9. Conclusion

This mini-web has presented you with some real-life situations where inaccurate or out of date information leads to a number of issues.

• Safety. The air traffic control and emergency services scenarios demonstrated that safety can be a serious concern.
• Loss of income or additional costs. The automated share dealing scenario demonstrated that late information can have a direct impact on profits
• Customer satisfaction. The Bed & Breakfast example demonstrated that inaccurate or late information can lead to some very unhappy customers.

The methods for improving accuracy include

• Data validation
• Encoding
• Verification

The methods of improving timeliness include

• Improve physical information channel
• Improve company procedures
• Use a real time system where necessary