ABSTRACT

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1. 1. Background of the Study

 The continuous advancement in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector, has improved a lot in the Nation, making life easier for individual, organization and institution. Every field now see the importance of ICT as the world goes global and tend towards ubiquitous computing. Advancement in ICT has also reduced time taken to complete tasks or activities, because many tasks can now be automated with the help of technology improving the manual way of processing, storing, accessing, communicating and providing information from one person to another or among group of people. The role of information is inevitable in our daily lives. Information is extremely important to the successful performance of any organization. The constant and steady stream of communication and information helps to build credibility and reflect a sense of transparency in our daily interaction. Various people assemble together for the purpose of communicating with one another towards achieving personal or organization goal (Kazeem, 2013).

The latest development in business activities demands for easy access to the location of businesses, their service(s) or product(s) so that effective transaction will be achieved always. If the information about businesses are known within a country, it will boost the economic activities of such country because customers will access them easily (Steinfield et al., 2012).

This study therefore, aim to explore new functionalities and technologies for developing a directory for business identification and location in Nigeria by incorporating all registered business in the country in a software where users can search out businesses by either names or location

1.2     Statement of the Problem

Over the years, various businesses directory has been implemented and deployed to improve business identification or location by customers or other businesses. However, there are still improvements that could be done. The research aims to address the issue of business listing in Nigeria as a country and to allow companies have a wider range of business view and afford citizens the privilege of searching out business from the developed system to authenticate their registration details.

1.3     Aim and Objectives of the Study

The aim of this research is to design and implement a web-based National Business Directory System for Nigeria.

The specific objective includes:

1. To review related literatures pointing to National Directory System.
2.  Design a Webstore Evaluation System for Online Shopping sites using Unified Modeling Language (UML) controls, such as flowchart, dataflow diagrams etc.
3. Create a database for the system using MySQL database.
4.  Implement the system designed in (ii) using HTML, CSS, JavaScript and PHP.
5. Test the system implemented in (iv) above for performance.

1.4     Significance of the Study

This study is purposefully to address the problem of poor access to business locations and services within Nigeria. As such, the study will be beneficial to business owners, customers, they include;

1. Business

The business owners will benefit from the system as it will provide them with solutions that will increase their target market. Some of the benefit for the business owners are:

1. •  Reduce the problem of poor access to business locations and services: many businesses are not being patronized not because they don’t sell quality products or render good services but they can’t be located by potential customers. But with the new system, business locations will be available to customers.
   • Increase target audience: With the new system the business owners will be able to reach out to a larger number of potentials customers and this will increase the business sales and increase profit.
2. User/Customers

The users of the system will benefit from the following functionalities:

• • Easy access to business location: The users will have easy access to business locations this will give the users a helpful guide on how to reach the business. This include the business location and address.
  • Access to business services and products: user will have access to view the business products or services been offered by the business.
  • Access to business contact address: users can easily get business phone numbers and email address to contact the business owners.

1.5     Scope of the Study

This research covers the development of a web-based National Directory System for the Nigerian government.

1.6   Limitation of the Study

The researcher faced some limitations during the course of this research. Some of this limitations/constraint includes;

i. Time constraint: Time factor was the major factors as the timeframe to submit the project was too short for a rigorous research.

ii. Financial constraint:  Lack of adequate finance to fund the researcher as to the purchase of data to review related works online was another major setback.

1.7     Definition of Terms

1. Business Directory: A business directory is an archive, storehouse or container that allows storage, cataloging, accessing all business-related information.
2. Customer: A customer is the recipient of a good, service, product or an idea - obtained from a seller, vendor, or supplier via a financial transaction or exchange for money or some other valuable consideration.
3. Database: A database is a repository that allows storage, retrieval and manipulation of data. A database can be used efficiently with the aid of a Database Management System (DBMS) – it comprises of tools that allows storage, access, retrieval and maintenance of data stored in a database, examples of DBMS include XAMPP, WAMP, LAMP and AppService to mention a few. A database understands only the Structured Query Language (SQL) which is used to communicate with it, popular databases used by well-known Information Technology (IT) firms include are MySQL, Oracle and Django DB.
4. Dataset: A collection of related game plans of information that is made out of disengaged segments however can be controlled as a unit by a PC.
5. Debugger: A debugger is a computer program used by programmers to test and debug a target program. Debuggers may use instruction-set simulators, rather than running a program directly on the processor to achieve a higher level of control over its execution.
6. Decision-Making: The action or process of making choice.
7. Electronic: (of a device) having or operating with components such as microchips and transistors that control and direct electric currents.
8. Evaluation: This is a systematic determination of a subject's merit, worth and significance, using criteria governed by a set of standards.
9. Feedback: Information about reactions to a product, a person's performance of a task, etc. which is used as a basis for improvement.
10. Genuine: The state of a matter being truly what it is said to be or being authentic.
11. Identifier: An identifier is simply a unique identity attached to one object; it aids referencing such object directly when its identifier is requested. An identifier can be a serial number, identity number (also written as ‘ID’) or an index number.
12. Internet: Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to serve billions of users worldwide. It is also known as the network of networks.
13. Keyword: A phrase or just one word that is used to search for a certain result or set of results.
14. Metadata: A set of data that describes and gives information about other data.
15. Object: An object in the context of this research refers to a project record returned by a database – queried using an Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) approach. An object (i.e. a business record) returns or contains the business name, business email, phone, address, location, category and the date and time the object record was created.
16. Online Shopping: Is a form of electronic commerce which allows consumers to directly buy goods or services from a seller over the Internet using a web browser.
17. Opinion: An opinion can be defined as a view, judgment, or appraisal formed in the mind about a particular thing which can either be communicated orally or in written words.
18. Patronize: To frequently make purchase or request a service in a shop, restaurant, or other establishment as a customer.
19. Relational Database: A database composed to see association among relations of information delineates tables from which data can be gotten to or reassembled in different courses without rearranging the database tables.
20. Shopping: This is an activity in which a customer browses the available goods or services presented by one or more retailers with the potential intent to purchase a suitable selection of them.
21. System: A system is a set of detailed methods, procedures and routines created to carry out a specific activity, perform a duty, or solve a problem
22. User: A user is system, application, request or person that can use a computer or software to perform a specific task.
23. Web-Browser: A web-browser-is-software program that interprets the codes written in markup languages in graphic and visual (like images, text, audio or animation) form. This allows users to easily request and access a website or to search for information through a search engine (either Google, Ask, Bing and AOL among others).