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3GL (third-generation language) –
is a high-level
programming language such as FORTRAN, COBOL, BASIC, Pascal or C, which compiles
to machine language.
4GL (fourth-generation language) – is a high-level language suitable for end-user or programmer data access and capable of reasonably complex data manipulation. It includes two categories of software development tools: application generators for production applications, and information generators for decision-support applications. 4GLs are relatively nonprocedural and easier to use than 3GLs (e.g., COBOL, FORTRAN and C), but are less powerful and more wasteful of computer resources. Generally, three types of 4GL are recognized:
·
A procedural language integrated
with a database management system. Examples include Ideal (Computer
Associates) and Natural (Software AG)
·
An information generator. Examples
include FOCUS (Information Builders), Nomad 2 (Must Software) and Ramis
(Computer Associates)
·
A code generator or nonprocedural
tool. Examples include SQLForms (Oracle) and Telon (Computer Associates). These
tools are also called lower-CASE tools.
3270 – IBM’s interactive communications
terminal standard used to communicate with an IBM mainframe or compatible
system.
A
ActiveX – A set of
technologies from Microsoft provides tools for linking desktop applications to
the World Wide Web. Enabled using a variety of programming tools including Java,
Visual Basic, and C++.
Adaptive/Assistive Technologies (AAT)
– provide access to
systems and applications for users with communication, physical access, or
learning disabilities.
American National Standards Institute (ANSI) –
a private,
non-profit organization (501(c)3) that administers and coordinates the
Application – A set of coded instructions that
direct a computer to perform desired functions. The term is sometimes used in
place of “application program,” “software”, or “program,” which are used to
process data for the user. Applications can be custom-written or
purchased.
Application Architecture – The Application Architecture is the focal
point of an organization’s systems inventory. It defines how applications are
designed, how they cooperate, and where they reside. Good application
architectures will enable a high level of distributed system integration, reuse
of components, rapid deployment of applications and high responsiveness to
changing business requirements.
Application layer – The software that “runs” on top of the
system services layer.
An Application Programming Interface (API)
is software, either custom or COTS, that uses a specific implementation to
exchange data with another system. Business rules provide the specific
interaction mechanism. Each reusable component requires a properly documented
API. An API is the specific method prescribed by a computer operating system or
by another application program by which a programmer writing an application
program can make requests of the operating system or another application. A set of calling conventions that
defines how a service is invoked through software. An interface that enables
programs written by users or third parties to communicate with certain
vendor-supplied software. (1) a documented set of instructions by which a
program can invoke the functions of a system, such as a DBMS or a transaction
processing monitor, (2) used to integrate two different application programs, at
least to the extent of allowing them to share data.
Application Software – A program that performs a task or
process specific to a particular end-user’s needs, or solves a particular
problem.
Architecture – A structured set of protocols that
implements a system’s functions. A network architecture defines the functions,
formats, interfaces, and protocols required for end users to exchange
information.
Architecture
Exception – The process whereby the appropriate governance body reviews
line-of-business or IT project request for an exception to the architecture and
formally arbitrates disputes arising from the Architecture Review process.
Architecture
Management Processes – The collection of processes employed to ensure that
the appropriate activities occur so that an organization’s architecture is
developed and refreshed on a regular basis, and that IT projects and initiatives
comply with the preferred direction set forth in the architecture
documentation. The basic processes
that compose Architecture Management are:
Architecture Development and Renewal, Architecture Domain Team
Chartering, Architecture Communications, Architecture Research, Architecture
Review and Architecture Exception.
Architecture
Principle(s) – General
philosophical statements that apply to the design and implementation of systems
and applications within the various IT architectures covered in the IEA
Technical Reference Model. Usually expressed as descriptive statements about the
desirable characteristics of a particular architectural element. For
example, “Effective interfaces and applications appear and behave in ways that
are consistent with users’ expectations”.
Architecture
Review – The formal process of evaluating the extent to which a system
proposed for development and deployed in the organization’s technology
environment conforms to the technology architecture and that the total cost of
ownership for a given proposed system is adequately determined and known to all
stakeholders.
Asynchronous
– In computer programming, asynchronous
(from Greek meaning "not at the same time" and pronounced "ay-SIN-kro-nus")
pertains to processes that proceed independently of each other until one process
needs to "interrupt" the other process with a request. Using the client-server
model, the server handles many asynchronous requests from its many clients. The
client is often able to proceed with other work or must wait on the service
requested from the server.
Authentication – The process of determining whether someone or
something is, in fact, who or what it is declared to be. In private and public
computer networks (including the Internet), authentication is commonly done
through the use of logon passwords.
Authorization – The process of giving someone permission to do or have access to something. In multi-user computer systems, a system administrator defines for the system which users are allowed access to the system and what privileges of use (such as access to which file directories, hours of access, amount of allocated storage space, and so forth).
B
Bandwidth – Data/voice/video carrying capacity of a transmission
medium, usually measured in hertz (Hz).
With Binary Compatibility, there is no need
to recompile an application for different platforms. For example, if an
application is going to be deployed on servers located in State Offices, all
servers running that application should be binary compatible – this must be
ensured even if the platforms are from the same manufacturer. The platforms must
run the same version of the operating system and must not require any
recompilation of business applications so that deployment throughout the
various offices means a simple copy of a program from one office to another.
Total binary compatibility will support automated software distribution across
servers, which will reduce support costs and provide stable computing platforms
that can be reliably shared and moved across the Bureau. Technologies like the
Java Virtual Machine and Java servlets fit this definition of binary
compatibility, but may not fit every situation due to compromised
performance.
BIND – is a cross-platform, open source
nameserver that follows the standards defined in the RFCs related to DNS.
Bus – (1) A high-speed physical
transmission path or channel. Typically an electrical connection with one or
more conductors, wherein all attached devices receive all transmissions at the
same time. (2) Local network topology, such as that used in Ethernet and the
token bus, where all network nodes listen to all transmissions, selecting
certain ones based on address identification. It involves some type of
contention-control mechanism for accessing the bus transmission medium.
Business Architecture – This architecture identifies business systems and their
interactions in order to:
· Drive the strategic decisions in the technology architecture.
· Identify business services independent of application-specific invocations of those services.
· Understand how and what data are strategic to the enterprise.
·
Provide the basis for the strategic
applications of information technology.
Business
Driver – A collective term that is used to describe the various influencing
factors that cause (directly or indirectly) changes in an enterprise’s business
processes, including external forces (changes in competition/market,
globalization, economy, customers, regulation, politics, and technology) and
responses to these forces (including business strategies, goals, objectives,
requirements, and strategies).
Business Function – A logical grouping of functionality
used to support execution of Business Processes.
Business
Information Requirements – The information needs of an enterprise that
result from business drivers, and/or their corresponding business
strategies. Can be identified at a
high level by asking: What
information is needed? Where does
the information come from? Who
needs it? When do they need
it?
Business Intelligence
Tools – Employed by end
users for decision-making and analytical processes. These tools allow the users
to dynamically query the data and information stored in data warehouses. They
provide query, reporting, graphing, trend analysis, calculating, and summarizing
capabilities. Business intelligence tools provide the ability to analyze and
access data contained in the data warehouse. Typically, several tools are
selected within an organization, based on the function needed.
Business Logic – The rules
that control how to complete a task or step in a work process. For example, application logic that
governs processing a payment or address change. These applications are often
transactional in nature – resulting in database/file updates.
Business Process
– A collection of
business activities (tasks) that transform input(s) into output(s) of value to
the
Business Rules – Requirements and specifications for
the line-of-business decision-making process. Most business rules are
declarative. Business rules serve to constrain, define, and assert how business
will be transacted. Business rules also define actions to be taken in a
specific circumstance.
Business Strategy – The planned approach to achieving an enterprise’s business drivers.
C
Calendaring and Scheduling (C &
S) – A technology that,
by combining with an organization's overall groupware system(s), provides a
methodology for the coordination and communication of individual and group
activities and plans. Time-management functions that schedule events (such as
meetings, lectures, and conferences) and access (and manage) calendric
information about people, facilities, and equipment.
Calendar Store – A database storing C & S
information and schedules. The database may reside on a single server, or may be
distributed across multiple servers over the network.
Capability Maturity
Model (CMM) – The Software Engineering Institute’s
(SEI’s) Capability Maturity Model (and the SCE process based on it) offers an
initial basis for defining software development processes for regulatory
purposes.
C & S Client – The front-end user interface of the C
& S application that runs on the user’s desktop. It allows users to view and
manipulate their calendar and schedule information, and to coordinate and
schedule meetings from their desktop computer.
C & S Server – The hardware and software that
provides calendaring and scheduling services to C & S clients. It manages
calendar and schedule information, and the exchange of C & S information
between C & S users. The Calendar store is managed by the C & S
server.
Change
Management – Process of planning,
controlling, and managing enterprise changes.
Classification – A method for grouping
similar or like things. In the IEA,
industry standards and technology products are grouped into lifecycle
classifications that reflect their suitability for use at Interior.
Client – A system or a program that requests
the activity of one or more other systems or programs, called servers, to
accomplish specific tasks. In a client/server environment, the workstation is
usually the client. The client serves as a user interface, as well as a
processor for many time-consuming tasks, allowing the server to devote itself to
central storage and other tasks.
Client/Server – (1) In TCP/IP, the model of
interaction in distributed data processing in which a program at one site sends
a request to a program at another site and awaits a response. The requesting
program is called a client and the answering program is called a server. (2) In
Information Resource Management, a computing model where functionality is
divided between software clients and software servers. Clients depend on the
services provided by servers such as another application, component, or
database to complete the intended function. (3) A technical architecture
that links workstations into networks, enabling increased productivity by means
of sharing information. Individual users, or “clients,” are “served” over a
network by a central machine that acts as a common repository of information and
programs.
Commercial off-the-shelf
(COTS) application – Also known as
COTS software.
Common Gateway Interface
(CGI) – A data-passing
specification used when a Web server must send or receive data from an
application such as a database. A CGI script passes the request from the Web
server to a database, gets the output, and returns it to the Web client.
Common Internet File
system – The common Internet file system uses the
server message block protocol (SMB) for
sharing diskspace from one system among other systems.
Compatibility – The ability of two devices to
communicate with each other understandably, or the ability of software to run on
a particular hardware platform.
The Common Internet File System (CIFS)
uses the server message block protocol (SMB) for sharing disk space from one
system among other systems.
Common Management Information Protocol
(CMIP) – The Open
Systems Interconnection (OSI) protocol for the exchange of network management
information.
A
Component – is a piece of software or hardware
that is designed to fulfill a single purpose and to interoperate with other
components.
Component Object Model
(COM) – A framework
developed by Microsoft that supports interoperability and reusability of
distributed objects by allowing developers to build systems by assembling
reusable components from different vendors.
Conceptual
Architecture – A principles-based, enterprise-level layer of a technical
architecture to ensure clear decisions to sub-optimize individual components in
order to optimize total effectiveness of the overall enterprise architecture to
enable business strategies.
Content
Management – Tools used for managing the versioning, workflow, and
deployment of web content.
Control
Layer – The layer(s) in an application
that control various aspects of the application functionality. It is a way to externalize the ordering
or flow of functionality independent of the actual business logic. This ensures that the business
logic can be easily adapted, reordered, or reorganized in order to meet changing
business needs by changing the control not the actual business
logic.
Cookie
– A chunk of information that is passed from one application to another,
with the expectation that the receiver will store the chunk and send it back
later. The most common usage for cookies is to save state in client/server
applications, track user information, and provide a user customizable
experience.
Corporate Metadata Repository
(CMR) – 1) A repository
that contains metadata, which is information about data (for example, shared
data definitions, data aliases, and where OLTP and OLAP data can be found). A
data repository is an important aspect of a successful data warehouse effort
because it contains all the information about the data and processes used to
populate and access a data warehouse. 2) The corporate metadata repository
provides a single enterprisewide source for data definitions. This tool becomes
more important in the XML/EDI world because data structure, definition and
context are important for data integration. The CMR is the local place to
maintain data type definition files.
CORBA (Common Object Request Broker
Architecture) – An Object Management Group (OMG)
interoperability standard for object-oriented applications communicating
within heterogeneous environments.
D
Data Access Middleware – The communications layer between data
access programs and tools and databases. Data access middleware is designed to
enable communication between a data access programming tier and a database, as
opposed to application communication middleware, which enables communication
between the programming tiers of an N-tier application system.
Data Administration –
Technologies/strategies for facilitating the design of maintaining
and administering the data in a DBMS.
Database – A collection of structured data that
is application-independent.
Database Access Tools – Used to query and retrieve data from
existing databases and write reports. These tools can be provided either through
a purchased package or integrated with EIS and DSS applications by application
developers. Some examples of these tools are Microsoft Access, Microsoft Excel,
Lotus
Data Management Architecture – The Data Management Architecture defines the mechanics for managing, securing, and maintaining the integrity of an enterprise’s significant logical entities. These entities must be recorded and accounted for in a business information environment. The architecture provides standards for accessing data, and, if appropriate, business objects.
Database Management System
(DBMS) – Manages data
storage, structure, access, and security. Fields can be indexed to improve the
performance of queries against the data, a system comparable to that of a
dictionary that has tabs for the letters of the alphabet so that it is easier to
look up a word, or to a reference book, which has an index to quickly find
information needed. The following are types of DBMSs.
· Relational Database Management System (RDBMS) – Software designed to manage the collection of data. Data is organized into related tables so that relationships between data can be established. Relational databases can contain normalized data. Normalized data is organized so that unique data is stored only one time, instead of multiple times for each table (e.g., a non-normalized database). A relationship is established between the unique data and its related information.
· Object Database Management System (ODBMS) – Objects provide a rich model for capturing business complexity. Objects can represent complete business entities and the relationships between them. They are easily extensible as business processes change and fit well in a networked application architecture. ODBMSs integrate database functionality with object programming languages. The ODBMS extends an object-oriented programming language with persistent data, concurrency control, data recovery, and associative queries.
·
Multidimensional Database
Management System (MDDBMS) –
Specifically designed for efficient storage and retrieval of large
volumes of data. Data is stored similar to the way it is in a spreadsheet, so it
is easier for end users to understand and manipulate. Multidimensional databases
store data that is closely related and stored, viewed, and analyzed from
multiple perspectives (i.e., dimensions). Multidimensional databases are
sometimes referred to as post-relational databases or a more advanced form of
object-oriented database.
Data Bus – Software equivalent of a hardware
bus. Applications attach to a data bus with a known address. Applications can
send and receive data on the data bus by using the addresses of the other
applications attached. MQSeries from IBM is an example of data bus technology.
Regardless of the underlying network protocol, data bus products are packet or
message oriented.
Data Cleansing – Technologies used to enhance the
integrity and validity of the data in a DBMS.
Data Dictionary – A
collection of descriptions of the data objects or items in a data model for the
benefit of programmers and others who might need to refer to them.
Data Integrity – Accuracy, validity, and consistency of data, maintained
according to a set of rules for modifying a database
Data Mart – A subset of a data warehouse. Where
data warehouses are designed to support many requirements for multiple business
needs, data marts are designed to support specific requirements for specific
Decision Support System (DSS) applications (i.e., particular business
needs). Although a data mart is a subset of a data warehouse, it is not
necessarily smaller than a data warehouse. Specific DSS needs may still require
large amounts of data. Data marts are typically considered a solution for
distributed users who want exclusive control of the information required for
their business need.
Data Migration Tool – Copies selected data from legacy and
other OLTP systems. Data transformation reformats extracted data according
to metadata definitions and puts it into a data warehouse. Extraction and
transformation tools are required to integrate data from multiple sources
and to ensure consistency of information derived from data created in a complex,
heterogeneous OLTP environment.
Data Mining – Used to analyze the data stored in
data warehouses. It can provide valuable insights into the business. Data mining
scans large amounts of data stored in data warehouses to reveal patterns or
correlations.
Data Model – Specifies the data formats and the
relationships of fields and tables in an application system. It drives basic
database design.
Data Replication Tools – For distributed or remote users,
there is sometimes a need to distribute data from a data warehouse to various
data warehouses and data marts throughout the organization. When warehouse data
is needed for distributed OLAP processing, it can be distributed through a
replication service. Replication allows data to be located close to the business
users, thus improving performance. This is particularly useful for eliminating
latency problems in distributed
systems (e.g., WAN) and for access speed with large geospatial databases.
Data Scrubbing Tools – Validate and cleanse data so that its
format is consistent and it is accurate, complying with metadata definitions. Data scrubbing is typically performed
periodically to ensure that data meets the metadata standards that have been
set. It is also performed when data has been loaded into a data mart or data
warehouse. For data scrubbing to be successful, data scrubbing tools and defined
roles, responsibilities, and procedures are needed. Data scrubbing is needed at multiple
levels, including the data entry level in OLTP applications and the data
extraction and transformation levels. Data can become “dirty” for many reasons.
For example, consider a data entry application that has an open text field
called “Description.” If no limitations are placed on the entry of data in that
field, end users can type anything in that field, including misspelled words or
multiple text descriptions for the same data element.
Data Steward – The person or
group of people responsible for implementation of data from a technical
perspective including data design, processing of data into the physical platform
and managing the data availability, integrity and security according to business
requirements.
A Data Store contains data. A data store
will most likely take the form of a relational database management system
(RDBMS). Other data store implementations can be hierarchical, object, and
object-relational databases. Indexed sequential access method (ISAM) files is
another implementation.
A Data Type Definition (DTD) file is used
by an XML parser to parse XML data. A DTD allows an application using the DTD to
understand an XML data source. A DTD can be defined by a business for its
specific needs. This feature provides the business the capability to
rapidly change as business needs change.
Data Visualization – is the method of displaying data
resulting from end user queries and data mining from a data warehouse in a
visual format (i.e., graphs, pie charts, and bar and line charts). Similar to
data mining, data visualization can be helpful in realizing trends or patterns
in interrelated data.
A Data Warehouse stores information
compiled from multiple sources and typically is available to people across the
organization for analytical processing. It can provide more timely answers to
business needs and questions. It is a database for query and analysis, as
opposed to a database for processing transactions. Separating the two functions
improves flexibility and performance.
Decision Support Systems (DSS)
– A computer program
application that analyzes business data and presents it so that users can make
business decisions more easily. It is an “informational application” (as
distinct from an “operational application” that collects the data in the course
of normal business operation). A DSS may present information graphically and may
include an expert system or artificial intelligence (AI). It may be aimed at
business executives or some other group of knowledge workers.
Development Tools – The raw materials by which
programmers create custom-built enterprise software.
Directory Services, Message Handling
Systems, and Standards
– An e-mail system uses directory services, Message Handling Services (MHSs),
and standards and protocols to index and manage names, e-mail
messages, distribution lists, and devices (including printers and other
peripherals, and servers) accessible on networks it serves.
Digital Certificate – The
digital equivalent of an ID card used in conjunction with a public key
encryption system. Digital certificates are issued by trusted third parties
known as certification authorities (CAs), such as VeriSign, Inc., after
verifying that a public key belongs to a certain owner.
Distributed Component Object Model
(DCOM) – Microsoft’s
distributed version of Component Object Model (COM), whose version communicates
via their version of a remote procedure “call” (RPC).
Distributed
Database – Database whose contents
(tables, views, columns, files, etc.) reside on more than one system in a
network and can be transparently accessed or updated from any system in the
network.
Distributed Computing Environment
(DCE) – An Open
Software Foundation (OSF) initiative to create a vendor-neutral networking and
distributed computing environment to support distributed applications, by
integrating the appropriate technology or combination of technologies into
a single environment while addressing interoperability, standards and security.
DCE integrates remote procedure calls, presentation services, a naming
directory, security, threads (sequential flows of control similar to tasks),
time services (to synchronize clocks) and a distributed file system.
A Distributed Object is an object that
can be accessed remotely. This means that a distributed object can be used like
a regular object, but from anywhere on the network. An object is typically
considered to encapsulate data and behavior. The location of the distributed
object is not critical to the user of the object. (See Glossary entry for
“Object”.)
Distributed Control Systems (DCS) –
evolved from
centralized process control computers common in the 1960s. The systems were
developed for continuous-flow processes that required loop, analog, and limited
discrete control. A DCS is a real-time, fault-tolerant system for
continuous and complex batch-process applications. Over time, they have
evolved from being proprietary hardware and software systems to being UNIX- and
Windows NT-based systems.
Distributed Systems Management (DSM) –
focuses on the
integration of a framework tool such as HP OpenView or
Document Management System (DMS)
– Allows users to
store, search, and manipulate documents electronically and maintain a library of
text and images in a compact space. Most systems also provide a means for
passing documents across a network. A DMS manages the processes of
authorship, review, editing, production, approval, and delivery of (or
access to) large sets of documents throughout an organization.
Documentation – Data that describes code and data.
Documentation can be thought of as metadata.
Domain – A related set of
technologies.
Domain Architecture – A
logical consistent set of principles with rationales and implications, as well
as identified industry standards and products that are classified into lifecycle
categories.
Domain Layer – Also referred to as "business domain" or
"business functionality". This is
the layer in an application that contains the collection of services that
enforce the business rules, process information, and manage transactions. This layer must be separated from the
presentation and the data to truly be effective. This ensures your business rules are not
dependent on presentation and data implementations and are easily transportable
(or accessible) to any application on any platform.
The Domain Name System (or “Service”) (DNS)
is an important directory standard on the Internet and on local TCP/IP
networks. It is used to map the TCP/IP network address of a server (for example,
207.68.156.58) to a better-known form (i.e., www.microsoft.com). The DNS naming
convention is used for Internet and e-mail addresses that take the form
“name@hostname.organization.”
Domain
Team – A domain team is responsible for developing architecture principles,
with associated rationale and implication, identifying applicable standards and
preferred products, and conducting other work assigned by the Architecture Team,
for a given collection of related technologies. There is a domain team associated with
each of the Technical Architecture Domains
Dynamic Data Exchange
(DDE) – A limited
method of sharing data between two applications or files. When data is used in
both files, with DDE it can be automatically updated in the other. Both
applications must be in use, and DDE does not work over a network. Object
Linking and Embedding (OLE) is a more sophisticated development.
E
Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) –
is being used to
provide an absolute structure to data. For example, bids, order processing, and
invoicing data structure are just a few standards defined by EDI. EDI is an
absolute standard maintained by the American National Standards Institute
(ANSI) Accredited Standards Committee (ASC) X12. There are efforts underway to
integrate EDI into XML.
Electronic Forms – Workflow
software used to create on-screen data entry forms and provide e-mail routing
and tracking of the resulting electronic documents.
Electronic Mail (or “e-mail”) –
is the groupware type
most critical to the business operations of the Bureau. It enables the fast and
efficient exchange of all types of data files across the enterprise. It is able
to function during either synchronous or asynchronous interactions. These
advantages directly benefit the decision-making process and translate into
measurable cost and time savings. The basic characteristics of an e-mail system
include features that create, compose, address, send, and receive
messages.
Emerging Technologies – New technologies and products that
show sufficient promise for future use and should be monitored by the IEA.
End-to-end Services – Offered by the lower three layers of
the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) Reference Model.
End-to-end Storage
Management – A component of an overall
systems-management infrastructure that improves application availability by
reducing the number of storage-related outages and minimizing the length of the
outages when they occur.
An E-mail Client (also referred to as a
Mail User Agent, or MUA) is an application that enables users to compose,
send, receive, and organize e-mail. It's called a client because e-mail systems
are based on a client-server architecture.
An E-mail Server is an applications server
that provides services such as files distribution, temporary caching of new
messages, and archiving of previously viewed messages. A message store is an important
subcomponent that resides on the e-mail server. It is a database that
enables message-management tasks, such as opening, reading, and deleting
messages; and browsing and searching lists of messages. A directory user agent (DUA) is another
important subcomponent that allows retrieval of information (such as
distribution lists and e-mail addresses) from local and network directory
services.
An E-mail Application Programming Interface
(API) allows applications to access the various components of an e-mail
system by connecting a sender’s e-mail application to a receiver’s application.
Using an API, an MUA can manipulate new and stored e-mail messages, create and
delete addresses, access and manipulate message components, and
authenticate users login in to the e-mail system.
Encryption – A technique of
modifying a bit stream of information to make it appear to be a random sequence
of bits to someone who does not have access to the encryption scheme.
An
Ethernet – The standard for local communications
networks developed jointly by Digital Equipment Corp., Xerox, and Intel.
Ethernet baseband coaxial cable transmits data at speeds up to 10 megabits per
second. Ethernet is used as the underlying transport vehicle by several
upper-level protocols, including TCP/IP.
Executive Information Systems (EISs) –
extract data from an
enterprise system to provide managers a view of quantitative performance
measures on-line. A new generation of systems is meant to provide this
information in near-real time, before it’s too late to do anything to prevent
dysfunctions.
Executive Reporting System (ERS)
– A system to generate
executive summary reports for Congress, executive management, and oversight
groups like the GAO. These reports provide a high-level summary of IEA
information.
Extensible – Able to integrate new technology and
functionality.
External Systems – Applications of third party business partners that support
the organization’s business requirements and/or interact with the organization’s
technology portfolios.
Extract/Transform/Load (ETL) –
Technologies used to extract data from source DBMS’s, transform the
data into an appropriate form, and load it into target Data Marts or
Warehouses.
Extranet – Community-of-interest IP networks that provide secure connections between remote users and a main site, or between multiple sites within the same company, including connectivity to business partners, customers, and suppliers.
F
Fax – Communication of a
printed page between remote locations. Fax machines scan a paper form and
transmit a coded image over the telephone system.
Fiber Optics – A data transmission medium that uses
light conducted through glass or plastic fibers. Fiber-optic cables have cores
capable of conducting modulated light signals by total internal reflection.
Benefits include small diameters, high potential bandwidth, and lower cost than
copper.
File Transfer Protocol (FTP) –
A system for transferring files between computers over the Internet,
Intranet or Extranet.
File-Typing – (used in the Microsoft Windows
environment) – File types activate
appropriate elements of the Microsoft tool suite, and the tools themselves
extend a common set of base classes that help to maintain a high degree of
behavioral consistency regardless of which tool is in use. Tools based on
object-linking tied to the data's XML description can be synthesized on the
spot.
Firewalls
· Packet filter firewalls historically implemented on routers, filter on user defined content, such as IP addresses. They examine a packet at the network layer of the Open Systems Interface (OSI) model and are application independent, which allows them to deliver good performance and scalability. They are the least secure type of firewall because they cannot understand the context of a given communication, making them easier for hackers to break.
· Application gateway firewalls improve on security by examining all application layers, bringing context information into the decision process. However, they do this by breaking the client/server model. Every client/server communication requires two connections – one from the client to the firewall and one from the firewall to the server. In addition, each proxy requires a different application process, or daemon, making scalability and support for new applications a problem.
· Stateful inspection firewalls overcome the limitations of application gateways and packet filters by providing full application-layer awareness without breaking the client/server model. With stateful inspection, the packet is intercepted at the network layer, but then the firewall extracts state-related information required for the security decision from all application layers and maintains this information in dynamic state tables for evaluating subsequent connection attempts. This solution is dramatically improves on the performance of an application gateway, while offering the same or better security.
G
Gateway – A computing system or software
function that performs a protocol or API translation, and serves as an
intermediary between computing systems or communications networks.
Geospatial – Information that identifies the
geographical location and characteristics of natural or man-made features and
boundaries of the Earth.
Geoprocessing – Computer applications which model,
interpret and use Earth information.
Granularity – Degree
of parallelism in an architecture, from job execution level (coarse) to logic
device level (fine). Ability to increase system capacity and performance through
incremental processor expansion.
Graphical User Interface
(GUI) –
facilitates application
use by means of windows, icons, and menus
Groupware – or collaborative software, was defined
as a new software category by the introduction of Lotus Notes in 1989. Groupware
applications support a wide variety of activities, such as e-mail, scheduling,
and document sharing. Some groupware products are suites of ready-made
applications; others are toolboxes for creating collaborative applications, with
customizable templates included. Groupware enables an organization to compile,
organize, and share its knowledge base, that is, to perform computer-supported cooperative work
(CSCW). The goal of groupware is to enable collaboration by letting team
members focus on tasks at hand rather than on the process of gathering and
integrating information. Groupware maximizes human interaction while minimizing
technology interference. It increases efficiency by decreasing the time and
effort expended distributing data files and other documents among working groups
and individuals. Groupware provides the infrastructure for groups and
individuals to work cooperatively and share information electronically,
regardless of where they are located.
Governance – A subset of the Architecture Management processes that are focused on ensuring that IT projects either adhere to the preferred direction set forth in the architecture or are explicitly granted an exception to the principles, standards and products dictated by the architecture.
H
Haptic – Applying tactile sensation and control
to interaction with computer applications.
Hardware – The physical entities of an
enterprise architecture. A computer with one or more physical network
connections.
Hierarchical – An approach used in numerous
technologies, including machine vision, process control, networking, databases,
and planning, whereby the scope of work is arranged in hierarchies that
establish priorities and appropriate routings. A database architecture in which
data elements are arranged in the form of an inverted tree structure in which no
data element has more than one parent.
Hub & Spoke – A particular
architectural pattern where applications and components exchange information and
request services via messages through a centralized hub or hubs which route and
distribute the messages.
Hubs
– Hubs are shared devices that allocate the available bandwidth to all
devices attached.
Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) –
A world wide web
authoring language used for creating and linking Web pages.
Hypertext Tranport Protocol (HTTP) – The communication protocol used to connect to servers on the World Wide Web. Its primary function is to establish a connection with a server and transmit HTML pages to the client browser. Users of the web retrieve documents from servers or "web sites".
I
Information – Structured data.
Infrastructure – An underlying base or
foundation supporting an organization or system. Technical infrastructure supports the
technical capabilities of business applications and data repositories, and does
not contain business specific logic or functionality.
Interface – (1) A shared boundary between two
pieces of equipment. (2) The hardware and software needed to enable one device
to communicate with another.
An Interface Definition Language (IDL) is
a generic term for a language that lets a program or object written in one
language communicate with another program written in a different language. In
distributed-object technology, it's important that new objects are able to
be sent to any platform environment and “know” how to run in that environment.
An IDL within the object-oriented
world is fundamentally the same as in the RPC world; however, here it permits
interfaces to objects to be defined independent of an objects implementation.
After defining an interface in IDL, the interface definition is used as input to
an IDL compiler that produces output that can be compiled and linked with an
object implementation and its clients, thus allowing for client-server
communication across a distributed heterogeneous environment.
Internet – The “Infobahn” of tens of thousands
of public and private networks worldwide. The Internet’s TCP/IP communications
standards mean computers anywhere in the world — even those running different
operating systems and applications—can communicate with one another. Hypertext
Markup Language (HTML) lets the computers display the accessed information in
graphical pages.
Intranet – Networks within a business using the
same technology that is the foundation of the global Internet. Many industry
analysts expect such corporate networks to provide most of the revenue for
computer hardware and software vendors over the next few years as an increasing
number of businesses expand their internal networks to improve efficiency
and build closer ties with customers and suppliers.
Interoperability – The ability of computers on a network
to share application software.
Intrusion Detection – A
process or product for detecting unauthorized entry or access to a computer or
network.
IP Security Protocol
(IPSec) – A
standardized means of implementing security for VPNs. IPSec is a set of Internet Protocol (IP) extensions that
provide security services at the network level of the OSI stack. IPSec
technology is based on modern cryptographic technologies, making possible very
strong data authentication and privacy guarantees. Furthermore, all of the
encryption and authentication algorithms and security protocols used in IPSec
are well studied and have survived years of scrutiny. Consequently, the Bureau
can be confident that the IPSec facility indeed provides strong security. IPSec
can be implemented in routers or firewalls owned and operated by the IEA. This
gives the network management facility complete control over security aspects of
the VPN.
J
Java – A programming language based on C,
developed by Sun Microsystems that extends and complements the basic
capabilities of Hypertext Markup Language (HTML). Originally developed as a
language for consumer-oriented devices such as TV set top boxes, Java
became a viable alternative to other programming languages with the rapid
growth of the Internet as it has the potential to work on an unlimited number of
computing devices and operating systems. Java permits the creation of
applications and application modules (“applets”) that run in the Java virtual
machine (JVM) on the browser, either as software on a PC or on the Sun picoJava
chip, a piece of dedicated hardware. Browsers from both Netscape and Microsoft
have a JVM. Java’s platform independence and security are designed in, rather
than added on, so applications can run on a wide variety of desktop platforms as
long as they can run a Java-enabled browser. Principally a programming
language, but it has been designed by Sun Microsystems to function as a
complete computer operating system. The purpose of the language is twofold – to
create a single standard that will run on a variety of competing computer
systems, and to solve vexing computer security problems introduced by the
widespread reliance on computer networks, which are vulnerable to malicious
programs such as viruses.
Java Applets – A small piece of Java code that
implements a specific function. Applets may run on a server or be downloaded and
run on the client’s machine.
Java Database Connectivity (JDBC)
– a standard set of
Java classes providing vendor-independent access to relational data.
Java Remote Method Invocation (RMI)