UNIVERSITY EXAMINATIONS: 2011/2012
SECOND YEAR EXAMINATION FOR THE BACHELOR OF
SCIENCE IN INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
BIT 2202 INFORMATION SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT
DATE: AUGUST, 2012 TIME: 2 HOURS
INSTRUCTIONS: Answer Question ONE and any other TWO
QUESTION ONE
Object-oriented software engineering has become very popular.
a) With the help of an example define the terms object, encapsulation, and
polymorphism. (6 Marks)
b) Explain the difference between requirements elicitation and requirements
specification. (5Marks)
c) Discuss two ways in which ICT-enabled organizational change can happen in an
organization. (4 Marks)
d) Discuss alternative ways of addressing resistance to change manifested in
information systems projects. (5 Marks)
e) For what type of systems development projects would you choose NOT to use a
life cycle approach? (5Marks)
f) Explain the benefits off-the-shelf software packages offer to organizations
(5 Marks)
QUESTION TWO
A bank’s Managing Director has looked at the IT department’s accounts and noted that
80% of its money is spent maintaining existing software, and only 20% is spent
developing new software. He thinks this is a waste of money and wants to do something
about it!
a) Describe three types of software maintenance that the bank’s money is likely to
be spent on. (6 Marks)
b) Discuss whether the Managing Director is correct to think that each of these types
of maintenance is a waste of money. (4 Marks)
c) Discuss the main problems faced by a maintenance engineer. (6 Marks)
d) It is noted that the bank’s software is somewhat unreliable. Discuss what this
means in software engineering terms. (4 Marks)
QUESTION THREE
Computer Aided Software Engineering (CASE) tools are commonly used to support the
automation of the software engineering process.
a) Describe, using examples, three key software engineering activities which may
be supported by CASE tools and explain how a team of software engineers may
benefit from the use of CASE tools. (6 Marks)
b) It is frequently argued that the use of ‘integrated CASE tools’ may improve the
overall software engineering process. Explain what is meant by ‘integrated CASE
tools’ and in what way it may improve the overall engineering process. (6 Marks)
c) ‘Although the automation of the software engineering process seems like a
desirable concept, the use of CASE tools will increasingly lead to the loss of jobs
for software engineers.’ Discuss. (8 Marks)
QUESTION FOUR
a) Explain the business functions of an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system
support (6 Marks)
b) Write a short report for a senior manager explaining the expected benefits of
investing in a new Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system that will
link to a number of other business systems currently in use. (10 Marks)
c) Identify four types of information systems and explain at least one function of
each (4 Marks)
QUESTION FIVE
a) Using examples explain three logical constructs of Structured English (9 Marks)
b) What general advantages are claimed for the use of a methodology in software
development? (5 Marks)
c) Three techniques used in the process of job design are: job enlargement, job
enrichment and job rotation. Briefly describe each technique. (6 Marks)
