follows. In this stage, the goals of the project identified in the feasibility stage are then refined to come up with defined functions of the intended system. It is also in this stage that the needs of the end-users are identified (Sadagopan, 1997). For the photography business, the end users have experienced many problems such as lost cards. Therefore, these needs are analyzed in the development of the new system and, solutions identified to be incorporated in the new system to be developed.
The next stage is the design phase. In this phase, several aspects of the system are considered. Some of these aspects include the hardware and software platforms that the system will use. It will also lay emphasis the inputs, outputs and, the user interface (Sadagopan, 1997). The photography store will need to come up with a system that will not strain their computer resources and, will have a simple and, easy to use interface.
After that, the programming phase will follow. Coding takes place at this stage. The photography store will consider using the simplest programming language that can create a wonderful system. Finally, the last steps will involve installation and maintenance. Once the system is designed, the photography store will proceed to install the system and, conduct tests to confirm that it works properly. Once this is done, the system will be deployed and, maintenance will occur in the life of the system. The whole process of information system development, if followed to the letter, will enable the photography store to come up with a computerized time entry system. This will help them have efficient management and control of their functions.
References
Sadagopan, S. (1997). Management information systems. New Delhi.: Prentice Hall of India..
