Australian Computer Society: ACS Digital Library
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Method Points: towards a metric for method complexity
Get PDFA metric for method complexity is proposed as an aid to choosing between competing methods, as well as in validating the effects of method integration or the products of method engineering work. It is based upon a generic method representation model previously developed by the author and adaptation of concepts used in the popular Function Point metric for system size. The proposed technique is illustrated by comparing two popular I.E. deliverables with counterparts in the object oriented Unified Modeling Language (UML). The paper recommends ways to improve the practical adoption of new methods
Electronic Commerce, the Internet and Travel Cybermediaries
Get PDFThe purchase of a very expensive, complex holiday requires a great deal of information and reliable expert advice. The risks involved in such a purchase are substantial. Industry opinion leaders believe that consumers will continue to take advice from a human sales consultant before purchasing, with the exception of major corporate bookings and simple point to point bookings. This paper investigates the likely disintermediation effects of electronic commerce on Retail Travel Agents. It provides the basis for the development of a strategic framework for intermediaries that can be used to enhance business performance. The findings of exploratory interviews with travel industry opinion leaders are presented, together with recommended strategic responses for Retail Travel Agents
Tool Based Psychology as a Philosophy of Technology
Get PDFThis paper examines the influence of psychology in the area of human computer interaction and information technology in general. Cognitive psychology is critically examined and its shortcomings in guiding technological development outlined. As a possible alternative to the cognitive approach the Vygotskian psychological framework of activity theory introduced. This Russian developed theory may provide a more extensive basis for human computer interaction and holds some promise as a framework for the development of computer systems more compatible with the humans that use them
Opportunities for Knowledge Discovery in Spatio-Temporal Information Systems
Get PDFSpatial Information Systems and their recent temporal extensions typically store large volumes of geo-referenced information. Having such size, it becomes increasingly difficult to explore their contents with current querying techniques. In this paper, we examine how data mining methods can help users in die analysis of the contents of Spatial and Spatio-Temporal Information Systems. We review existing spatial applications and investigate how they can be extended to deal with time. We also look at new, alternative methods that utilise the inherent structure of spatio-temporal information as well as its rich semantics to derive rules about changes and movemen
Executive Support of Information Technology and Information Systems in Australian Hospitals: an empirical study
Get PDFLittle is known regarding the form executive support should take for the progressive use of information technology and information systems [FT] within organisations. This study applies the theory developed by Jarvenpaa and Ives (1991) who examined two forms of support provided by chief executive officers. These were executive participation, a set of IT-related activities, and executive involvement, a psychological state reflecting the importance of IT for the organisation's success. Our research, using data obtained from a questionnaire mailed to a sample of Australian hospitals, measures the relationships between these two forms of support and the progressive use of IT. Our statistical analysis supports the findings of Jarvenpaa and Ives (1991), who found a stronger relationship between executive involvement and the progressive use of IT. Using Australian hospitals allowed Jarvenpaa and Ives' (1991) theory to be applied in a different environment, increasing its external validity. Firm size was also found to have a positive relationship with the progressive use of IT independent of the two forms of executive support
Ethics and Information Technology
Get PDFThe versatility and adaptability of information technology (IT) offer many potential benefits to society, its organisations and its citizens, but there are also associated risks. The social and ethical implications of this technology warrant special attention and have resulted in the creation of information ethics as a discrete area of study. The overall goal of information ethics is to integrate IT and human values in such a way that IT advances and protects human values rather than doing damage to them
Experimental Comparisons of Entity-Relationship and Object Oriented Data Models
Get PDFThe extended entity-relationship (EER) model is being "threatened" by the object-oriented (OO) approach, which penetrates into the areas of system analysis and data modeling. The issue of which of the two data models is better for data modeling is still an open question. We address the question by conducting experimental comparisons between the models. The results of our experiments reveal that: a) schema comprehension: ternary relationships are significantly easier to comprehend in the EER model than in the OO model; b) the EER model supasses the OO model for designing unary and ternary relationships; c) time: it takes less time to design EER schemas; d) preferences: the EER model is preferred by designers. We conclude that even if the objective is to implement an OO database schema, the following procedure is still recommended: 1) create an EER conceptual schema, 2) map it to an OO schema, and c) augment the OO schema with behavioral constructs that are unique to the OO approach
An Investigation of Information Technology-Enabled Remote Management and Remote Work Issues
Get PDFA two phase research study was done to investigate remote work and remote management issues. In Phase 1, focus groups were carried out with remote managers and remote employees to identify key issues. The most common key issues dealt with communications, information technology, leadership and coaching, teamwork, building trust, and performance management. In the second phase, a questionnaire was used to test hypotheses developed from phase 1. The findings supported that higher trust leads to higher job satisfaction and lower job stress, and that more communication between the manager and the remote employee develops higher levels of employee organizational commitment
The Need for an Applied Computer Ethics Handbook
Get PDFInformation technology is developing at an astounding pace. Computers are now common and their use is switching from number-crunching tools to "information and communication appliances". The growing success of the Internet is just an example of how information and communication facilities are now available to the general public. But today's Internet is just the precursor of more innovative applications. New advances in computer science disciplines such as communications networks and mobile devices are suggesting radically new uses of information technology. These new uses may raise new ethical issues. We give a few examples and show that these issues are not explicitly dealt with in existing ethical frameworks such as Mason's PAPA or Huffs ImpactCS. We also discuss the usability of these frameworks by software designers and suggest that information technology practitioners need more explicit tools such as handbooks to help them understand and deal with ethical issues
Assessing Software Cost Estimation Models: criteria for accuracy, consistency and regression
Get PDFOne of the problems in software cost estimation is how to evaluate estimation models. Estimation models are usually evaluated against two attributes: estimation accuracy and estimation consistency. A number of measures are reported in the literature, but they have shortcomings. There is no generally accepted standard to evaluate estimation models and the existing measures sometimes are not consistent among themselves. This paper examines existing measures of estimation accuracy and consistency and proposes two new ones: the weighted mean of quartiles of relative errors (WMQ) as a measure of accuracy and the standard deviation of the ratios of the estimate to actual observation (SDR) as a measure of consistency. Besides, a new regression criterion is proposed to determine model parameters. The proposed measures and criterion were tested with a data set from real world software projects. Results obtained show that these new measures and criterion overcome many of the difficulties of the existing ones