Application generator Software that can generate entire information system applications; the user specifies what needs to be done, and the application generator creates the appropriate program code. Business Model The way in which an organisation intends to achieve it's goals. A business model consists of a number objectives, goald, strategies and processes which together form a coherent model for the operation of the organistion. Business Processes The unique ways in which organizations coordinate and organise work activities, information, and knowledge to produce a product or service. Filling an order is an example of a business process. Client/Server Architecture An arrangement that involves client processes requesting service from server processes. Commerce Commerce is the exchange of goods and services for another good or service. Usually the exchange is for money, however, this is not always the case. Commerce is therefore the transacting of goods/services and encompasses all activities within a transaction. Commerce consists of multiple transactions. Critical Success Factors CSF A small number of easily identifiable operational goals shaped by the industry, the firm, the manager, and the broader environment that are believed to assure the success of an organization. Used to determine the information requirements of an organization. Computer Based Information Systems CBIS Information Systems that rely on computer hardware and software for processing and disseminating information. Cost-benefit Ratio A method for calculating the returns from a capital expenditure by dividing total benefits by total costs. Customer Relationship Management CRM Business and technology discipline to coordinate all of the business processes for dealing with customers. Cycle Speed MHz The speed of the system clock which paces the computer's processing events and is measured in megahertz (MHz), which stands for millions of cycles per second. Data Definition Language DDL The component of a database management system that defines each data element as it appears in the database. Data Dictionary An automated or manual tool for storing and organizing information about the data maintained in a database. Data Manipulation Language DML A language associated with a database management system that end users and programmers use to manipulate data in the database. Data Bus Width The number of bits that can be moved at one time between the CPU, primary storage, and the other devices of a computer. Data Worker People, such as secretaries or bookkeepers, who process the organisation's paperwork. Database Management System DML Database Systems Special software to create and maintain a database and enable individual business applications to extract the data they need without having to create separate files or data definitions in their computer programs. Decision Support Systems DSS Information systems at the organization's management level that combine data and sophisticated analytical models or data analysis tools to support nonroutine decision making. Digital Firm Organization where nearly all significant business processes and relationships with customers, suppliers, and employees are digitally enabled, and key corporate assets are managed through digital means. Disintermediation The removal of the "middle man", or sales agent, between the manufacturer and the customer. Disintermediation is the result of manufacturers selling directly to the end user of their product. Domain Name System DNS DNS is an application-layer protocol that controls the translation of hostname, such as www.foo.com, into IP addresses, and vice-versa. DNS provides this general service to a wide variety of applications. Electronic Business EBusiness eBusiness E-Business The use of Internet and other digital technology for organizational communication and coordination and the management of the firm. An Electronic Business is one in which at least one core business process is dependant upon computer systems. That is, should the computer system fail, then that business process cannot proceed. This dependence on computer systems at the core of the business makes the business unviable should the computer systems be flawed or inadequate in any way. Electronic Commerce ECommerce eCommerce E-Commerce The process of buying and selling goods and services electronically, involving transactions using the Internet, networks, and other digital. ECommerce is commerce in which the transactions are managed through the use of some form of Electronic Media. That is, at least part of a transaction is conducted using some electronic media. Typically, this means that one or more of the three parts of a transaction is conducted via the Internet or some other digital media. Elecrornic Market A marketplace that is created by computer and communication technologies that link many buyers and sellers. Enterprise Analysis An analysis of organization-wide information requirements that looks at the entire organization in terms of organizational units, functions, processes, and data elements; helps identify the key entities and attributes in the organization’s data. Enterprise Resource Planning ERP ES Enterprise Systems The act of planning the application of resources across a whole enterprise to maximise their value. Executive Support Systems ESS Information systems at the organization's strategic level designed to address nonroutine decision making through advanced graphics and communications. Enterprise Systems ES ERP Enterprise Resource Planning Firmwide information systems that integrate key business processes so that information can flow freely between different parts of the firm. Extranet Private intranet that is accessible to authorized outsiders. Finance and Accounting Information Systems Systems that keep track of the firm's financial assets and fund flows. Graphic Language A computer language that displays data from files or databases in graphic format Horizontal Industrial Networks verticalIN Vertical Industrial Networks industryNetworks Industrial Networks Networks for linking firms across an entire industry. Human Resources Information Systems Systems that maintain employee records; track employee skills, job performance, and training; and support planning for employee compensation and career development. Industry Networks verticalIN Vertical Industrial Networks horizontalIN Horizontal Industrial Networks Networks linking systems of multiple firms in an industry. Also called extended enterprises. Information Architecture The particular design that information technology takes in a specific organization to achieve selected goals or functions. Information Systems Plan A road map indicating the direction of systems development: the rationale, the current situation, the management strategy, the implementation plan, and the budget. Internet International network of networks that is a collection of hundreds of thousands of private and public networks. Internet Protocol IP IP is a network-layer protocol that coordinates the delivery of individual packets (units of information) from one host to another, based on the IP address of the destintion host. IP runs over a wide variety of link-layer technologies. Information Systems IS Interrelated components working together to collect, process, store, and disseminate information to support decision making, coordination, control, analysis, and visualization in an organization. Infomediary Disintermediation has led to the creation of a new type of "middle man" between manufacturers/providers of goods/services and their end users. These new middle men are "infomediaries", they manage the huge amounts of "dumb" data provided by manufacturers and service providers and give customers usable information about products and services in the marketplace. Interorganisational Systems Information systems that automate the flow of information across organizational boundaries and link a company to its customers, distributors, or suppliers. Intranet An internal network based on Internet and World Wide Web technology and standards. Kowledge-Level Systems KWS Knowledge Work Systems Information systems that support knowledge and data workers in an organization. Knowledge Management KM The set of processes developed in an organization to create, gather, store, maintain, and disseminate the firm’s knowledge. Knowledge Work Systems KWS knowledgeLevelSystems Knowlede-Level Systems Information systems that aid knowledge workers in the creation and integration of new knowledge in the organization. Kowledge Worker People, such as engineers or architects, who design products or services and create knowledge for the organization. Management Information Systems MIS Information systems at the management level of an organization that serve the functions of planning, controlling, and decision making by providing routine summary and exception reports. Management-Level Systems Information systems that support the monitoring, controlling, decision-making, and administrative activities of middle managers. Manufacturing and Product Information Systems Systems that deal with the planning, development, and production of products and services and with controlling the flow of production. Marketing Supplying potential customers with information about a product or service being offered. Together with information about how to make a purchase. Mass Customisation Mass Customization Use of software and computer networks to finely control production so that products can be easily customised with no added cost for small. Massively Parallel Processing parallelProcessing Parallel Processing Computers that use hundreds or thousands of processing chips to attack large computing problems simultaneously. Middle Manager People in the middle of the organizational hierarchy who are responsible for carrying out the plans and goals of senior management. Net Present Value The amount of money an investment is worth, taking into account its cost, earnings, and the time value of money. OASIS A not-for-profit global consortium. The mission of OASIS is to drive the development, convergence, and adoption of structured information standards in the areas of e-business, web services, etc. Office Systems Computer systems, such as word processing, electronic mail systems, and scheduling systems, that are designed to increase the productivity of data workers in the office. Operational Manager People who monitor the day-to-day activities of the organization. Operational-Level Systems Information systems that monitor the elementary activities and transactions of the organization. Parallel Processing massivelyParallelProcessing Massively Parallel Processing Type of processing in which more than one instruction can be processed at a time by breaking down a problem into smaller parts and processing them simultaneously with multiple processors. Protocol A set of rules that dictate what to do in a given situation. A definition of the syntax and the semantics of messages to be exchanged between senders and recievers, together with the order that they are expected in. Sounds on a telephone, dial tone, ringing, busy tone. These indicate what to do, errors in the communication etc. Query Language A high-level computer language used to retrieve specific information from databases or files. Report Generator Software that creates customized reports in a wide range of formats that are not routinely produced by an information system. Sales and Marketing Information Systems Systems that help the firm identify customers for the firm's products or services, develop products and services to meet customer needs, promote products and services, sell the products and services, and provide ongoing customer support. Senior Manager People occupying the topmost hierarchy in an organization who are responsible for making long-range decisions. Simple Object Access Protocol SOAP SOAP is a lightweight protocol for exchange of information in a decentralized, distributed environment. It is an XML based protocol that consists of three parts: an envelope that defines a framework for describing what is in a message and how to process it, a set of encoding rules for expressing instances of application-defined datatypes, and a convention for representing remote procedure calls and responses. SOAP can potentially be used in combination with a variety of other protocols; however, the only bindings defined in the W£C recomendation document that defines SOAP describe how to use SOAP in combination with HTTP and HTTP Extension Framework. Strategic-Level Systems Information systems that support the long-range planning activities of senior management. Supply Chain Management SCM Coordination of all the activities and information flows involved in buying, making, and moving a product. Tacit Knowledge Expertise and experience of organizational members that has not been formally documented. Transaction (Commercial) A transaction is the exchange of goods, services and resources between two or more parties. Typically a transaction consists of three parts:

1. Supplying potential customers with information about the product or service being offered. Together with information about how to make a purchase. This part is commonly called Marketing .
2. Providing the means by which customers can purchase the product or service. This includes invoicing, order tracking, payment processing, delivery mechanisms etc.
3. Support customers who have previously made a purchase.

Transaction Processing Systems TPS Computerized systems that perform and record the daily routine transactions necessary to conduct the business; they serve the organization's operational level. Transport Control Protocol TCP TCP is a transport-layer protocol that coordinates the transmission of IP packets in order to provide the abtraction of a reliable bidirectional connection between two communicating applications. TCP is the primary transport protocol in the INternet although some applications use the User Datagram Protocol (UDP) . Universal Description, Discovery and Integration UDDI The Universal Description, Discovery and Integration (UDDI) protocol is one of the major building blocks required for successful Web services. UDDI creates a standard interoperable platform that enables companies and applications to quickly, easily, and dynamically find and use Web services over the Internet. UDDI also allows operational registries to be maintained for different purposes in different contexts. UDDI is a cross-industry effort driven by major platform and software providers, as well as marketplace operators and e-business leaders within the OASIS standards consortium. Vertical Industrial Networks horizontalIN Horizontal Industrial Networks industryNetworks Industrial Networks Networks for integrating the operations of a firm with its suppliers. Virtual Organisations Organization using networks to link people, assets and ideas to create and distribute products and services without being limited to traditional organizational boundaries or physical location. A lose network of, otherwise unrelated, organisations that collaborate in order to achieve a common goal and, potentially, disband once the goal has been met. Visual Programming The construction of software programs by selecting and arranging programming objects rather than by writing program code. Web Services Description Language WSDL WSDL is an XML format for describing network services as a set of endpoints operating on messages containing either document-oriented or procedure-oriented information. The operations and messages are described abstractly, and then bound to a concrete network protocol and message format to define an endpoint. Related concrete endpoints are combined into abstract endpoints (services). WSDL is extensible to allow description of endpoints and their messages regardless of what message formats or network protocols are used to communicate, however, the only bindings described in the official recomendation document provided by the W3C describe how to use WSDL in conjunction with SOAP 1.1, HTTP GET/POST, and MIME. Wiki WikiWiki A WikiWiki is a collection of interlinked web pages, any of which can be visited and edited by anyone at any time (collaborative software). The concept and software was invented by Ward Cunningham. Word Length The number of bits that the computer can process at one time. The larger the word length, the greater the computer's speed.