INFORMATION PROCESSING

Data vs Information
Data is raw facts and figures Information is the result of processed data Information processing is the acquisition ,

recording, organization, retrieval, display, and dissemination of information. (Encyclopedia Britannica)

Forms of Information Processing

Automation the act of using computers and

machines instead of human labour Process Control Commercial Data Processing Industrial Data Processing Scientific Data Processing

Assignment Write a paragraph on each of

the above forms of information processing.

Source Documents
These are documents from which data is

copied into a system e.g. Airline tickets, prescription invoices, multiple choice sheets, medical records Data may be keyed in manually or scanned into the computer using appropriate hardware and software

Turnaround documents
This is a document that has been printed by a

computer, filled out then used as a source document. Eg. Completed forms

Human Readable & Machine Readable Documents

Human Readable Documents are those in a

form for humans to read

Machine Readable Documents are those

encoded in such a way that can be easily read by computers.

The entire document dont usually have to be

readable. Usually there is a combination of both human and machine readable portions

Validation and Verification

Validation is the process by which data is checked to ensure that it is reasonable and

complete. In order to validate data you can

Range checks Reasonableness checks Data type checks Inconsistency checks

Verification is the process of confirming that the data that is entered into the computer is the

same as what was written on the source document

Difference between Verification and Validation

Verification checks to see if data was keyed in

correctly whereas validation checks whether the correct kind of data was entered

Range Checks
It makes sure that values fall between

specified minimum and maximum. Eg. Students attending secondary school ages should fall within a specific range , say 11 18 yrs

Reasonableness Checks
This determines whether values are

reasonable making sure they dont deviate from established norms E.g. if someone puts the height of a 2-yr-old as 5ft it should be flagged as unreasonable since toddlers arent so tall

Data Type Checks

This ensures that the values keyed in are the

correct type E.g when text is keyed in where the value is suppose to be numeric To prevent such problems the data entry software should be designed to validate data type.

Inconsistency Checks
These tests to see if there are any conflicts

between related data items. E.g. the ending date of a course being before the starting date of the course E.g. a discount being more than the original price of an item

File Organization
Data is stored in files and there are a number

of ways in which this is done

Sequential
Random Indexed sequential

Sequential Organization
This is when the records are physically stored

in the same order that they are logically organized Eg. Alphabetically or chronologically
Disadvantage: it is slow to access records

randomly; it takes a lot of time and effort to organize and maintain

Random Organisation
The computer calculates where each record

should be stored.

Indexed Sequential Organisation

An indexed sequential file is a sequential file

which is indexed as well so that the records can be accessed directly . This means that records can be quickly accessed both sequentially and directly
Disadvantage: it takes a lot to maintain than

a regular sequential file since the index needs to be up-to-date as well

Questions
1. What is the difference between data and information? Give an example 2. What is information processing? 3. Describe four forms of information processing 4. What is information retrieval? 5. Define the following terms
1. 2. 3. 4.

Source document Turnaround document Human-readable document Machine-readable document

Use of the Various file Organisation

Sequential Access file is used where the computer needs to search through every record

in the database.
Eg. A payroll program-when calculating pay the

program processes records in order

Random/Direct Access file is used when there is

need to quickly find one record in a large database.

Eg. A supermarket point-of-sale when the barcode is

scanned the computer must immediately find the price of that product in the large database.

AREAS OF USE

INFORMATION PROCESSING

Industrial Use
Through the use of control systems, it is

possible to
Control environment
Control processes (Process Control ) Automation

Commercial Uses
Batch Processing Information Retrieval Information management

Scientific Uses
To regulate experiments and maintain the experimental process To take measurements, with precision, over long periods, or in extreme conditions To process results, for eg by performing calculations To store data and to help search for answers To present results, for e.g. in graphs, scientific papers and presentations To keep records and to share results with other scientists.