The Structure of Software Design

1994 ◽  
Author(s):  
Harold Salzman ◽  
Stephen R. Rosenthal
Keyword(s):  
Case Studies ◽  
Design Process ◽  
Software Design ◽  
Software Industry ◽  
Important Change ◽  
Technological Transformation ◽  
Socially Constructed ◽  
Business Applications ◽  
Dual Perspective ◽  
Front Office

The software industry really came of age in the 1970s and 1980s. This was a time of technological transformation in the workplace. The computer expanded from the backroom to the front office and evolved from simple data processing to integrated information systems. The growth of the independent software vendor led to an important change in software design. User firms began to purchase large, standard or semicustom systems from thirdparty vendors rather than purchasing software with hardware and having most applications software custom designed by an in-house programming staff. This added another dimension to the software design process: Software became the product of at least two organizations (the vendor and one or more user firms) and its design and production became mediated by the market. The organizational simplicity of software design occurring within one organization, as difficult a process as that may be, became relatively more complex organizationally. This chapter examines one part of the process of technology design and use: the activities internal to the software design firm. It concentrates on the structure and dynamics of the design process rather than on specific design decisions. The findings presented in this chapter are based on a survey of vendor firms and may represent a different perspective than findings on software developed within a user firm. By focusing on dynamics that transcend choices of particular individuals, we show how decisions are shaped and constrained by the structure of the design process itself. The three chapters following this one present case studies that describe specific choices of software features and functions and analyze the impacts of those choices on software users and customers. Taken together, this chapter and the case studies present the dual perspective necessary to appreciate how software is a socially constructed technology. The business applications software industry for mainframes and minicomputers is composed of hardware manufacturers such as IBM and Digital Equipment Corporation, several large vendors, and numbers of small specialty firms.

scholarly journals A MODEL OF CREATIVE HERITAGE FOR INDUSTRY: DESIGNING NEW RULES WHILE PRESERVING THE PRESENT SYSTEM OF RULES

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 141-150
Author(s):  
Honorine Harlé ◽  
Pascal Le Masson ◽  
Benoit Weil
Keyword(s):  
Case Studies ◽  
Design Process ◽  
Industry 4.0 ◽  
Innovation Management ◽  
Present System ◽  
Innovative Capability ◽  
Current Change ◽  
A Site ◽  
Do So

AbstractIn industry, there is at once a strong need for innovation and a need to preserve the existing system of production. Thus, although the literature insists on the necessity of the current change toward Industry 4.0, how to implement it remains problematic because the preservation of the factory is at stake. Moreover, the question of the evolution of the system depends on its innovative capability, but it is difficult to understand how a new rule can be designed and implemented in a factory. This tension between preservation and innovation is often explained in the literature as a process of creative destruction. Looking at the problem from another perspective, this article models the factory as a site of creative heritage, enabling creation within tradition, i.e., creating new rules while preserving the system of rules. Two case studies are presented to illustrate the model. The paper shows that design in the factory relies on the ability to validate solutions. To do so, the design process can explore and give new meaning to the existing rules. The role of innovation management is to choose the degree of revision of the rules and to make it possible.

Optimising building performance through integrating risk management and building information modelling during the design process

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ayman Ahmed Ezzat Othman ◽  
Fatma Othman Alamoudy
Keyword(s):  
Risk Management ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Design Process ◽  
Building Performance ◽  
Building Information Modelling ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Information Modelling ◽  
Building Information

Purpose This paper aims to develop a framework for optimising building performance through the integration between risk management (RM) and building information modelling (BIM) during the design process. Design/methodology/approach To achieve this aim, a research strategy consisting of literature review, case studies and survey questionnaire is designed to accomplish four objectives. First, to examine the concepts of design process, building performance, RM and BIM; second, to present three case studies to explain the role of using RM and BIM capabilities towards optimising building performance; third, to investigate the perception and application of architectural design firms in Egypt towards the role of RM and BIM for enhancing building performance during the design process; and finally, to develop a framework integrating RM and BIM during the design process as an approach for optimising building performance. Findings Through literature review, the research identified 18 risks that hamper optimising building performance during the design process. In addition, 11 building performance values and 20 BIM technologies were defined. Results of data analysis showed that “Design budget overrun”, “Lack of considering life cycle cost” and “Inefficient use of the design time” were ranked the highest risks that affect the optimisation of building performance. Respondents ranked “Risk avoid” or “Risk transfer” as the most risk responses adopted in the Egyptian context. In addition, “BIM As Built” was ranked the highest BIM technology used for overcoming risks during the design process. These findings necessitated taking action towards developing a framework to optimising building performance. Originality/value The research identified the risks that affect optimising building performance during the design process. It focuses on improving the design process through using the capabilities of BIM technologies towards overcoming these risks during the design process. The proposed framework which integrates RM and BIM represents a synthesis that is novel and creative in thought and adds value to the knowledge in a manner that has not previously occurred.

Collaboration in research: weaving Kaupapa Māori and computer science

2021 ◽  
pp. 117718012110431
Author(s):  
Anna K Rolleston ◽  
Judy Bowen ◽  
Annika Hinze ◽  
Erina Korohina ◽  
Rangi Matamua
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Computer Science ◽  
Indigenous People ◽  
Design Process ◽  
Software Design ◽  
Integrated Process ◽  
Engineering Project ◽  
Aotearoa New Zealand ◽  
Treaty Of Waitangi ◽  
Kaupapa Māori

We describe a collaboration between Māori (Indigenous people of Aotearoa/New Zealand) and Tauiwi (non-Māori) researchers on a software engineering project. Te Tiriti o Waitangi (The Treaty of Waitangi) provides the basis for Māori to lead research that involves Māori as participants or intends to impact Māori outcomes. Through collaboration, an extension of the traditional four-step software design process was created, culminating in a nine-step integrated process that included Kaupapa Māori (Māori ideology) principles. The collaboration experience for both Māori and Tauiwi highlighted areas of misunderstanding within the research context based on differing worldviews and our ability to navigate and work through this. This article provides context, guiding principles, and recommended research processes where Māori and Tauiwi aim to collaborate.

scholarly journals AGRICULTURAL MACHINERY AND IMPLEMENTS DESIGN PROCESS: GUIDELINES FOR SMALL AND MID-SIZED BUSINESSES

2016 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 206-216 ◽  
Author(s):  
Renato L. Bergamo ◽  
Leonardo N. Romano
Keyword(s):  
Human Resources ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Design Process ◽  
Process Modeling ◽  
Reference Model ◽  
New Products ◽  
Machine Design ◽  
Reference Models ◽  
Knowledge Domains ◽  
Modeling Formalism

ABSTRACT This study aims at presenting the process of machine design and agricultural implements by means of a reference model, formulated with the purpose of explaining the development activities of new products, serving as a guideline to coach human resources and to assist in formalizing the process in small and medium-sized businesses (SMB), i.e. up to 500 employees. The methodology used included the process modeling, carried out from case studies in the SMB, and the study of reference models in literature. The modeling formalism used was based on the IDEF0 standard, which identifies the dimensions required for the model detailing: input information; activities; tasks; knowledge domains; mechanisms; controls and information produced. These dimensions were organized in spreadsheets and graphs. As a result, a reference model with 27 activities and 71 tasks was obtained, distributed over four phases of the design process. The evaluation of the model was carried out by the companies participating in the case studies and by experts, who concluded that the model explains the actions needed to develop new products in SMB.

scholarly journals A Spirit of Urban Capitalism: Market Cities, People Cities, and Cultural Justifications

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin T. Smiley ◽  
Michael Oluf Emerson
Keyword(s):  
Case Studies ◽  
Urban Life ◽  
Urban Economies ◽  
Socially Constructed ◽  
The People

Diverse urban theories discuss how economic processes shape conceptions of a city, but less research focuses on how pragmatic situations of urban life contribute to the characterisation of cities. We argue that pragmatic justifications reify socially constructed meanings of cities by creating a “spirit of urban capitalism.” This framework conceives of two spirits: the market city, which aligns with neoliberal assumptions, and the people city, which foregrounds a resident-focused model. Using case studies of Copenhagen and Houston, we showcase how these conceptions of cities are justified by elites and residents, and thereby build empirical scaffolding connecting urban economies and cultures.

scholarly journals A Case Studies Approach to the Analysis of Profiling and Framing Structures for Pervasive Information Systems

2012 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
José Eduardo Fernandes ◽  
Ricardo J. Machado ◽  
João Á. Carvalho
Keyword(s):  
Information Systems ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Software Design ◽  
Expert Knowledge ◽  
Structural Approach ◽  
Technological Changes ◽  
Design And Development ◽  
Structure Approach ◽  
Model Based ◽  
Widespread Adoption

Model-Based/Driven Development (MDD) constitutes an approach to software design and development that potentially contributes to: concepts closer to domain and reduction of semantic gaps, automation and less sensitivity to technological changes, and the capture of expert knowledge and reuse. The widespread adoption of pervasive technologies as basis for new systems and applications lead to the need of effectively design pervasive information systems that properly fulfil the goals they were designed for. This paper presents a profiling and framing structure approach for the development of Pervasive Information Systems (PIS). This profiling and framing structure allows the organization of the functionality that can be assigned to computational devices in a system and of the corresponding development structures and models, being. The proposed approach enables a structural approach to PIS development. The paper also presents two case studies that allowed demonstrating the applicability of the approach.

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