What information systems. Information systems (IS). Basic concepts, definitions, classification of information systems

Information System (IS) is a communication system for the collection, transmission, processing of information about an object, supplying an employee of any profession with information for the implementation of the management function.

PROPERTIES OF INFORMATION SYSTEMS:

1. complexity (depends on the components included in it, their structural interaction);

2. divisibility (means that the system can be represented from various independent constituent parts - subsystems);

3. integrity (means that the functioning of many elements of the system is subordinated to one goal);

4. the variety of elements and the difference in their nature (associated with their functional specificity and autonomy);

5. structuredness (determines the presence of established connections and relationships between elements within the system, the distribution of elements over the levels of the hierarchy).

Types of systems:

Automatic system (AS) - it is a set of a controlled object and automatic control devices, functioning independently, without human intervention.

Automated system - it is a set of a controlled object and automatic control devices, in which some of the control functions are performed by a human operator. An automated system is a complex of technical, software and other means and personnel, designed to automate various processes, cannot function without human participation.

Computing system (ВС) - it is a set of computers and software tools designed to carry out computational processes.

An open system is a computing system that meets standards. The basic principles of building open systems:

· Portability, allowing you to easily transfer data and software between different platforms;

· Interaction, ensuring the joint operation of devices from different manufacturers;

· Scalability to ensure that your information and software investment is maintained when moving to a more powerful hardware platform.

Database Management System (DBMS)- an integral part of any information system. The type of DBMS used is usually determined by the scale of the IS - small ISs can use local DBMSs, corporate ISs will require a powerful client-server DBMS that supports multiuser operation.

IP classification by purpose:

Information management system - it is a system for collecting and processing information necessary to manage an organization, enterprise, industry.

Decision support system - are intended for the accumulation and analysis of data necessary for decision-making in various spheres of human activity.


Information retrieval systems - These are systems, the main purpose of which is the search for information contained in various databases, various computer systems located at a considerable distance from each other.

Information - reference systems- provide the user with the necessary information in an interactive mode.

Data processing systems - function of systems processing and archiving large amounts of data.

Automated system (AS) Is a system consisting of personnel and a set of means for automating their activities, the implementation of information technologies for performing established functions. Depending on the type of activity, the following speakers are distinguished:

1. Automated control system (ACS).

2. Computer-aided design system (CAD).

3. Automated research systems (ASNI).

V expanded the meaning of the ACS is a complex of software, technical, informational, linguistic, organizational and technological means and personnel, designed to control various objects. V special The meaning of ACS is a man-machine system based on the integrated use of economic and mathematical methods (EMM) and technical means of information processing for solving problems of planning and managing various objects of production and economic activity. The main purpose of the ACS and, accordingly, the principles of their construction are the processes of collecting, storing, processing, as well as issuing significant amounts of information.

Automated Information System (AIS) Is a set of information, economic and mathematical methods and models, technical, software, technological tools and specialists designed for information processing and management decisions.

AIS provision.

Organizational support - This is a set of documents that establish the organizational structure, rights and obligations of users and operational personnel of AIS in the conditions of functioning, testing and ensuring the operability of automated information systems.

Organizational support implements the following functions:

· Analysis of the existing enterprise (organization) management system to identify tasks to be automated;

· Preparation of tasks for automation, including the development of technical specifications and feasibility studies of efficiency;

· Development of management decisions to change the structure of the organization and methodologies for solving problems aimed at improving the efficiency of the management system.

Organizational support includes:

· Methodological materials regulating the process of creation and functioning of IS;

· A set of tools for effective design and operation of IS;

· Technical documentation obtained in the course of enterprise survey, design, implementation and maintenance of the system;

· Personnel (organizational and staff structures of the enterprise), designing, implementing, maintaining and using IS.

Methodological support Is a set of documents describing the technology of AIS functioning, methods of choosing and using technological methods by users to obtain specific results in the operation of automated information systems.

Technical support Is a set of all technical means used in the functioning of the AIS.

The technical means include:

Computing equipment for various purposes (servers, workstations);

Special devices for collecting, accumulating, processing, transmitting and outputting information;

Data transmission devices and communication lines;

Devices for automatic information retrieval;

Office equipment, operating materials, etc.

Mathematical software Is a set of mathematical methods, models and algorithms used in AIS.

The software includes:

Mathematical support (tools for modeling typical control problems, methods of multicriteria optimization, mathematical statistics, queuing theory, etc.);

Technical documentation (description of tasks, algorithms for solving problems, economic and mathematical models);

Methods for choosing software (methods for determining the types of problems, assessing the computational complexity of algorithms, methods for assessing the reliability of results).

Software Is a set of programs on data carriers and program documents intended for postponing, functioning and checking the AIS performance.

AIS software includes:

Software specially developed within the framework of automation, which implements the developed models of varying degrees of adequacy, reflecting the functioning of a real object;

General-purpose software designed to solve typical information processing tasks.

Information Support- a set of forms of documents, classifiers, regulatory framework and implemented information used in the AIS during its operation.

Information support includes:

· Description of technological processes;

· Description of the organization of the information base;

· Description of input streams;

· Description of output messages;

· Description of classification and coding systems;

· Forms of documents;

· Description of the structure of arrays.

Linguistic support Is a set of tools and rules for formalizing a natural language used when communicating between users and AIS operating personnel with a set of automation tools in the operation of an automated information system.

Language means of linguistic support are divided into two groups: traditional languages ​​(natural, mathematical, algorithmic languages, modeling languages) and languages ​​intended for dialogue with computers.

Legal support Is a set of legal norms governing legal relations in the functioning of the AIS and the legal status of the results of its functioning.

(Legal support is implemented in the organizational support of the AIS.)

The legal framework includes laws, decrees, decisions of state authorities, orders, instructions and other normative documents of ministries, departments, organizations, local authorities. In legal support, one can distinguish a general part that regulates the functioning of any information system, and a local part that regulates the functioning of a specific system.

Legal support for the development of an information system includes regulations related to the contractual relationship between the developer and the customer and the legal regulation of deviations from the contract.

Legal support for the functioning of IP includes:

· IP status;

· Rights, duties and responsibilities of personnel;

· Legal provisions of certain types of management process;

· The procedure for the creation and use of information.

Ergonomic support Is a set of implemented solutions in automated information systems for the coordination of the psychological, psychophysiological, anthropometric, physiological characteristics and capabilities of AIS users with the technical characteristics of the AIS automation complex and the parameters of the working environment at the workplaces of the automated information systems personnel.

Protecting the health of workers, ensuring the safety of working conditions, eliminating occupational diseases and industrial injuries is one of the main concerns of the human society.

Information and information technologies and technical means ensuring its processing ”.

One of the broadest definitions of IS was given by M.R. information needs of users ".

The ISO / IEC 2382-1 standard gives the following definition: "An information system is an information processing system that works in conjunction with organizational resources such as people, technology and financial resources that provide and distribute information."

Russian GOST RV 51987 defines an information system as "an automated system, the result of which is the presentation of output information for subsequent use."

V narrow sense an information system is called only a subset of IS components in a broad sense, including databases, DBMS and specialized application programs. IS in the narrow sense is considered as a software and hardware system designed to automate the purposeful activities of end users, providing, in accordance with the processing logic embedded in it, the ability to receive, modify and store information.

In any case, the main task of IS is to meet specific information needs within a specific subject area. Modern IS is de facto unthinkable without the use of databases and DBMS, therefore the term "information system" in practice merges in meaning with the term "database system".

Ideally, a single corporate information system should function within an enterprise that satisfies all existing information needs of all employees, services and departments. However, in practice, the creation of such an all-encompassing IS is too difficult or even impossible, as a result of which several different ISs usually operate in an enterprise that solve separate groups of tasks: production management, financial and economic activities, etc. Some tasks are "covered" simultaneously by several ISs. some of the tasks are not automated at all. This situation is called "patchwork automation" and is quite typical for many enterprises.

Information systems classifications

Classification by architecture

By the degree of distribution, they are distinguished:

  • tabletop (desktop), or local IS, in which all components (DB, DBMS, client applications) are located on one computer;
  • distributed (distributed) IS, in which the components are distributed over several computers.

Distributed ISs, in turn, are divided into:

  • file-server IS (IS with "file-server" architecture);
  • client-server IS (IS with client-server architecture).

In file-server ICs, the database is located on the file server, while the DBMS and client applications are located on the workstations.

In client-server ISs, the database and DBMS are located on the server, and client applications are located on the workstations.

In turn, client-server ICs are divided into two-link and multi-link.

Classification by degree of automation

Classification by the nature of data processing

By the nature of data processing, IP are divided into:

  • information and reference, or information retrieval IS, in which there are no complex data processing algorithms, and the purpose of the system is to search and display information in a convenient form;
  • Data processing IC, or decisive IS where data is processed using complex algorithms. These systems primarily include automated control systems and decision support systems.

Classification by scope

Since IS are created to meet information needs within a specific subject area, each subject area (area of ​​application) has its own type of IS. It makes no sense to list all these types, since the number of subject areas is large, but the following types of IP can be indicated as an example:

  • Economic information system - an information system designed to perform management functions at an enterprise.
  • Medical information system - an information system intended for use in a medical or treatment-and-prophylactic institution.
  • Geographic information system - an information system that provides collection, storage, processing, access, display and distribution of spatially coordinated data (spatial data).

Classification by scope of tasks (scale)

  • Personal The IS is designed to solve a certain range of tasks for one person.
  • Group IS is focused on the collective use of information by members of a working group or unit.
  • Corporate IP ideally covers all information processes of the whole enterprise, achieving their complete consistency, non-redundancy and transparency. Such systems are sometimes called systems of complex automation of the enterprise.

Notes (edit)

see also

Literature

  • William S. Davis, David C. Yen The Information System Consultant's Handbook. Systems Analysis and Design. - CRC Press, 1998. - 800 pp. - ISBN 0849370019
  • Kogalovsky M.R. Advanced technologies of information systems. - M .: DMK Press; IT Co., 2003 .-- 288 p. - ISBN 5-94074-200-9
  • Kogalovsky M.R. Encyclopedia of Database Technologies. - M .: Finance and statistics, 2002. - 800 p. - ISBN 5-279-02276-4

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Information system concept

Under system they understand any object that is simultaneously considered both as a single whole and as a set of dissimilar elements combined in the interests of achieving the set goals. The systems differ significantly from each other both in composition and in terms of their main goals.

In computer science, the concept of "system" is widespread and has many semantic meanings. Most often it is used in relation to a set of hardware and software. The hardware part of a computer can be called a system. A system can also be considered a variety of programs for solving specific applied problems, supplemented by procedures for maintaining documentation and managing calculations.

Adding the word “informational” to the concept of “system” reflects the purpose of its creation and functioning. Information systems provide collection, storage, processing, search, and delivery of information necessary in the process of making decisions on problems from any field. They help analyze problems and create new products.

Information system- an interconnected set of tools, methods and personnel used to store, process and issue information in order to achieve the set goal.

The modern understanding of the information system involves the use of a personal computer as the main technical means of processing information. In large organizations, along with a personal computer, the technical base of an information system may include a mainframe or a supercomputer. In addition, the technical implementation of the information system in itself will mean nothing if the role of the person for whom the information is intended is not taken into account and without whom it is impossible to receive and present it.

Attention! By organization we mean a community of people united by common goals and using common material and financial resources for the production of material and information products and services. In the text, two words will be used on an equal footing: "organization" and "firm".

It is necessary to understand the difference between computers and information systems. Computers equipped with specialized software are the technical base and tool for information systems. An information system is inconceivable without personnel interacting with computers and telecommunications.

Stages of development of information systems

The history of the development of information systems and the purposes of their use at different periods are presented in the table below.

Time periodInformation use conceptType of information systemsPurpose of use
1950 - 1960Paper flow of settlement documentsInformation systems for processing settlement documents on electromechanical accounting machinesIncreasing the speed of document processing

Simplified invoice processing and payroll processing

1960 - 1970Essential help in preparing reportsManagement information systems for production informationSpeeding up the reporting process
1970 - 1980Management control of implementation (sales)Decision support systems

Systems for senior management

Sampling the most rational solution
1980 - 2000Information is a strategic resource that provides a competitive advantageStrategic information systems

Automated offices

Survival and prosperity of the firm

The first information systems appeared in the 50s. During these years, they were designed for processing invoices and calculating salaries, and were implemented on electromechanical accounting machines. This led to some reduction in costs and time for preparing paper documents.

60s are marked by a change in attitudes towards information systems. The information obtained from them began to be used for periodic reporting in many ways. On that day, organizations needed general-purpose computer equipment capable of serving a variety of functions, not just processing invoices and calculating salaries, as was the case in the past.

In the 70s - early 80s. information systems are beginning to be widely used as a means of management control that supports and accelerates the decision-making process.

By the end of the 80s. the concept of using information systems is changing again. They become a strategic source of information and are used at all levels of an organization of any profile. Information systems of this period, providing the necessary information on time, help the organization to achieve success in its activities, create new products and services, find new sales markets, provide worthy partners, organize the release of products at a low price and much more.

Processes in the information system

The processes that ensure the operation of an information system of any purpose can be conventionally represented as a diagram consisting of blocks:

  • input of information from external or internal sources;
  • processing input information and presenting it in a convenient form;
  • output of information for presentation to consumers or transfer to another system;
  • feedback is information processed by the people of a given organization to correct the input information.

An information system is determined by the following properties:

  • any information system can be analyzed, built and managed on the basis of general principles of building systems;
  • the information system is dynamic and evolving;
  • when building an information system, it is necessary to use a systematic approach;
  • the output of an information system is information on the basis of which decisions are made;
  • the information system should be perceived as a human-computer information processing system.

Currently, there is an opinion about the information system as a system implemented with the help of computer technology. Although, in the general case, an information system can also be understood in a non-computer version.

To understand the work of an information system, it is necessary to understand the essence of the problems that it solves, as well as the organizational processes in which it is included. So, for example, when determining the ability of a computer information system to support decision-making, one should take into account

  • structured management tasks to be solved;
  • the level of the firm's management hierarchy at which a decision must be made;
  • belonging of the problem being solved to one or another functional area of ​​the business;
  • type of information technology used.

The technology of work in a computer information system is available for understanding by a specialist in the non-computer field and can be successfully used to control and manage the processes of professional activity.

What can be expected from the implementation of information systems

the introduction of information systems can contribute to:

  • obtaining more rational options for solving management problems through the introduction of mathematical methods and intelligent systems, etc.;
  • freeing workers from routine work due to its automation;
  • ensuring the reliability of information;
  • replacing paper data carriers with magnetic disks or tapes, which leads to a more rational organization of information processing on a computer and a decrease in the volume of documents on paper;
  • improving the structure of information flows and the workflow system in the company;
  • reducing the cost of producing products and services;
  • providing consumers with unique services;
  • finding new market niches;
  • binding buyers and suppliers to the firm by providing them with various discounts and services.

The role of the governance structure in the information system

General Provisions

The creation and use of an information system for any organization is aimed at solving the following tasks.

1. The structure of the information system, its functional purpose must correspond to the goals of the organization. For example, in a commercial firm, an efficient business; in a state enterprise - solving social and economic problems.

2. The information system must be controlled by people, understood and used in accordance with basic social and ethical principles.

3. Production of reliable, reliable, timely and systematic information.

Building an information system is like building a house. Bricks, nails, cement and other materials put together do not make a home. We need a project, land management, construction, etc. for a house to appear.

Similarly, to create and use an information system, you must first understand the structure, functions and policies of the organization, the goals of management and decisions made, the capabilities of computer technology. An information system is part of an organization, and the key elements of any organization are structure and management bodies, standard procedures, personnel, subculture.

Building an information system should begin with an analysis of the organization's governance structure.

Organization management structure

Coordination of the work of all divisions of the organization is carried out through management bodies of different levels. Under management understand the provision of the set goal, subject to the implementation of the following functions: organizational, planning, accounting, analysis, control, incentives.

Consider the content management functions:

Organizational function consists in the development of an organizational structure and a set of regulatory documents: the staffing table of a company, department, laboratory, group, etc. indicating subordination, responsibility, scope of competence, rights, duties, etc. Most often this is set out in the position of the department, laboratory or job descriptions.

Planning (planning function) consists in the development and implementation of plans for the implementation of the assigned tasks. For example, a business plan for the whole firm, a production plan, a marketing research plan, a financial plan, a research plan, etc. for various periods (year, quarter, month, day).

Accounting function consists in the development or use of ready-made forms and methods of accounting for the performance of the company: accounting, financial accounting, management accounting, etc. In the general case, accounting can be defined as the receipt, registration, accumulation, processing and provision of information about real business processes.

Analysis or analytical function is associated with the study of the results of the fulfillment of plans and orders, the determination of influencing factors, the identification of reserves, the study of development trends, etc. The analysis is performed by different specialists depending on the complexity and level of the analyzed object or process. The analysis of the results of the company's economic activity for a year or more is carried out by specialists, and at the level of a shop, department - a manager of this level (chief or his deputy) together with a specialist-economist.

Control function most often carried out by a manager: control over the implementation of plans, the expenditure of material resources, the use of funds, etc.

Stimulation or the motivational function involves the development and application of various methods of stimulating the work of subordinate workers:

  • financial incentives - salary, bonuses, promotions, promotion, etc .;
  • psychological incentives - gratitude, diplomas, titles, degrees, honor rolls, etc.

In recent years, in the field of management, the concept of "decision making" and the systems, methods, and decision support systems associated with this concept have been increasingly used.

Decision-making- an act of purposeful impact on the object of management, based on the analysis of the situation, the definition of the goal, the development of a program to achieve this goal.

The management structure of any organization is traditionally divided into three levels: operational, functional and strategic.

Management levels(type of management activity) are determined by the complexity of the tasks being solved. The more difficult the task, the higher the level of management is required to solve it. At the same time, it should be understood that there are a much larger number of simpler tasks requiring immediate (operational) solutions, which means that the level of management for them needs a different one - a lower one, where decisions are made promptly. When managing, it is also necessary to take into account the dynamics of the implementation of the decisions made, which allows us to consider control from the angle of the time factor.

The figure below shows three levels of management, which are correlated with such factors as the degree of increase in power, responsibility, the complexity of the tasks being solved, as well as the dynamics of decision-making on the implementation of tasks.

Operational (lower) level management provides a solution to repetitive tasks and operations and a quick response to changes in the input current information. At this level, both the volume of operations performed and the dynamics of managerial decision-making are quite large. This level of management is often called operational because of the need to respond quickly to changing situations. At the level of operational (operational) management, accounting tasks take up a large volume.

Functional (tactical) level management provides a solution to tasks requiring preliminary analysis of information prepared at the first level. At this level, such a management function as analysis is of great importance. The volume of tasks being solved decreases, but their complexity increases. At the same time, it is not always possible to work out the necessary solution quickly, additional time is required for analysis, comprehension, collection of missing information, etc. Management is associated with a certain delay from the moment information arrives to making decisions and their implementation, as well as from the moment of implementing decisions to receiving a response to them.

Strategic level ensures the development of management decisions aimed at achieving the long-term strategic goals of the organization. Since the results of the decisions made appear after a long time, such a management function as strategic planning is of particular importance at this level. Other management functions at this level are currently not fully developed. The strategic level of management is often referred to as strategic or long-term planning. The legality of the decision made at this level can be confirmed after a fairly long time. Months or years may pass. The responsibility for making management decisions is extremely great and is determined not only by the results of analysis using mathematical and special tools, but also by the professional intuition of managers.

Examples of information systems

Information system for finding market niches. When purchasing goods in some companies, the information system registers data about the buyer, which allows:

to determine the groups of buyers, their composition and requests, and then to focus in their strategy on the most numerous group;

send potential buyers various offers, advertisements, reminders;

provide regular customers with goods and services on credit, at a discount, with deferred payments.

Information Systems, accelerating the flow of goods. Suppose a firm specializes in supplying products to a specific institution, such as a hospital. As you know, it is very unprofitable to have large stocks of products in the company's warehouses, and it is impossible not to have them. In order to find the optimal solution to this problem, the company installs terminals in the serviced institution and connects them to the information system. The customer directly from the terminal enters his wishes for the catalog provided to him. This data is fed into the order accounting information system.

Managers, making samples for the orders received, make operational management decisions on the delivery of the right product to the customer in a short period of time. This saves a lot of money on storage of goods, speeds up and simplifies the flow of goods, and tracks the needs of buyers.

Information systems to reduce production costs. These information systems, tracking all phases of the production process, contribute to better management and control, more rational planning and use of personnel and, as a result, reduce the cost of products and services.

Information technology automation systems("management of concessions"). The essence of this technology is that if the firm's income remains within the framework of profitability, the consumer is given different discounts depending on the number and duration of contracts. In this case, the consumer becomes interested in interacting with the firm, and the firm thereby attracts an additional number of customers. If the client does not want to interact with this company and switches to service to another, then his costs may increase due to the loss of previously provided discounts.

Structure and classification of information systems

Information system structure

Types of provisioning subsystems

The structure information system is a collection of its individual parts, called subsystems.

Subsystem- This is a part of the system, allocated according to some attribute.

The general structure of an information system can be considered as a set of subsystems, regardless of the scope. In this case they say about the structural feature of the classification, and the subsystems are called providing. Thus, the structure of any information system can be represented by a set of supporting subsystems

Information, technical, mathematical, software, organizational and legal support are usually distinguished among the supporting subsystems.

Information Support

The purpose of the information support subsystem is the modern formation and issuance of reliable information for making management decisions.

Information Support- a set of a unified system of classification and coding of information, unified documentation systems, schemes of information flows circulating in an organization, as well as a methodology for building databases.

Unified documentation systems are created at the state, republican, sectoral and regional levels. The main goal is to ensure the comparability of indicators of various spheres of social production. Standards have been developed where the requirements are established:

  • to unified documentation systems;
  • to unified forms of documents of various levels of management;
  • to the composition and structure of details and indicators;
  • to the procedure for the implementation, maintenance and registration of unified forms of documents.

However, despite the existence of a unified documentation system, a survey of most organizations constantly reveals a whole range of typical shortcomings:

  • extremely large volume of documents for manual processing;
  • the same indicators are often duplicated in different documents;
  • working with a large number of documents distracts specialists from solving immediate problems;
  • there are indicators that are created but not used, etc.

Therefore, the elimination of these shortcomings is one of the tasks facing the creation of information support.

Information flow diagrams reflect the routes of information movement and its volumes, the places of origin of the primary information and the use of the resulting information. By analyzing the structure of such schemes, it is possible to develop measures to improve the entire management system.

The construction of information flow diagrams, allowing to identify the amount of information and carry out its detailed analysis, provides:

  • elimination of duplicate and unused information;
  • classification and rational presentation of information.

The methodology for building databases is based on the theoretical foundations of their design. To understand the concept of the methodology, we present its main ideas in the form of two successively implemented stages in practice:

1st stage - examination of all functional divisions of the company in order to:

  • understand the specifics and structure of its activities;
  • build a diagram of information flows;
  • analyze the existing document management system;
  • define information objects and the corresponding composition of attributes (parameters, characteristics) that describe their properties and purpose.

2nd stage - construction of a conceptual information-logical data model for the field of activity surveyed at the 1st stage. In this model, all connections between objects and their attributes must be established and optimized. The information-logical model is the foundation on which the database will be created.

  • a clear understanding of the goals, objectives, functions of the entire management system of the organization;
  • identifying the movement of information from the moment of its origin to its use at various levels of management, presented for analysis in the form of information flow schemes;
  • improvement of the document management system;
  • availability and use of a classification and coding system;
  • knowledge of the methodology for creating conceptual information-logical models that reflect the relationship of information;
  • creation of information arrays on computer media, which requires modern technical support.

Technical support

Technical support- a set of technical means intended for the operation of the information system, as well as the corresponding documentation for these means and technological processes

The complex of technical means consists of:

  • computers of any model;
  • devices for collecting, storing, processing, transmitting and outputting information;
  • data transmission devices and communication lines;
  • office equipment and devices for automatic information retrieval;
  • operating materials, etc.

Documentation formalizes the preliminary selection of technical means, the organization of their operation, the technological process of data processing, technological equipment. Documentation can be roughly divided into three groups:

  • system-wide, including state and industry standards for technical support;
  • specialized, containing a set of methods for all stages of development of technical support;
  • normative reference used when performing calculations for technical support.

To date, there are two main forms of organization of technical support (forms of using technical means): centralized and partially or completely decentralized.

Centralized technical support is based on the use of large computers and computing centers in the information system.

Decentralization of technical means involves the implementation of functional subsystems on personal computers directly at workplaces.

A promising approach should be considered, apparently, a partially decentralized approach - the organization of technical support on the basis of distributed networks consisting of personal computers and a mainframe for storing databases common to any functional subsystems.

Mathematical and software- a set of mathematical methods, models, algorithms and programs for the implementation of the goals and objectives of the information system, as well as the normal functioning of the complex of technical means.

To funds software relate:

  • tools for modeling management processes;
  • typical management tasks;
  • methods of mathematical programming, mathematical statistics, queuing theory, etc.

Part software includes system-wide and special software products, as well as technical documentation.

TO system-wide software includes complexes of programs aimed at users and designed to solve typical problems of information processing. They serve to expand the functionality of computers, control and manage the data processing process.

Special software is a set of programs developed when creating a specific information system. It includes applied software packages (APPs) that implement the developed models of varying degrees of adequacy, reflecting the functioning of a real object.

The technical documentation for the development of software should contain a description of the tasks, a task for algorithmization, an economic and mathematical model of the task, test examples.

Organizational support

Organizational support is a set of methods and means that regulate the interaction of workers with technical means and among themselves in the process of developing and operating an IS.

Organizational support implements the following functions:

  • analysis of the existing management system of the organization, where the IS will be used, and identification of tasks to be automated;
  • preparation of tasks for solving on a computer, including terms of reference for the design of IS and a feasibility study of its effectiveness;
  • development of management decisions on the composition and structure of the organization, methodology for solving problems aimed at increasing the efficiency of the management system.

Organizational support is created based on the results of a pre-project survey at the 1st stage of building a database.

Legal support

Legal support- a set of legal norms that determine the creation, legal status and operation of information systems, regulating the procedure for obtaining, transforming and using information.

The main purpose of legal support is to strengthen the rule of law.

The legal framework includes laws, decrees, decisions of state authorities, orders, instructions and other normative documents of ministries, departments, organizations, local authorities. In legal support, one can distinguish a general part that regulates the functioning of any information system, and a local part that regulates the functioning of a specific system.

Legal support for the stages of development of an information system includes regulations related to the contractual relationship between the developer and the customer and the legal regulation of deviations from the contract.

Legal support of the stages of functioning of the information system includes:

  • information system status;
  • rights, duties and responsibilities of personnel;
  • the procedure for creating and using information, etc.

Classification of information systems based on the structure of tasks

The concept of structured tasks

When creating or classifying information systems, problems inevitably arise associated with the formal - mathematical and algorithmic description of the problems being solved. The efficiency of the entire system, as well as the level of automation, determined by the degree of human participation in making decisions based on the information received, largely depends on the degree of formalization.

The more accurate the mathematical description of the problem, the higher the possibilities of computer data processing and the less the degree of human participation in the process of its solution. This determines the degree of automation of the task.

There are three types of tasks for which information systems are created: structured (formalized), unstructured (not formalized) and partially structured.

Structured (formalized) task- a task where all its elements and the relationship between them are known.

Unstructured (not formalized) task- a task in which it is impossible to select elements and establish links between them.

In a structured problem, it is possible to express its content in the form of a mathematical model that has an exact solution algorithm. Such tasks usually have to be solved many times, and they are of a routine nature. The purpose of using the information system to solve structured tasks is to fully automate their solution, i.e. reducing the role of a person to zero.

Types of information systems used to solve semi-structured tasks

Information systems used to solve partially structured tasks are divided into two types, creating management reports and focused mainly on data processing (search, sorting, aggregation, filtering). Using the information contained in these reports, the manager makes a decision;

Information Systems, creating management reports, provide information support to the user, i.e. provide access to information in the database and its partial processing. Data manipulation procedures in the information system should provide the following capabilities:

  • compilation of combinations of data obtained from various sources;
  • quick addition or exclusion of one or another data source and automatic switching of sources when searching for data;
  • data management using the capabilities of database management systems;
  • logical independence of this type of data from other databases included in the information support subsystem;
  • automatic tracking of the flow of information for filling the databases.

Information Systems, developing solution alternatives, can be model and expert.

Model information systems provide the user with mathematical, static, financial and other models, the use of which facilitates the development and evaluation of solution alternatives. The user can get the information he lacks for making a decision by establishing a dialogue with the model in the process of its research.

The main functions of the model information system are:

  • the ability to work in an environment of typical mathematical models, including the solution of basic modeling problems such as "how to do so?", "what will happen if?", sensitivity analysis, etc .;
  • sufficiently fast and adequate interpretation of the simulation results;
  • operational preparation and adjustment of input parameters and model constraints;
  • the ability to graphically display the dynamics of the model;
  • the ability to explain to the user the necessary steps for the formation and operation of the model.

Expert information systems ensure the development and assessment of possible alternatives by the user through the creation of expert systems associated with the processing of knowledge. Expert support for user-made decisions is implemented at two levels.

The work of the first level of expert support proceeds from the concept of "typical management decisions", in accordance with which problem situations that often arise in the management process can be reduced to some homogeneous classes of management decisions, i.e. to some typical set of alternatives. To implement expert support at this level, an information fund is created for storing and analyzing typical alternatives.

If the problem situation that has arisen is not associated with the existing classes of typical alternatives, the second level of expert support for managerial decisions should come into operation. This level generates alternatives based on the data available in the information fund, transformation rules and procedures for evaluating synthesized alternatives.

Other classifications of information systems

Classification by degree of automation

Depending on the degree of automation of information processes in the company's management system, information systems are defined as manual, automatic, automated

Handheld ICs characterized by the absence of modern technical means of information processing and the performance of all operations by a person. For example, about the activities of a manager in a company that does not have computers, we can say that he works with manual IS.

Automatic ICs perform all information processing operations without human intervention.

Automated ICs imply the participation in the process of information processing both a person and technical means, with the main role being assigned to a computer. In the modern interpretation, the term "information system" necessarily includes the concept of an automated system.

Automated ISs, given their widespread use in the organization of management processes, have various modifications and can be classified, for example, by the nature of the use of information and by the scope.

Classification by the nature of information use

Information retrieval systems produce input, systematization, storage, issuance of information at the request of the user without complex data transformations. For example, an information retrieval system in a library, in railway and air ticket offices.

Information-solving systems carry out all operations of information processing according to a certain algorithm. Among them, it is possible to classify according to the degree of influence of the resulting information on the decision-making process and distinguish two classes: managers and advisers.

IS managers generate information on the basis of which a person makes a decision. These systems are characterized by the type of tasks of a computational nature and the processing of large amounts of data. An example is a system for operational planning of production, an accounting system.

Advisory ISs generate information that is taken into account by a person and does not immediately turn into a series of concrete actions. These systems have a higher degree of intelligence, since they are characterized by the processing of knowledge, not data.

Classification by scope

Information Systems organizational management are designed to automate the functions of management personnel. Given the widest application and diversity of this class of systems, often any information systems are understood precisely in this interpretation. This class includes information management systems for both industrial firms and non-industrial facilities: hotels, banks, trading companies, etc. The main functions of such systems are: operational control and regulation, operational accounting and analysis, prospective and operational planning, accounting, management sales and supply and other economic and organizational tasks.

Process control IC (TP) serve to automate the functions of production personnel. They are widely used in the organization to maintain the technological process in the metallurgical and mechanical engineering industries.

Computer-aided design (CAD) ICs designed to automate the functions of design engineers, designers, architects, designers when creating a new technique or technology. The main functions of such systems are: engineering calculations, creation of graphic documentation (drawings, diagrams, plans), creation of project documentation, modeling of designed objects.

Integrated (corporate) IS are used to automate all functions of the company and cover the entire cycle of work from design to sales of products. The creation of such systems is very difficult, since it requires a systematic approach from the standpoint of the main goal, for example, making a profit, conquering a sales market, etc. This approach can lead to significant changes in the very structure of the company, which not every manager can decide on.

Documentary information systems

Unlike factual information systems, a single data element in documentary [information systems] is a document unstructured into smaller elements. In the overwhelming majority of cases, unstructured documents are primarily text documents presented in the form of text files, although the class of unstructured documented data may also include sound and graphic files.

The main task of documentary information systems is the accumulation and provision of documents to the user, content, subject matter, details, etc., which are adequate to his information needs. Therefore, we can give the following definition of a documentary information system- a single repository of documents with tools for searching and selecting the necessary documents. The search character of documentary information systems has historically determined another name for them - information retrieval systems (ISS), although this term does not fully reflect the specifics of documentary IS.

The correspondence of the found documents to the user's information needs is called pertinence.

Due to theoretical and practical difficulties in formalizing the semantic content of documents, pertinence is more likely to be a qualitative concept, although, as will be discussed below, it can be expressed in certain quantitative indicators.

Depending on the implementation features of the document storage and search mechanisms, documentary IRS can be divided into two groups:

  • systems based on indexing;
  • semantic navigation systems.

V semantic navigation systems documents placed in the repository (base) of documents are equipped with special navigation structures corresponding to semantic connections (references) between different documents or separate fragments of one document. Such constructions implement some semantic * (notional) network in the document base. The method and mechanism for expressing information needs in such systems are based on explicit user navigation through semantic references between documents. This approach is currently being implemented in hypertext information systems.

V indexing systems the original documents are placed in the base without any additional transformation, but the semantic content of each document is displayed in a certain search space. The process of displaying a document in the search space is called indexing and consists in assigning each document some index-coordinate in the search space. The formalized representation (description) of the document index is called the document search image (POD). The user expresses his information needs by means and language of the search space, forming a search image of a request (POP) to the document base. The system, based on certain criteria and methods, searches for documents, the search images of which match or are close to the search patterns of the user's request, and issues the corresponding documents. The correspondence of the found documents to the user's request is called relevance. The general principle of the structure and functioning of documentary IRS based on indexing is schematically illustrated in Fig.

Rice. General principle of the structure and functioning of documentary IRS based on indexing

A feature of documentary ISS is also the fact that their functions, as a rule, include the tasks of informing users about all new documents entering the system that correspond to the predetermined information needs of the user.

The principle of solving the problems of information notification in documentary ISS based on indexing is similar to the principle of solving the problems of searching for documents by queries and is based on displaying the user's information needs in the search space in the form of so-called search user profiles (RFP). As new documents are received and indexed, the information retrieval system compares their images with the search profiles of users and decides on the appropriate notification. The principle of solving the problems of information notification is schematically illustrated in Fig.

Rice. The principle of solving the problems of information notification in documentary ISS based on indexing

The search space, which displays search images of documents and implements mechanisms for information retrieval of documents, as in the DBMS of factual systems, is built on the basis of document database languages, called information retrieval languages ​​(IPL). Information retrieval language is a kind of formalized semantic system designed to express the content of the document and requests to find the necessary documents. By analogy with the languages ​​of databases of factual systems, IPL can be divided into structural and manipulation components.

Structural component The IPL (search space) of documentary ISS based on indexing is implemented by indexes in the form of information retrieval catalogs, thesauri and general indexes.

Information retrieval catalogs are traditional technologies for organizing information retrieval in documentary collections of libraries, archives and represent a classification system of knowledge in a certain subject area. The semantic content of a document in information retrieval catalogs is displayed by one or another class of the catalog, and indexing of documents consists in assigning a special code (index) to each document of the corresponding class (classes) of the catalog and creating on this basis a special index index.

Thesaurus is a specially organized set of basic lexical units (concepts) of the subject area (vocabulary of terms) and a description of the paradigmatic relations between them. Paradigmatic relationships are expressed by semantic relationships between vocabulary elements that do not depend on any context. Independence from the context means generalization (abstraction) of semantic relations, for example, the relations "genus-species", "object-whole", "subject-object-means-place-time of action". Just as in information retrieval catalogs, in systems based on thesaurus, not the entire text of a document is displayed in the information retrieval space, but only the semantic content of the document expressed by means of the thesaurus.

General index (concordance)(global dictionary-index) in general form is a listing of all words (word forms) available in the documents of the repository, indicating (references) the coordinate location of each word (document number - paragraph number - sentence number - word number). Indexing of a new document in such systems is carried out through the addition of coordinate references of those word forms of the general index that are present in the new document. Since the search space in such systems fully reflects the entire text of the document (all words of the document), and not only its semantic content, such systems are called full-text IRS.

In the specialized literature, such systems are sometimes called systems without lexical control, that is, without taking into account the possible synonymy of individual groups of word forms, combining individual groups of word forms into general semantic groups, semantic relations between word forms.

Structural component The IPL of semantic-navigation systems is implemented in the form of a technique of semantic references in the texts of documents and a special navigation interface for them and is currently represented by hypertext technologies.

The search (manipulation) component of the IPL implemented by descriptor and semantic query languages. V descriptor languages documents and queries are represented by sets of certain lexical units (words, phrases, terms) - descriptors that have no connections with each other, or, as they say, have no grammar. Thus, each document or request is associated or, better said, represented by a set of descriptors. The search is performed by searching for documents with a suitable set of descriptors. The elements-descriptors are either elements of the dictionary of key terms, or elements of the general index (global dictionary of all word forms). Due to the absence of links between descriptors, the set of which for a specific document and a specific request expresses, respectively, the search image of the document - POD or the search image of the POZ query, such languages ​​are used primarily in full-text systems.

Semantic languages contain grammatical and semantic constructions for expressing (describing) the semantic content of documents and requests. The whole variety of semantic languages ​​is divided into two large groups:

  • predicate languages;
  • relational languages.

V predicate languages as an elementary meaningful construction of an utterance, a predicate is used, which is a multi-place relation of a certain set of grammatical elements. The multiplace relationship means that each element of the predicate plays a specific role for a group of lexical elements as a whole, but does not have a specific relationship with each element of this group separately. An analogue of a predicate statement in natural language is a sentence stating a certain fact or describing a certain event.

V relational languages lexical units of utterances can only enter into binary (with each other), but not into joint, that is, not multiplace relations.

Functional classes of a natural language act as lexical units of semantic languages, the most important of which are:

  • concept-classes (a general definition of a set of homogeneous elements of the real world, which have a certain characteristic set of properties that allow one concept-classes to be separated from others);
  • concept-action (the lexical element expressing the dynamics of the real world contains a universal set of attributes, including the subject of action, object of action, time of action, place of action, instrument of action, goal, etc.);
  • concept-states (lexical elements that fix the states of objects);
  • names (lexical elements that identify class concepts);
  • relations (lexical elements used to establish relationships on a set of concepts and names);
  • quantifiers (universality, existence, etc.).

Semantic languages ​​form the linguistic-manipulation basis of information retrieval catalogs, thesauri and semantic-navigation (hypertext) ISS, describing by their own means the catalogs themselves, thesauri, semantic networks and expressing the semantic content of documents and queries.

Performance indicators

The main indicators of the effectiveness of the functioning of documentary IRS are the completeness and accuracy of information retrieval.

Completeness of information retrieval R is determined by the ratio of the number of found pertinent documents A to the total number of pertinent documents C available in the system or in the studied set of documents:

Information retrieval accuracy P is determined by the ratio of the number of found pertinent documents A to the total number of documents L issued at the user's request:

The presence of irrelevant documents among the selected at the user's request is called the information noise of the system. Information Noise Ratio k, respectively, is determined by the ratio of the number of irrelevant documents (L – A) issued in response to the user to the total number of documents L issued at the user's request:

Ideally, the completeness of information retrieval and the accuracy of information retrieval should be close to unity, although in practice their values ​​range from 60 to 90%.

Literature

1. Danilevsky Yu.G., Petukhov I.A., Shibanov B.C. Information technology in industry. - L .: Mechanical engineering. Leningrad. branch, 1988.

2. Information technology, economics, culture / Sat. reviews and abstracts. - M .: INION RAN, 1995.

3. Information systems in economics / Ed. V.V. Dick. - M .: Finance and statistics, 1996.

Information systems can be classified according to a variety of different criteria. The classification under consideration is based on the most essential features that determine the functionality and features of the construction of modern systems. Depending on the volume of tasks to be solved, the technical means used, the organization of functioning, information systems are divided into a number of groups (classes)

Rice. 1.1.

  • 1. According to the type of stored data, IP are divided into factual and documentary.
  • - Factographic systems are designed to store and process structured data in the form of numbers and texts. Various operations can be performed on such data.
  • - In documentary systems, information is presented in the form of documents, consisting of titles, descriptions, abstracts and texts. Searching on unstructured data is carried out using semantic features. Selected documents are provided to the user, and data processing in such systems is practically not performed.
  • 2. Based on the degree of automation of information processes in the management system of the company, information systems are divided into manual, automatic and automated.
  • - Manual ICs are characterized by the absence of modern technical means of information processing and the performance of all operations by a person.
  • - In automatic information systems, all information processing operations are performed without human intervention.
  • - Automated information systems involve the participation of both humans and technical means in the process of information processing, and the main role in performing routine data processing operations is assigned to the computer. It is this class of systems that corresponds to the modern understanding of the concept of "information system".
  • 3. Depending on the nature of data processing, IS are divided into information retrieval and information-decisive ones.
  • - Information retrieval systems carry out input, systematization, storage, issuance of information at the request of the user without complex data transformations. (For example, IS of library services, reservation and sale of tickets for transport, booking rooms in hotels, etc.)
  • - Information-decision systems carry out, in addition, information processing operations according to a specific algorithm. By the nature of the use of output information, such systems are usually divided into managers and advisers.

The resulting information of the managing IS is directly transformed into human decisions. These systems are characterized by computational tasks and processing large amounts of data. (For example, IS of production planning or orders, accounting.)

Counseling IS generate information that is taken into account by a person and is taken into account in the formation of management decisions, and does not initiate specific actions. These systems simulate intelligent knowledge processing, not data. (For example, expert systems.)

  • 4. Depending on the scope of application, the following IP classes are distinguished.
  • - Organizational management information systems are designed to automate the functions of management personnel of both industrial enterprises and non-industrial facilities (hotels, banks, shops, etc.).

The main functions of such systems are: operational control and regulation, operational accounting and analysis, long-term and operational planning, accounting, sales and supply management and other economic and organizational tasks.

Process control ICs (TP) are used to automate the functions of production personnel to control and manage production operations.

In such systems, it is usually provided for the presence of developed means for measuring the parameters of technological processes (temperature, pressure, chemical composition, etc.), procedures for monitoring the permissibility of parameter values ​​and regulating technological processes.

  • - Computer-aided design (CAD) ICs are designed to automate the functions of design engineers, designers, architects, designers when creating new equipment or technology. The main functions of such systems are: engineering calculations, creation of graphic documentation (drawings, diagrams, plans), creation of project documentation, modeling of designed objects.
  • - Integrated (corporate) IS are used to automate all functions of the company and cover the entire cycle of work from planning activities to sales of products. They include a number of modules (subsystems) operating in a single information space and performing the functions of supporting the corresponding areas of activity.
  • 5. There is a classification of IS depending on the level of management at which the system is used.
  • - An information system of the operational level supports executors by processing data on transactions and events (invoices, invoices, salaries, loans, flow of raw materials and supplies). The operational level information system is the link between the firm and the external environment.

Tasks, goals, sources of information and processing algorithms at the operational level are predefined and highly structured.

  • - Information systems of specialists support work with data and knowledge, increase the productivity and productivity of engineers and designers. The task of such information systems is to integrate new information into the organization and help in processing paper documents.
  • - Management-level information systems are used by middle-level managers for monitoring, control, decision-making and administration. The main functions of these information systems:
    • * comparison of current indicators with the past;
    • * drawing up periodic reports for a certain time, and not issuing reports on current events, as at the operational level;
    • * providing access to archival information, etc.
  • - Strategic information system - a computer information system that provides support for decision-making on the implementation of strategic long-term development goals of the organization.

Strategic-level information systems help top managers solve unstructured tasks and carry out long-term planning.

The main task is to compare the changes taking place in the external environment with the existing potential of the company. They are designed to create a common environment for computer telecommunications decision support in unexpected situations.

Using the most sophisticated programs, these systems are capable of providing information from many sources at any time. Some strategic systems have limited analytical capabilities.

  • 6. From the point of view of software and hardware implementation, a number of typical IC architectures can be distinguished.
  • - Traditional architectural solutions are based on the use of dedicated file servers or database servers.
  • - There are also variants of architectures of corporate information systems based on Internet technology (Intranet applications).
  • - The next type of information system architecture is based on the concept of "data warehouse" - an integrated information environment that includes heterogeneous information resources.
  • - And, finally, to build global distributed information applications, the architecture of integration of information and computing components based on an object-oriented approach is used.

Classification of information systems

Information system- an interconnected set of tools, methods and personnel used to store, process and issue information in order to achieve the set goal

Scale classification

In terms of scale, information systems are subdivided into the following groups:

    single;

    group;

    corporate.

Classification by scope

According to the scope of application, information systems are usually divided into four groups:

    transaction processing systems;

    decision making systems;

    information and reference systems;

    office information systems.

Classification by way of organization

By the way of organization, group and corporate information systems are divided into the following classes:

    systems based on file-server architecture;

    systems based on client-server architecture;

    systems based on layered architecture;

    systems based on Internet / intranet technologies.

In any information system, you can identify the necessary functional components that help to understand the limitations of various architectures of information systems.

By the nature of the stored information, databases are divided into factual and documentary... If we draw an analogy with the examples of information storages described above, then factual databases are card indexes, and documentary databases are archives. Brief information is stored in factual databases in a strictly defined format. In documentary databases - all kinds of documents. Moreover, it can be not only text documents, but also graphics, video and sound (multimedia).

An automated control system (ACS) is a complex of hardware and software, together with organizational structures (individuals or a team), which ensures the management of an object (complex) in an industrial, scientific or social environment.

Allocate information systems of education management (for example, personnel, applicant, student, library programs). Automated systems for scientific research (ASNI), which are software and hardware complexes that process data from various kinds of experimental installations and measuring instruments, and on the basis of their analysis facilitate the detection of new effects and patterns. Computer-aided design systems and geoinformation systems.

An artificial intelligence system built on the basis of high-quality specialized knowledge about a certain subject area (obtained from experts - specialists in this area) is called an expert system. Expert systems - one of the few types of artificial intelligence systems - have become widespread and have found practical application. There are expert systems for military affairs, geology, engineering, computer science, space technology, mathematics, medicine, meteorology, industry, agriculture, management, physics, chemistry, electronics, law, etc. And only the fact that expert systems remain very complex, expensive, and most importantly, highly specialized programs, hinders their even wider distribution.

Expert systems (ES) are computer programs created to perform those types of activities that are within the power of a human expert. They work in such a way that they mimic the behavior of a human expert, and differ significantly from accurate, well-reasoned algorithms and do not resemble the mathematical procedures of most traditional designs.

Types of information services

In the process of development of automated information retrieval systems, three types of information services were formed: documentary, factual and conceptual. Each of these types has its own information system.

The essence of documentary services lies in the fact that the information needs of members of society are satisfied by providing them with primary documents, the necessary information from which consumers extract themselves. Usually, competent documentary service is carried out in two stages: first, the consumer is provided with a certain set of relevant (relevance - the semantic correspondence of the content of the document to the information request (semantic correspondence between two texts)) to his request for secondary documents (this stage is called bibliographic), and then, after the consumer selects from This set of a certain number of documents already pertinent (pertinence is the correspondence of the content of the document to the informational needs of a particular specialist) documents, he is provided with the documents themselves (this stage is called library service). Thus, the need for information in documentary service is satisfied indirectly, through the primary document.

In contrast to documentary service, factual service involves the satisfaction of information needs directly, i.e. by providing consumers with the information itself (individual data, facts, concepts). This information, which is also relevant to the needs of consumers, is preliminarily extracted by information workers from primary documents and, after certain processing (registration), is presented to consumers. The very concept of "factual information" should be clarified. It should be understood as information not only of an actual nature, but also of a theoretical, conjectural, evaluative nature, i.e. include both facts and concepts, everything that can be an object of extraction from the text, description in a specific information language, storage and search in a particular information system.

If, in the case of documentary and factual service, the information consumer is provided with documents or information extracted from the information flow, so to speak, in "natural" form, then during conceptual service all this (documents and information) is interpreted, evaluated, and generalized by the information worker. As a result of this interpretation, the so-called situational information is formulated, containing an assessment of the information under consideration, trends and prospects for the development of certain scientific and technical areas, recommendations, etc. the form not contained in the analyzed sources, but obtained as a result of information-logical and conceptographic analysis of a certain set of messages. In other words, in the case of a conceptual service, the consumer is presented not only with information about the document or the information itself from the document, but also with some additional information introduced by the information worker in the process of their interpretation.

All types of information services operate on the basis of their specific series of secondary documents. As a matter of fact, each of the types of service is reduced to the creation of its own number of secondary documents and bringing them to the consumer by various means and in different modes of information service.

A significant increase in the efficiency of information systems in the present conditions, when the possibilities of introducing high-performance technical means into the information process are open, can be achieved through their automation. The emergence of automated information systems is the result of an objective process caused by the scientific and technological revolution. These systems, integrating information, provide a comprehensive solution to management problems.

Documentary information systems serve a fundamentally different class of tasks that do not imply an unambiguous answer to the question posed. The database of such systems is formed by a set of unstructured text documents (articles, books, abstracts, texts of laws, etc.) and graphic objects, equipped with one or another formalized search apparatus.

The purpose of the system, as a rule, is to issue, in response to a user's request, a list of documents that, to some extent, satisfy the conditions formulated in the request. For example, list all articles that contain the word "entropy". A fundamental feature of the documentary system is its ability, on the one hand, to issue documents unnecessary to the user (for example, where "entropy" is used in a different sense than intended), and on the other hand, not to issue the necessary documents (for example, if the author used some synonym or misspelled).

In factual IS, facts are registered - specific values ​​of data (attributes) about objects in the real world. The main idea of ​​such systems is that all information about objects (names of people and names of objects, numbers, dates) is reported to the computer in some predetermined format. The information with which the factual IS works has a clear structure that allows the machine to distinguish one given from another, for example, a surname from a person's position, date of birth from height, etc.

Factographic systems, in contrast to documentary ones, are able to unambiguously solve assigned tasks and give unambiguous answers to queries. These ISs are sometimes conventionally divided into information and reference systems, information retrieval systems and operational data processing systems.

In terms of the scale and principles of data access, we distinguish between:

Desktop (stand-alone) or "personal" IS;

Simple network ICs built using "file-server" technology;

Powerful information systems in client-server architecture.

Factographic ICs can be classified according to the principle: universal and specialized.

Universal systems can work with any subject area, with any "stuffing", if the data is organized in accordance with the principles we have considered and formalized according to the additional requirements of a specific IS. In addition, it can sort texts, compose dictionaries, and perform a number of other formal data processing operations. For such a system, for example, there is no concept of "Disease" ("Diagnosis"), - there is a certain code of an instance, which is accompanied by a set of arbitrary characters of a certain length (name) and which can equally be the code of the disease, and the code of the plant, and the official the person's number. The scope of such systems is wide - from personal ("personal") databases of all kinds to professional systems (humanitarian databases, medicine, small offices).

Specialized IP is widely used in material production, banking, forensic science, scientific research.