Analysis Essay Discussion Paper
Your essay must be at least 1500 words (approximately 4-5 pages). Microsoft Word has a word count feature, and you can usually view the word count in the bar at the bottom of Word. If necessary, search Google for help on how to view the Word count in Microsoft Word. Please download the attached template, which contains additional instructions (and make sure you follow all instructions in the template!). The template document is also formatted correctly for your essay, so you are encouraged to write directly in the attached document (replacing the paragraphs of instruction with your paragraphs addressing each section). Also note that the template is organized into the specific sections you are required to write about in your essay. Please leave all centered sub-headings in the essay, and do not change the wording of them — they are important for organizing your essay and facilitating grading by the rubric.
Please write only in your own words. You are encouraged to read various sources to learn more about your information system, or about information systems in general, but due to the brief length of the essay, you are discouraged from directly quoting from your sources. Instead, explain what you learned from your research and what you know from your own experience with the system, in your own words. List the references you consulted in your research at the bottom of your essay in APA format (minimum of 3 references).
In Analysis Essay #1, you will address the following: 1) introduction to your information system, 2) characteristics of the users of the information system, 3) server-side and client-side hardware and software of the system, 4) description of the features/functions of your information system, including the data inputs and information outputs associated with each feature and how each feature is used within your organization, and 5) conclusion. Specific details about what to include in each section can be found in the attached template.
Your essay will automatically be checked for plagiarism by TurnItIn. There must be no more than 15% similarity to sources to receive credit for this assignment.
Replace this Line with the Title of Your Essay
Your Name Goes Here
American Public University System
Replace this Line with the Title of Your Essay
Start your introductory paragraph(s) here (i.e., delete all of my paragraphs of instruction after reading through them, and replace them with your own paragraphs for your essay). Leave the font for your essay on Arial 10, double-spaced. Leave the margins at 1 inch. Leave page numbering set to automatically number each page of the body of your essay in the upper-right corner of the page (the title page and reference page should not be numbered). The body of your essay should be approximately 4-5 pages long (minimum of 1500 words), not including your title page and reference page.
Make sure all writing is in full sentences and complete paragraphs – no lists or bullet statements. Do not adjust the margins or add indentations, and do not add blank lines between paragraphs or before or after section headings and sub-headings. You may include images or tables in your essay, if needed, but they do not count toward the minimum 1500 words, so adjust the length of your essay accordingly to compensate for space taken up by the images and/or tables.
You should customize the title page by replacing the first two lines of text with your essay’s title and your name, respectively. You should also replace the heading at the top of this page with your essay’s title. However, do not modify or remove the section sub-headings that appear below, throughout the rest of your essay (i.e., “Characteristics of the Users of the System,” “Features and Usage of the System,” “Impact of the System,” “Conclusion,” and “References”) and do not add additional sub-headings. Leave all of the section sub-headings in your document to keep it organized. Everyone is required to write the same sections in their essay. You will analyze your own unique approved information system, filling in each section of this template appropriately.
Write in your own words and remember that your similarity rating must be 15% or less. Try to paraphrase and explain information you learn from your sources in your own words, rather than quoting from your sources. Your reference page does not count towards your 15% allowable similarity. To check this, after your TurnItIn report is generated, there should be a filter you can click on in the report that will bring up the option to “Exclude Bibliography.” After selecting this option, your adjusted similarity rating needs to be 15% or less. I will select “Exclude Bibliography” on all essays before grading them, to adjust the actual similarity rating in your essay and confirm it is no more than 15%.
Your introductory paragraph(s) should provide an overview of your information system by briefly describing your information system and explaining the purpose of the information system. You can also provide an overview of the primary users of the system, and the primary features and functions of the system. However, try not to be overly redundant in your introduction with what you have written (or will write) in the main sections in the body of your essay. Rather, give the reader an overview and whet their appetite to learn more about your information system.
Characteristics of the Users of the System
In this section, describe the characteristics of the users of the system. Who are the users? If it is a work-related system, describe the employees or employee groups who use the system. If it is a personal web-based system, what types of people use this system? Why do they use the system?
Server-Side Hardware Requirements
In this section, briefly describe the server-side hardware requirements of the information system. If you do not have access to specific information about the server-side hardware, you may make educated assumptions for this section and describe a typical server-side hardware configuration that you believe would be required to support your information system. What types of hardware servers do you think the system requires? File servers? Web servers? Is the system large enough that a server farm is required? What types of hardware back-up devices might be used at the server end of the system? Is there any other type of hardware that might be required at the server end to support the information system?
Server-Side Software Requirements
In this section, briefly describe the server-side software requirements of the information system. If you do not have access to specific information about the server-side software, you may make educated assumptions for this section and describe typical server-side software that you believe would be required to support your information system. Be sure to identify any operating system software, application software, cloud computing software and/or open source software that your information system is likely to be using at the server end of the system. Does the system require custom software running on the server to manage the system? What type of database software might be used at the server end to store the data input into the system? Is there any other type of software that might be required at the server end to support the information system?
Client-Side Hardware Requirements
In this section, briefly describe the client-side hardware requirements of the information system. What types of hardware devices can be used to access the information system? Be sure to consider desktop computers, laptop computers, tablets, smartphones, and other handheld computing devices. Are there any other special types of hardware that a user needs? If it is a military system, is a CAC reader required to access the system?
Client-Side Software Requirements
In this section, briefly describe the client-side software requirements of the information system. Be sure to identify any operating system software, application software, cloud computing software and/or open source software that your information system is likely to be using at the client end of the system. Is there special client-side software that needs to be installed on the user’s computer? If it is a web-based information system, is what type(s) of Web browsers can be used to access the system? Is any other special software required to use the system?
Features and Usage of the System
In this section, describe what the system does, from a user’s perspective. When you log into the system, what choices do you have for what you can do with it? Look at the menu options in your system and decide which functions of the system are most important. Choose at least three of these main functions/features and describe each one in its own well-developed paragraph (one paragraph per function). When describing a function, walk the user through that function, describing the interactions the user has with the system. What data or information does the user enter into that function? What does the information system do with that data? Does it transform it in some way? How is that data later retrieved or displayed (output)? What is that data used for? In this way, you are giving a “data trace” for each function you choose and describing what data is input into the system, how that data is processed by the system, and what information is output from that function.
As an example, if your information system is Facebook, you might describe “Status Updates” as one function of the system. You would describe the purpose of a status update and then describe how you use this function. You would describe how the user enters a status update (i.e., click on status update box and type your post). You would describe any options that the function has (i.e., add photos to your post, tag people in your post, add a location to your post, select the audience for your post, etc.). You would discuss what the system does with the data you input and you would describe how that information is displayed and output again. For example, for the Facebook “Status Update” function, you would describe how Facebook saves your status updates in its database, and how it displays it in your friends’ news feeds, as well as on your timeline.
For another example, if you are analyzing a work-related system, the output of some features of your system might take the form of reports generated for management, or automatically generated emails or notifications, or simply queries that you can run which display information on your computer screen.
Conclusion
Finally, write your concluding paragraph(s) in this section. Try to write a strong conclusion that both ties your essay together and makes a strong final impact on the reader. Rather than simply re-stating what you have already discussed, try to use this section to take the reader one step further. There are many ways to do this and I will leave it to your creativity to come up with an appropriate conclusion for your essay!
References
List your references in APA format on this page. I have set this page to use hanging indentations (as required in APA references). You must have at least 3 references.