Accounting Information System
1. What is data vis-à-vis information? When can information be deemed good and useful? How are these related/ connected to an information system?
Data are facts, which may or may not be processed (edited, summarized, or refined) and have no direct effect on the user. By contrast, information causes the user to take an action that he or she otherwise could not, or would not, have taken. Information is often defined simply as processed data. This is an inadequate definition. Information is determined by the effect it has on the user, not by its physical form. We also say that information is not just a set of processed facts arranged in a formal report. Information allows user to take action to resolve conflicts, reduce uncertainty, and make decisions. We should note that action does not necessarily mean a physical act.
The distinction between data and information has a pervasive implication for the study of information systems. If output from the information system fails to cause users to act, the system serves no purpose and has failed in its primary objectives.
2. Is there any general ruling governing when data is being collected? What are levels of data hierarchy?
Data sources are financial transactions that enter the information system from both internal and external sources. External financial transactions are the most common source of data for most organizations. These are economic exchanges with other business entities and individuals outside the firm. Internal financial transactions involve the exchange or movement of resources within the organization.
Data Collection is the first operational stage in the information system. The objective is to ensure that event data entering the system are valid, complete, and free from material errors. In many respects, this is the most important stage in the system. Should the transaction errors pass through data collection undetected, the system may process the errors and generate erroneous and unreliable output.
Data are facts, which may or may not be processed (edited, summarized, or refined) and have no direct effect on the user. By contrast, information causes the user to take an action that he or she otherwise could not, or would not, have taken. Information is often defined simply as processed data. This is an inadequate definition. Information is determined by the effect it has on the user, not by its physical form. We also say that information is not just a set of processed facts arranged in a formal report. Information allows user to take action to resolve conflicts, reduce uncertainty, and make decisions. We should note that action does not necessarily mean a physical act.
The distinction between data and information has a pervasive implication for the study of information systems. If output from the information system fails to cause users to act, the system serves no purpose and has failed in its primary objectives.
2. Is there any general ruling governing when data is being collected? What are levels of data hierarchy?
Data sources are financial transactions that enter the information system from both internal and external sources. External financial transactions are the most common source of data for most organizations. These are economic exchanges with other business entities and individuals outside the firm. Internal financial transactions involve the exchange or movement of resources within the organization.
Data Collection is the first operational stage in the information system. The objective is to ensure that event data entering the system are valid, complete, and free from material errors. In many respects, this is the most important stage in the system. Should the transaction errors pass through data collection undetected, the system may process the errors and generate erroneous and unreliable output.