of a
This web site is divided
into four parts, Thoughts, Stories, Comments and Newspaper Articles.
Stories and post publication Comments are not included in
my book Thoughts of a Systems Analyst. Newspaper Articles are based on
many Comments about the oil industry. Please read the introduction
below
the go to statements and then go to 'Thoughts' and read the
introduction
to 'Thoughts' so you will have a better understanding of me and my
vocabulary.
There is a return at the end of each web page if
not sooner. Click on the blue highlighted statements and they will send
you there.
Go to Thoughts Go to Stories Go to Comments
Go to Newspaper Articles
Date of last update
000930
090911
091126
081011
I would like to
share my thoughts with you on
many
subjects. For example, do you use data and information as synonyms, how
about giving and sharing, if you do, you shouldn't. Do you know about
the
error of allness, do you know what makes a manager unique, do you know
the unique attributes of non material resources, do you know why we
don't
like welfare, taxes, income tax forms, etc. Can you answer the
questions,
'Which came first the chicken or the egg' or 'If a tree falls in a
forest
was there a sound'.
If you would like my thoughts on these and other
topics, please read on.
"Daddy what
does a systems analyst do?"
"Why a system analyst analyzes a system, of course."
You don't like
that answer! Well neither did I,
but
I can't explain systems, system analysis, or any of the other topics in
a sentence; therefore a quarter of 'Thoughts' must be technical. I
tried
to make all of my explanations as simple as possible, and if you make
the
effort to understand the technical parts you will be able to understand
why the 'systems approach' has had very a profound effect on my way of
thinking. Chapter two explains a system and chapter three explains what
a systems analyst does.
Thoughts of a Systems
Analyst.
by
Richard R Riker
Copyright 2000 all rights reserved
Having made the
above statement I hereby give
permission
to any periodical to reprint completely and without abridgments any one
thought or one chapter of a story or one comment or article per issue
provided
the appropriate byline is used plus this web site address.
'Thoughts' is the consolidated thoughts of many authors explaining in simple terms systems, system analysis, management, data processing, data, information, etc. and some of their ramifications. The chapters and thoughts do not have to be read in order; however the tools and definitions of the systems approach are seldom repeated after chapter six.
Recommendations to read 'Thoughts'
1 Start at the
beginning and read straight
through,
if you have
difficulty with the technical parts just keep reading.
2 If you can't follow the first recommendation,
skip to
'The Arsenic Factory Syndrome' and read to the end
and try again from the beginning.
3 If you would like to read the some of the
highlights,
read in this order,
'Giving and sharing', 'Tsunami', 'I can't see that', 'Data and
Information',
'The Error of Allness', 'Our Negative Positive Bias, 'Knowing', and
'Religion'.
4 If you don't read any thing else at this web site,
read 'Giving and sharing'
This book is
dedicated to Steve Falk and all those like
him, those who have the courage to examine another's idea at the risk
of
disturbing their own status quo.
We were standing in the hall waiting for the adult
discussion group to begin when Steve approached and said, "I had a
decision
to make the first thing this morning, what away to start the week. I
could
stay home and read the Sunday paper in peace or I could come to church
and get shook up by Riker."
The full importance of Steve's statement did not
come to me until many years later. I think very slowly, and I never
thanked
Steve for his comment. It became very important to me over the years
because
it meant at least one person was listening and understood what I was
trying
to say. Frequently my thoughts challenge the status quo and when I
express
my thoughts I'm never sure I presented them so someone else could
understand.
Thank you Steve.
Web Page Chapter
Introduction
1
Introduction
'Aha'
'A Way of Thinking'
'Thoughts'
'Who Am I'
Systems
2
Systems
'Systems,
Systems,
System, what
is a system'
'Bits,
Bytes,
and Beyond'
'The Systems
Approach'
Managment 3
Management
'What Makes
A Manager
Unique'
Data
4 Definitions
'Information
and Data, Are They Synonyms'
'I Can't See That'
'Material and Nonmaterial Resources and
'Giving and Sharing'
5
Communication
'Is
Communication
a Two Way Street'
6 Data Processing
Comments 7 Comments
'The Arsenic
Factory Syndrome'
'It wasn't Pride'
'Our Negative
Positive
Bias'
'The Error of
Allness'
'Values'
'Miscellaneous'
'Knowing'
'Religion'
'A Conservation Over
Heard'
'Grief'
'Tsunami'
Go to Stories
Table of Content
I recommend you read 'Thankful' and the 'Gift'
Date
added
Title
010907 Why
Conserve
energy
010907 Prayer
010907 Oil
Price Spikes
010907 Another
reason to obey laws
010907 The Conflict
Between Science and Religion
011015 Terrorism
011015 You Can
keep Your Christian
Faith and Accept Evolution
020320 Web
Sites
philosophy
020505 Subtle
Themes
philosophy
020525 The
Gift
philosophy
020715 Should
Religion be Taught in School
030402 Deja
Vu
philosophy
040120 School
Vouchers
040124 No
Out Cry
philosophy
040124 Desolate
philosophy
040209 Evangelist
040214 Is Starvation
in Our Future
040229 Literalist
religion
040229 What
We Should
Do
energy
040324 The Bibical
Definition of Marriage
040610 What I
Remember
About the Oil Industry
040728 The Tax
Cut Myth
040728 My Message
to
...
misc
040728 My Answer
to
...
misc
040728 But We
Gotta...
misc
040729 911
our greed and arrogance
041122 Thankful
philosophy
041122 Greenspan
economics
050309 This
is My Country...
philosophy
051003 A Little
Knowledge
a personal experience
060321 Big
and
Small
oil
061014 Newspaper
Articles
oil global warming
070330 Can
You Pass This
Test
philosophy government
070330 What
is wrong with our
Country
philosophy
070330 Information
can approach objectivity
070330 What is
a conservative What
is an 'Idiotologue'
070330 Why oil
price will continue to increase
080122 It's More
than Carbon
Dioxide
080122 It's More
than Global
Warming
080122 What I
think is the greatest
threat to our country and to peace
080402 The
GDP Illusion
080426 Oil Inventories
and Ethanol from Corn
080526 How a Farmer
uses the futures market
080716 How to eliminate
government waste
080716 Comments
on an essay
philosophy
081023 The Price of
Gasoline
and
the Lilly Pad Story
081029 Propaganda
090106 What is our
problem
economics
090106 Profit is a dirty
word
economics
091118 Events and Limits
091121 A Pipeline
Through Afghanistan oil
091126 How did we get
into theis
mess
economics
091126 It still makes
my blood boil politics
100502 A Free
Market?
economics
999999
Go to Thoughts Table of
Content
I think 'The Three B's' is my best story, I also like 'The Last Day in Paradise' and 'The Headless Horseman'.
Date added
Number of words Title
011022
29534 The Three
B's.
010907
5585
Selfish.
011029
33426 The
Headless
Horseman.
011115
55863 Doc.
011121
32241 The
Blue
Planet.
031122
9000 Jack
and Jill
031122
2635 The
Last
Day in Paradise.
010907
841 I.
080716
959 The
Tide
that didn't go out
080819
5205
The Money
Grab
090911
MY Wife
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