Information Systems

Question 1 What are the main reasons of setting up and managing databases in organizations? Answer in 3to 4sentences.Give an example not discussed in class when it is or would be useful to have a database. Question 2 Explain briefly the key difference among the following concepts: Transaction Processing System Management Information System Decision Support System Give an example for each one of these systems. Question 3 Using an example,explain briefly why MS Excel is not the best tool to set up large databases. Question 4 Describe briefly the characteristics of columns and rows of a DBtable. Explain the conceptual difference between columns and rows, illustrated by an example. Question 5 Consider the following entities in the context of designing a Course Management System: Students, Instructors, Courses. Propose a DB framework, without going into secondary details.How many tables you will need and how these should be related? Question 6 A Customer of a bank moves to a different city. Due to poor DB design, the bank requires the customer to submit address change requests separately for each of her four accounts held at the bank. What type of anomaly could result? How could this situation be corrected? Question 7 You design a DB to manage information about projects your company’s employees are currently working on. You know that several employees work on the same project, and an employee may work on different projects simultaneously.You were asked by management to create the following table to store the entire information: TABLE (EmployeeID, FirstName, LastName, Street, City, State,ZipCode, Phone, ProjectCode_1, ProjectName_1, ProjectClient_1, ProjectDueDate_1, ProjectCode_2, ProjectName_2, ProjectClient_2, ProjectDueDate_2, ProjectCode_3, ProjectName_3, ProjectClient_3, ProjectDueDate_3​) Is this table susceptible to insertion anomalies?Explain.Can you propose a better design?

Question 8 Consider the following DBframework outline: EMPLOYEE (EmployeeID, FirstName, LastName, PhoneNumber, ....) DEPENDENT (EmployeeID, DependentType, FirstName, LastName, ....) EmployeeID is a foreign key to EMPLOYEEIs this DB framework correct? Explain. Question 9 Explain briefly the challenge referred to as “data deluge”. Question 10 How setting up and managing databases (DB) helps to handle the “data deluge” issue? Answer briefly and give an example of your own when it is or would be useful to have a database. Question 11 Explain briefly the difference in activities among the following levels of information systems (IS)at a large organization: Operational levelISTactical levelISStrategic levelISGive three example activities,each one handled by the corresponding IS, considering the three IS levels of a supermarket chain. Question 12 Explain briefly each one of the following relational DB concepts: atomic information, datatype,cells, columns,rows,flat file, primary key, foreign key. You can use an actual DB example to illustrate these concepts. Question 13 You are in charge of designing truck registry DB which includes vehicles from different states. Propose a flat file DB design.Do you need to introduce composite primary key? Question 14 Employers often have investment plans with contributions by both employers and employees. Such plans are typically managed by large financial companies. An investment account owner with such a financial company has a new (different)employer. How Would you add the necessary new information to the company’s database, without repeating already existing information? Proposed Only a basic DB design framework, without going into secondary (employee, employer or investment related) details. Question 15 You are in charge of designing a library DB,to manage lending items (books, videos, CDs, etc.) to library customers.Library management proposes the following DB table structure: TABLE (CustomerID, FirstName, LastName, Street, City, State, ZipCode, Phone,

LoanItemID_1, ReturnDueDate_1, LoanItemID_2, ReturnDueDate_2,

LoanItemID_3, ReturnDueDate_3, LoanItemID_4, ReturnDueDate_4, LoanItemID_5, ReturnDueDate_5)

Do you see problems with such a design? Can you propose a better DB design? Question 16 Consider the following ER relationship:

Explain in a sentence the meaning of this diagram and give an example when such a DB structure is appropriate.