During your weekly trip to the grocery store, you typcally purchase things like bread, milk, cold cereal, bananas, and ice cream. The purchase is normally made using a debit card or cash, but this assignment assumes a card is used.  Have you ever looked at a recent from somewhere like Walmart or Target and wondered about all the information on there?  Upon close inspection, you'll find data items that come from the Point of Sale (POS) system, the credit card reader, perhaps your loyalty card, the store's website, etc.  This assignment is all about data, and how it comes together in a system.

You'll need a receipt from a store in order to complete this assignment.

Create a table listing at least seven data items collected in this transaction and how they are entered into the system.

Note: You'll need to have a reciept in your hand when you do this assignment.  The data items on a receipt vary by transaction, but common items are date and time, cashier ID, register#, store #.  The source of those is the POS system.  Then you see the name of the items bought, those come from the UPC on the product, scanned by the POS system.  Then you'll see the last 4 of the debit card, the source is normally the credit card reader attached to the counter.  Sales tax will be there for most states.  Customer loyalty card number?  Don't just list the data items, remember to describe how they are entered into or calculated by the system.

This assignment is super simple, but I still see common issues stemming from misunderstanding or failing to read the instructions.  Here are some common issues that trip up students:

What's a data item?

The instructions tell you to analyze a receipt and choose 7 data items.  Forget about the items you purchased.  Those are not the data items we're talking about.  Everybody knows that when you scan an item, the computer looks it up automatically.  Move on from that and look for other data items like I listed in the instructions (date and time, cashier ID, register#, store #).  There are at least 7 things being pulled out of a POS system to be displayed on your receipt.  If you can't find them, use a receipt from a larger store, or take a picture of yours and email it to me.  I'll check it out and help you identify data items. 

How in the heck should I know how the data got in the POS system?

Well, easy, research the topic if you don't have experience with it.  POS systems require some information to be entered behind the scenes, by someone with some sort of administrator privileges, so that neither the cashier nor customer have to worry about it.  It might help to go to Walmart and buy something, but pay attention to what's happening at the checkout aisle.  It might be really helpful to talk to a cashier if nobody's in line behind you (rare at Walmart, granted).  How does the cashier number get entered?  Date and time?  There are several input devices right in front of you, like the cashier scanner gun, their keyboard, the credit card reader, etc.  These devices, combined with the system administrator behind the scenes, are all ways for you to describe "how they are entered into the system" (referring to your chosen data items).  I'm looking for a couple sentences on each of your data items here, not a lot of detail, okay?  Don't read too much into it.

The most common fatal mistake...

Regardless of tips, detailed instructions, or my constant begging and pleading, students still just turn in a copy of the receipt with no analysis.  I usually give 1 point for the effort...

APA Format

None, woohoo!

 Questions

Between these tips and the instructions, I'm hoping to take 100% of the mystery out of this assignment.  However, I'm sure I might have left something out.  Please reply here with any questions.  Remember, the only stupid questions are those that go unasked.