From Rich User Requirements to System Requirements

In recent years the usage of information systems has changed dramatically. Today many information systems are developed for non-organizational users. These wide-area end-users are often socially, as well as geographically very widely dispersed, which makes it for organizations that develop information systems extremely difficult to know who their users are, or what they expect. Previous research has claimed that rich user requirements information is necessary, in order to understand how to serve this audience right. However, at the same time current requirements engineering methods, capable of providing this rich information, do not serve the needs of designers and developers, who actually implement the services and who need precise knowledge of system requirements. It appears that there is a severe gap in the communication of requirements between end-user, analyst, and designer. We have the design science research agenda to develop a method for extending one advanced requirements engineering method, WARE, to provide support for the full spectrum of communication. Our study presents results of ongoing research program, studying the innovation possibilities of Mobile Presence technology. Our method enables analysts to make the transition from rich user requirements to system requirements, which designers and developers can use in their implementation work

Web-based personal dose management system for data recording on dosimeter usage: a case of Tanzania atomic energy commission

A Project Report Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements of the Award the Degree of Master of Science in Embedded and Mobile Systems of the Nelson Mandela African Institution of Science and TechnologyModern technology drives the world, increasing performance while reducing labour and time expenses. Tanzania Atomic Energy Commission (TAEC) tracks employees’ levels of exposure to radiation sources using dosimeters. According to legal compliance, workers wear dosimeters for three months and one month at the workplace. However, TAEC has problems in tracking, issuing, and returning dosimeters because the existing tracking is done manually. The study intended to develop a Personal Dose Management System (PDMS) that processes and manages the data collected by dosimeters for easy and accurate records. During the requirements elicitation process, the study looked at the existing system. PDMS’ requirement gathering included document reviews, user interviews, and focused group discussions. Development and testing of the system were implemented by applying the evolutionary prototyping technique. The system provides a login interface for system administrators, radiation officers, and Occupational Exposed Workers. The PDMS grants TAEC Staff access to monitor individual exposed workers, prints individual and institutional reports and manages workers' information. The system reminds the users when to return dosimeters to TAEC, generates reports, and facilitates dispatching and receiving dosimeters effectively. PDMS increases efficiency and effectiveness while minimizing workload, paperwork, and inaccurate records. Although the existing systems are beneficial to their respective countries, they are designed based on the specific institution. The system developed simplifies the procedures for requesting dosimeters, reminding users when to return the dosimeter, and printing quarterly and annual reports for individuals and institutions. Therefore, based on the results obtained from the system, it is recommended to use the system to improve dosimeter data management at the institution

Managing Technical and Operational Change: How understanding a railway’s historic evolution can guide future development: A London Underground case study

The argument for this thesis is that patterns of past engineering and operational development can be used to support the creation of a strategy for future development and that, in order to achieve this, a corporate understanding of the history of the engineering, operational and organisational changes in the business is essential for any railway undertaking. The research shows that a railway is a complex system, where the operational life of much of the hardware is greater than the time employees spend in service, so it is common for the origins and reasons for systems on the railway to be forgotten. This knowledge can be lost when staff retire or leave. For new staff, little attention is paid to history and development during induction; indeed, such knowledge may not even be considered necessary or relevant. London Underground is used as a case study to show how the history of the system has impacted on the design of rolling stock. The work concludes that it is essential for railway employees to understand the way in which systems and operations have evolved on a railway during its history. The author proposes new processes that include historical corporate knowledge in future business development