Cost estimation of web applications through knowledge elicitation

Objective - The objective of this paper is detail the use of tacit knowledge elicited from domain experts in the domain of Web effort estimation to build an expert-based Web effort model for a medium-size Web company In Auckland (New Zealand). Method - A single-company Web effort estimation model was built using Bayesian Networks (BN), using knowledge solely elicited from two domain experts who were experienced Web project managers. The model was validated using data from eleven past finished Web projects. Results - The BN model has to date been successfully used to estimate effort for numerous Web projects developed by this Company. Conclusions - Our results suggest that, at least for the Web Company that participated in the case study, the use of models that allow the representation of uncertainty, inherent in effort estimation, can outperform expert-based estimates. Thus far, another nine companies in New Zealand, and on in Brazil have also benefited from using Bayesian Networks, with very promising results. © 2012 Springer-Verlag

A Systematic review of web resource estimation

Background: Web development plays an important role in today\u27s industry, so an in depth view into Web resource estimation would be valuable. However a systematic review (SR) on Web resource estimation in its entirety has not been done. Aim: The aim of this paper is to present a SR of Web resource estimation in order to define the current state of the art, and to identify any research gaps that may be present. Method: Research questions that would address the current state of the art in Web resource estimation were first identified. A comprehensive literature search was then executed resulting in the retrieval of 84 empirical studies that investigated any aspect of Web resource estimation. Data extraction and synthesis was performed on these studies with these research questions in mind. Results: We have found that there are no guidelines with regards to what resource estimation technique should be used in a particular estimation scenario, how it should be implemented, and how its effectiveness should be evaluated. Accuracy results vary widely and are dependent on numerous factors. Research has focused on development effort/cost estimation, neglecting other facets of resource estimation like quality and maintenance. Size measures have been used in all but one study as a resource predictor. Conclusions: Our results suggest that there is plenty of work to be done in the field of Web resource estimation whether it be investigating a more comprehensive approach that considers more than a single resource facet, evaluating other possible resource predictors, or trying to determine guidelines that would help simplify the process of selecting a resource estimation technique. Copyright © 2012 ACM

Investigating the effects of personality traits on pair programming in a higher education setting through a family of experiments

Evidence from our systematic literature review revealed numerous inconsistencies in findings from the Pair Programming (PP) literature regarding the effects of personality on PP’s effectiveness as a pedagogical tool. In particular: i) the effect of differing personality traits of pairs on the successful implementation of pair-programming (PP) within a higher education setting is still unclear, and ii) the personality instrument most often used had been Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), despite being an indicator criticized by personality psychologists as unreliable in measuring an individual’s personality traits. These issues motivated the research described in this paper. We conducted a series of five formal experiments (one of which was a replicated experiment), between 2009 and 2010, at the University of Auckland, to investigate the effects of personality composition on PP’s effectiveness. Each experiment looked at a particular personality trait of the Five-Factor personality framework. This framework comprises five broad traits (Openness to experience, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism), and our experiments focused on three of these - Conscientiousness, Neuroticism, and Openness. A total of 594 undergraduate students participated as subjects. Overall, our findings for all five experiments, including the replication, showed that Conscientiousness and Neuroticism did not present a statistically significant effect upon paired students’ academic performance. However, Openness played a significant role in differentiating paired students’ academic performance. Participants’ survey results also indicated that PP not only caused an increase in satisfaction and confidence levels but also brought enjoyment to the tutorial classes and enhanced students’ motivation

Software process improvement success factors for small and medium Web companies: A qualitative study

© 2012 Elsevier B.V. Context The context of this research is software process improvement (SPI) in small and medium Web companies. Objective The primary objective of this paper is to identify software process improvement (SPI) success factors for small and medium Web companies. Method To achieve this goal, we conducted semi-structured, open-ended interviews with 21 participants representing 11 different companies in Pakistan, and analyzed the data qualitatively using the Glaserian strand of grounded theory research procedures. The key steps of these procedures that were employed in this research included open coding, focused coding, theoretical coding, theoretical sampling, constant comparison, and scaling up. Results An initial framework of key SPI success factors for small and medium Web companies was proposed, which can be of use for small and medium Web companies engaged in SPI. The paper also differentiates between small and medium Web companies and analyzes crucial SPI requirements for companies operating in the Web development domain. Conclusion The results of this work, in particular the use of qualitative techniques – allowed us to obtain rich insight into SPI success factors for small and medium Web companies. Future work comprises the validation of the SPI success factors with small and medium Web companies

Air Budjet: a VTOL virtual operator company in Portugal

Creation of sustainable transportation service for a new and virtual airline company that uses VTOL aircraft in order to increase mobility and flexibility in Portugal. This study started with the VTOL concepts, peripherally and accessibility, and business models and plans reviews. The air service characterization was then carried out using localization and trajectory optimization algorithms, thus allowing to elaborate two applications (software): one for clients to book their flights and another that compiles flight's data booked by clients and optimizes flights routes/trajectories. With this study, it is possible to depict the viability of the economic-financial results of the new virtual company and the application development results with the optimized trajectories. The development of this air service will increase accessibility and mobility in all regions of Portugal and companies that cannot afford the costs of executive aviation, too. In order to facilitate the booking of the flights, an application was created for the client in order to optimize the company costs related to this air service, and thus to make the cost of a trip more appealing; a second application was elaborated that optimizes the trajectories of the aircraft.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Guidelines for the Search Strategy to Update Systematic Literature Reviews in Software Engineering

Context: Systematic Literature Reviews (SLRs) have been adopted within Software Engineering (SE) for more than a decade to provide meaningful summaries of evidence on several topics. Many of these SLRs are now potentially not fully up-to-date, and there are no standard proposals on how to update SLRs in SE. Objective: The objective of this paper is to propose guidelines on how to best search for evidence when updating SLRs in SE, and to evaluate these guidelines using an SLR that was not employed during the formulation of the guidelines. Method: To propose our guidelines, we compare and discuss outcomes from applying different search strategies to identify primary studies in a published SLR, an SLR update, and two replications in the area of effort estimation. These guidelines are then evaluated using an SLR in the area of software ecosystems, its update and a replication. Results: The use of a single iteration forward snowballing with Google Scholar, and employing as a seed set the original SLR and its primary studies is the most cost-effective way to search for new evidence when updating SLRs. Furthermore, the importance of having more than one researcher involved in the selection of papers when applying the inclusion and exclusion criteria is highlighted through the results. Conclusions: Our proposed guidelines formulated based upon an effort estimation SLR, its update and two replications, were supported when using an SLR in the area of software ecosystems, its update and a replication. Therefore, we put forward that our guidelines ought to be adopted for updating SLRs in SE.Comment: Author version of manuscript accepted for publication at the Information and Software Technology Journa