Thursday, November 30, 2006

Information System

Information System is the discipline concerned with the development, use, application and influence of information systems. An information system, following a definition of Langefors , is a technologically implemented medium for recording, storing, and disseminating linguistic expressions, as well as for drawing conclusions from such expressions. The technology used for implementing information systems by no means has to be computer technology. A notebook in which one lists certain items of interest is, according to that definition, an information system. Likewise, there are computer applications that do not comply with this definition of information systems. Embedded systems are an example. A computer application that is integrated into clothing or even the human body does not generally deal with linguistic expressions. One could, however, try to generalize Langefors' definition such as to cover more recent developments.
Types of Information System
For most businesses, there are a variety of requirements for information. Senior managers need information to help with their business planning. Middle management need more detailed information to help them monitor and control business activities. Employees with operational roles need information to help them carry out their duties. As a result, businesses tend to have several "information systems" operating at the same time. This revision note highlights the main categories of information system and provides some examples to help you distinguish between them.
Management Information Systems is a general name for the academic discipline covering the application of people, technologies, and procedures—collectively, the information system—to business problems. This field is directly linked to Management by objectives and to the monitoring of Key performance indicators. It can also help in processing specific information for decision making (for example analyse customer behavior).
Some confusions between MIS and IT
In business, information systems support not only business processes and operations, but also decision-making and competitive strategies, which are the fields of MIS. As an area of study, MIS is sometimes referred to, in a restrictive sense, as Information technology management. The study of information systems is usually a commerce and business administration discipline. It involves frequently software engineering, but also distinguishes itself by concentrating on the integration of computer systems with the aims of the organization. The area of study should not be confused with computer science which is more theoretical in nature and deals mainly with software creation, and not with computer engineering, which focuses more on the design of computer hardware. IT service management is a practitioner-focused discipline centering on the same general domain.

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