Transystem tracing arrays: A macroflow analysis technique

The transystem tracing array (TTA) is the basic building block for a transystem flow analysis technique. It helps analyse and document the flow through a processing system. The TTA technique has helped improve the handling of system changes, diagnosis of data errors and system bugs, and user-analyst communication. It has provided a simple and clear method for obtaining a brief and unambiguous overview of the trace (flow) through an entire system. TTAs are very easy to understand; they help users and analysts avoid bogging down in numerous system details of secondary interest, while maintaining a system-wide scale of perspective. The TTA technique is well suited to both the computerized portion of information systems and to manual office tasks for forms processing. The TTA method is built on a novel technique of collapsing complex composite dimensional arrays into simple two-way arrays.