417 LAB ACTIVITY 3: Using System Architect to Prepare a Work Breakdown Structure Chart

WHY:

This activity is designed to introduce the CASE tool System Architect and allow you to discover how to use it. We will be using this tool throughout the development of the project milestones. Saint Mary's has a license for four copies of System Architect, accessible through the network on all PCs.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

  1. Discover diagram building features of System Architect.
  2. Gain better understanding of the deliverables of a systems analysis and design project and how they are related.
  3. Discover how to use a new piece of software given minimal instructions.

PERFORMANCE CRITERIA:

  1. Quality of the answers to the Critical Thinking Questions.
  2. Facility with which you can use System Architect.

RESOURCES:

  1. System Architect Help;
  2. System Architect Manuals;
  3. On-Line Structured Systems Analysis and Design Tutorial;
  4. 60 minutes

PLAN:

  1. Choose roles if you have not already done so.

  2. Login as xlwin1, xlwin2, xlwin3, or xlwin4, depending on your team number.

  3. By right clicking on Network Neighborhood, map the Z: drive to \\DIAMOND\CPSC. Do not check the "Reconnect at Login" box.

  4. Launch System Architect. Use the audit ID team1, team2, team3, or team4.

  5. Draw a Work Breakdown Structure Chart using the Decomposition Diagram facility in System Architect which reflects the relationships in the model below.

  6. Answer the Critical Thinking Questions.

  7. When finished, continue working on your unfinished milestones.

MODEL:

Milestone      Deliverable                       Depends on
   1      Project Proposal                       ------
   2      Project Scope                          Project Proposal
   3      Objectives and Constraint Matrix       Project Proposal
   4      Context Diagram                        Project Scope
   5      Entity Relationship Diagram(ERD)       Project Scope
   6      Data Flow Diagrams(DFD)                Project Scope, ERD
   7      Project Repository                     ERD, DFD
   8      Normalized ERD                         ERD
   9      Implementation DFD                     DFD
  10      I/O Design                             Project Repository
  11      User Interface Design                  I/O Design

CRITICAL THINKING QUESTIONS:

1. What are the steps you needed to take to successfully create the above Work Breakdown Structure chart? Explain how to do it to someone else?

Math 417 Lab Activity 3 -- Revised 9/10/98

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