Authentication…Gaining access to a system by presenting proper credentials, usually a user name and password
Business Intelligence (often, just “BI”)…Getting the right information to the right people, at the right time, in the right way
Cognos Business Intelligence (often, just “Cognos BI” or “Cognos”)…A data analysis and reporting tool sold by IBM Corp.
Data Attribute (often, “data item”, “column”, or “field”)…An atomic article of data, such as an ID number, a name, or a date. There are usually many data attributes within one data object.
Data Object (often, “table”)…The name of a related set of data attributes. For example, a generic “transaction” data object might include such data attributes as: Transaction Date, Transaction Type Code, and Transaction Amount. Several data objects within a topic are often grouped into a data subject.
Data Source…The name of a data repository of any kind. Cognos BI works through a data model that provides all of the necessary data source access information. The data source itself can take many forms, for example: an Excel workbook, a MySQL database, or an Oracle data warehouse.
Data Subject…The name of a related collection of data objects. For example, a “Registration” data subject might contain data objects called “Course”, “Schedule”, and “Faculty.”
Oregon University System (OUS)…The seven public, four-year universities in the state of Oregon administered by the Chancellor of the OUS, who is appointed by the Oregon State Board of Higher Education
