An Ontological Model of an Information System

An ontological model of an information system that provides precise definitions of fundamental concepts like system, subsystem, and coupling is proposed. This model is used to analyze some static and dynamic properties of an information system and to examine the question of what constitutes a good decomposition of an information system. Some of the major types of information system formalisms that bear on the authors' goals and their respective strengths and weaknesses relative to the model are briefly reviewed. Also articulated are some of the fundamental notions that underlie the model. Those basic notions are then used to examine the nature and some dynamics of system decomposition. The model's predictive power is discussed. >

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