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Information systems
is a scientific area of study, or profession, that bridges the business field with the computer science field. It is supported by the theoretical foundations of information and computers. Another definition of information systems is a system that includes people, data, software, hardware and procedures that are used to gather and analyze digital information. More specifically, computer-based information systems are complementary networks of hardware and software that people use to collect, process, create and distribute data. It’s somewhat difficult to define “information systems” because of the vagueness of the terms “information” and “systems.” Beynon-Davies defines an information system as “an example of a system concerned with the manipulation of signs. An information system is a type of socio-technical system. An information system is a mediating construct between actions and technology.” Information systems inter-relate with data systems and activity systems.
Internet information systems use Internet technologies to deliver information to users or to other web applications. It’s a software (collection of computer programs) system whose main purpose is to publish and maintain data using hypertext-based principles. Usually, a web information system consists of one or more web applications that are specific functionality-oriented components, together with other information components and non-web components. A web browser is used as front-end, and database is back-end. Software provides instructions, telling a computer what to do and how to do it. Therefore “web information systems” are a collection of these “instructions” or computer programs, procedures and its documentation. Software implements the program, either by directly providing instructions to the computer hardware, or by instructing another piece of software what to do. The term “software” indicates that it’s intangible, or cannot be touched vs. hardware (which is the physical devices of a computer that can be physically touched.)
Examples of software include:
Word processors
Video games
Programming languages that define the syntax and semantics of computer programs.
Device drivers, such as for printers, CD drives, disk drives or computer monitors.
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