Requirements Engineering of Context-Aware Applications

Context-aware computing envisions a new generation of smart applications that have the ability to perpetually sense the user’s context and use these data to make adaptation decision in response to changes in the user’s context so as to provide timely and personalized services anytime and anywhere. Unlike the traditional distribution systems where the network topology is fixed and wired, context-aware computing systems are mostly based on wireless communication due to the mobility of the network nodes; hence the network topology is not fixed but changes dynamically in an unpredictable manner as nodes join and the leave network, in addition to the fact that wireless communication is unstable. These factors make the design and development of context-aware computing systems much more challenging, as the system requirements change depending on the context of use. The Unified Modelling Language (UML) is a graphical language commonly used to specify, visualize, construct, and document the artefacts of software-intensive systems. However, UML is an all-purpose modelling language and does not have notations to distinguish context-awareness requirements from other system requirements. This is critical for the specification, visualization, construction and documentation of context-aware computing systems because context-awareness requirements are highly important in these systems. This thesis proposes an extension of UML diagrams to cater for the specification, visualization, construction and documentation of context-aware computing systems where new notations are introduced to model context-awareness requirements distinctively from other system requirements. The contributions of this work can be summarized as follows: (i) A context-aware use case diagram is a new notion which merges into a single diagram the traditional use case diagram (that describes the functions of an application) and the use context diagram, which specifies the context information upon which the behaviours of these functions depend. (ii) A Novel notion known as a context-aware activity diagram is presented, which extends the traditional UML activity diagrams to enable the representation of context objects, context constraints and adaptation activities. Context constraints express conditions upon context object attributes that trigger adaptation activities; adaptation activities are activities that must be performed in response to specific changes in the system’s context. (iii) A novel notion known as the context-aware class diagram is presented, which extends the traditional UML class diagrams to enable the representation of context information that affect the behaviours of a class. A new relationship, called utilisation, between a UML class and a context class is used to model context objects; meaning that the behaviours of the UML class depend upon the context information represented by the context class. Hence a context-aware class diagram is a rich and expressive language that distinctively depicts both the structure of classes and that of the contexts upon which they depend. The pragmatics of the proposed approach are demonstrated using two real-world case studies

'n Seisoen in die paradys by Breyten Breytenbach and its translation, a season in paradise by Rike Vaughan. a descriptive approach focusing on the transfer of meaning in the text.

A Translation project submitted to the Faculty of Arts, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Master of Arts (Translation).This case study investigates and analyses the transfer of the socio-political elements of meaning, in the translated text, A Season in Paradise (1985). The study attempts to discover and account for any factors which may have impacted on the transfer of the socio-political elements from the source text. to make the study as systematic and as objective as possible, an adaptation of the model of analysis proposed by Lambert and Van Gorp is used. Lambert and Van Gorp are theorists who fall within the branch of translation studies called Descriptive Translation studies. The adaptation of the Lambert and Van Gorp model takes into account the factors which could have influenced the translator's reading of the literary text and which could have impacted on her translation strategy. The macro-analysis establishes the background to the translation and compares the physical features and the publishing circumstances of the target text with that of the source text. It contains a discussion on any similarities or differences found. On the micro-level, specific extracts with a socio-political theme are compared using selected linguistic concepts from Halliday's An Introduction to Functional Grammar as interpretive tools. The shifts discovered here were linked to the discoveries made in the macro-level analysis. It: was determined that prevalent reading strategies at the time did to a limited extent influence the transfer of the socio-political elements of meaning present in the text. This study is done to shed more light on the process of translating a literary work and the factors which may influence this process.Andrew Chakane 201

A model of the dynamics of organizational communication

We propose a model of the dynamics of organizational communication. Our model specifies the mechanics by which communication impact is fed back to communication inputs and closes the gap between sender and receiver of messages. We draw on language critique, a branch of language philosophy, and derive joint linguistic actions of interlocutors to explain the emergence and adaptation of communication on the group level. The model is framed by Te'eni's cognitive-affective model of organizational communication

Subordinating careers to market forces? A critical analysis of European career guidance policy

This study explores language regarding career and career development in European policy documents on career guidance in order to disclose underlying view(s) of these phenomena conveyed in the texts. Qualitative content analysis was used to approach the subject in the texts, followed by a sender-oriented interpretation. Sources for interpretation include several sociological and pedagogical approaches based upon social constructionism. These provide a framework for understanding how different views of career phenomena arise. The characterization of career phenomena in the documents falls into four categories: contextual change, environment-person correspondence, competence mobility, and empowerment. An economic perspective on career dominates, followed by learning and political science perspectives. Policy formulations convey contradictory messages and a form of career \u27contract\u27 that appears to subordinate individuals\u27 careers to global capitalism, while attributing sole responsibility for career to individuals. (DIPF/Orig.

Sensory semantic user interfaces (SenSUI)

Rapid evolution of the World Wide Web with its underlying sources of data, knowledge, services and applications continually attempts to support a variety of users, with different backgrounds, requirements and capabilities. In such an environment, it is highly unlikely that a single user interface will prevail and be able to fulfill the requirements of each user adequately. Adaptive user interfaces are able to adapt information and application functionalities to the user context. In contrast, pervasive computing and sensor networks open new opportunities for context aware platforms, one that is able to improve user interface adaptation reacting to environmental and user sensors. Semantic web technologies and ontologies are able to capture sensor data and provide contextual information about the user, their actions, required applications and environment. This paper investigates the viability of an approach where semantic web technologies are used to maximize the efficacy of interface adaptation through the use of available ontology

The emergence of information systems: a communication-based theory

An information system is more than just the information technology; it is the system that emerges from the complex interactions and relationships between the information technology and the organization. However, what impact information technology has on an organization and how organizational structures and organizational change influence information technology remains an open question. We propose a theory to explain how communication structures emerge and adapt to environmental changes. We operationalize the interplay of information technology and organization as language communities whose members use and develop domain-specific languages for communication. Our theory is anchored in the philosophy of language. In developing it as an emergent perspective, we argue that information systems are self-organizing and that control of this ability is disseminated throughout the system itself, to the members of the language community. Information technology influences the dynamics of this adaptation process as a fundamental constraint leading to perturbations for the information system. We demonstrate how this view is separated from the entanglement in practice perspective and show that this understanding has far-reaching consequences for developing, managing, and examining information systems

Gaming the heart of darkness

The history of Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness has been one of adaptation and change. The enduring story is based upon Conrad’s experiences in the Congo in the 1890s and has been published as a novella in 1902. Since then the story has been criticised for racism by Nigerian writer Chinua Achebe (1975) and relocated to Vietnam by Francis Ford Coppola as Apocalypse Now (1979), influencing computer games such as Far Cry 2 (2008) and Spec Ops: The Line (2012). In examining the adaptations of Heart of Darkness we can consider how the story evolves from the passive reading of post-colonial narratives through to the active participation in morally ambiguous decisions and virtual war crimes through digital games: examining Conrad’s story as it has been adapted for other mediums provides a unique lens in which to view storytelling and retelling within the context of how we interpret the world. This paper compares the source material to its adaptations, considering the blending of historical fact and original fiction, the distortion of the original story for the purpose of creating new meaning, and reflects on whether interactivity impacts upon the feeling of immersion and sense of responsibility in audiences of different narratives