Chapter 2 Flashcards
the four operations (data input, data storage, data processing, and information output) performed on data to generate meaningful and relevant information
data processing cycle
data must be collected about three facets of each business activity
- Each activity of interest
- The resources affected by each activity
- the people who participate in each activity
documents used to capture transaction data at its source-when the transactions takes place. Examples include sales orders, and employee time cards.
source documents
records of company data sent to an external party and then returned to the system as input. They are machine readable form to facilitate their subsequent processing as input records. Ex. utility bill
turnaround document
the collection of transaction data in machine readable form at the time and place of origin. Examples are point of sale terminals and ATMs
source data automation
there are 3 steps in processing data input
- Capture transaction data and enter them into the system
- Make sure captured data are accurate and complete
- Make sure company policies are followed, such as approving or verifying a transaction
a ledger that contains summary level data for every asset, liability, equity, revenue, and expense account of the organization
general ledger
a ledger used to record detailed data for a general ledger account with many individual subaccounts, such as accounts receivable, inventory, and accounts payable.
subsidiary ledger
a title give to a general ledger account that summarizes the total amounts recorded in a subsidiary ledger. For example, the accounts receivable control account in the general ledger represents the total amount owed by the customers. The balances in the accounts receivable subsidiary ledger indicate the amount owed by each specific customer
control ledger
the systematic assignment of numbers or letter to items to classify and organize them.
coding
items are numbered consecutively so that gap in the sequence code indicate missing items that should be investigated. Examples include pre-numbered checks, invoices, and purchase orders.
sequence codes
blocks of numbers that are reserved for specific categories of data, thereby helping to organize the data. An example is a chart of accounts
block codes
two or more subgroups of digits that are used to code an item. A group code is often used in conjunction with a block code
group codes
letters and numbers that are interspersed to identify an item. this code is derived from the description of the item and is usually easy to memorize.
mnemonic code
a listing of all the numbers assigned to balance sheet and income statement accounts. The account numbers allow transaction data to be coded, classified, and entered into the proper accounts. They also facilitate financial statement and report preparation
chart of accounts
a journal used to record infrequent or non-routine transactions, such as loan payments and end of period adjusting and closing entries.
general journal
a journal used to record a large number of repetitive transactions such as credit sales, cash receipts, purchases and cash disbursements.
specialized journal
a path that allows a transaction to be traced through a data processing system from point of origin to output or backwards from output to point of origin.
Audit trail
Audit trails are used for
checking the accuracy and validity of ledger postings and tracing changes in general ledger accounts from their beginning balance to their ending balance
the item about which information is stored in a record. Examples include an employee, an inventory item, and a customer
entity
the properties, identifying numbers, and characteristics of interest of an entity that is stored in a database. Examples are employee number, pay rate, name and address.
attributes
the portion of data record where the data value for a particular attribute is stored. For example, in a spreadsheet each row might represent a customer and each column is an attribute of the customer. Each cell in a spreadsheet is a
field
a set of fields whose data values describe specific attributes of an entity, such as all payroll data relating to a single employee. An example is a row in a spreadsheet.
record
the actual value stored in a field. it describes particular attribute of an entity. For example, the customer name field would contain “XYZ company”
data value
a set of logically related records, such as the payroll records of all employees.
file
a permanent file of records that stores cumulative data about an organization. As transactions take place, individual records within a _________ are updated to keep them current
master file
a file that contains the individual business transactions that occur during a specific fiscal period A _________ is conceptually similar to a journal in a manual AIS
transaction file
a set of interrelated, centrally controlled data files that are stored wth as little data redundancy as possible. consolidates records previously stored in separate files into a common pool and serves a variety of users and data processing applications
database
Four different types of data processing
- Creating new records like adding new employees to payroll database
- Reading, retrieving, or viewing existing data
- Updating previously stored data
- Deleting data, like purging the master file of vendors no longer do business with.
accumulating transaction records into groups for processing at a regular interval such as daily or weekly. Records usually sorted in some kind of sequence (numerically or alphabetically)
batch processing
the computer system processes data immediately after capture and provides updated information to users on a timely basis
online, real-time processing
record of a transaction or other company data. Examples include checks, invoices, receiving reports, and purchase requisitions
documents
system output, organized in a meaningful fashion, that is used by employees to control operational activities, by managers to make decisions and design strategies, and by investors and creditors to understand a company’s business activities.
reports
a request for the database to provide the information needed to deal with a problem or answer a question. The information is retrieved, displayed or printed and/or analyzed as requested
queries
