Software Development Research Research Articles

Conflicts Identification among Stakeholders in Goal Oriented Requirements Engineering Process

Requirements Analysis are the most important part of Software Engineering for both System Application Development, and project requirements. Conflicts often arise during the requirements gathering and analysis phase. This research aims to identifying conflicts during requirements gathering phase in software development life cycle, Research, Development, and Technology converted the world into a global village. During requirements elicitation/gathering phase it’s very difficult to understand the main objective of stakeholders, after completion of requirements elicitation task final results are used for Software Requirements Specification (SRS), SRS is the highly important outcome of the requirements analysis phase. this is the foundation between the developers and stakeholders or customers, proposed methodology will be helpful to identify those conflicts in very easy manner during the initial phase of the project.

Research framework for development of building performance simulation tools for early design stages

Abstract Recent research on identification of user barriers for the adoption of building performance simulation (BPS) tools indicates that architects wants to use the output from BPS to inform their decisions in the early design stage, but only if the BPS tools are conformed to fit their design practice. In this paper we therefore propose a research framework for the development of BPS tools conformed to fit common design practice in the early design stage. The proposed framework was constructed based on review of existing research methodologies in the area of BPS for informing decisions in the early design stage, and on review of methodologies used in other research fields, such as design research, social science, software development, and innovation research. The proposed research framework consists of four elements: 1) a reflective researcher who navigates the research activities and reflect on research methods, approaches and outcome; 2) a framing of the research to identify relevant theme, topic and research question of interest; 3) an iterative workflow procedure of planning, acting, observing and reflecting to generate a spiral of understanding, inspired by action research; and 4) a range of qualitative and quantitative research methods and approaches from the related research fields that could be applied continuously to seek and refine different solutions. The paper also reports on an application example which demonstrated that the framework is a helpful tool for systematic navigation and documentation of research activities and collection of data. Furthermore, the iterative nature of the framework continuously increases the researchers understanding of the underlying mechanisms of the design practice in early design stage enabling them to make better proposals for BPS tools that are conformed to fit common design practice in the early design stage.

A Collaboration Between Game Developers and Rehabilitation Researchers to Develop a Web-Based App for Persons With Physical Disabilities: Case Study.

BackgroundIndividuals with a disability and their partners, who often provide care, are both at risk for depression and lower quality of life. Mobile health (mHealth) interventions are promising to address barriers to mental health care. Rehabilitation researchers and software development researchers must collaborate effectively with each other and with clinical and patient stakeholders to ensure successful mHealth development.ObjectiveThis study aimed to aid researchers interested in mHealth software development by describing the collaborative process between a team of rehabilitation researchers, software development researchers, and stakeholders. Thus, we provide a framework (conceptual model) for other teams to replicate to build a Web-based mHealth app for individuals with physical disability.MethodsRehabilitation researchers, software development researchers, and stakeholders (people with physical disabilities and clinicians) are involved in an iterative software development process. The overall process of developing an mHealth intervention includes initial development meetings and a co-design method called design box, in which the needs and key elements of the app are discussed. On the basis of the objectives outlined, a prototype is developed and goes through scoping iterations with feedback from stakeholders and end users. The prototype is then tested by users to identify technical errors and gather feedback on usability and accessibility.ResultsIllustrating the overall development process, we present a case study based on our experience developing an app (SupportGroove) for couples coping with spinal cord injury. Examples of how we addressed specific challenges are also included. For example, feedback from stakeholders resulted in development of app features for individuals with limited functional ability. Initial designs lacked accessibility design principles made visible by end users. Solutions included large text, single click, and minimal scrolling to facilitate menu navigation for individuals using eye gaze technology. Prototype testing allowed further refinement and demonstrated high usability and engagement with activities in the app. Qualitative feedback indicated high levels of satisfaction, accessibility, and confidence in potential utility. We also present key lessons learned about working in a collaborative interdisciplinary team.ConclusionsmHealth promises to help overcome barriers to mental health intervention access. However, the development of these interventions can be challenging because of the disparate and often siloed expertise required. By describing the mHealth software development process and illustrating it with a successful case study of rehabilitation researchers, software development researchers, and stakeholders collaborating effectively, our goal is to help other teams avoid challenges we faced and benefit from our lessons learned. Ultimately, good interdisciplinary collaboration will benefit individuals with disabilities and their families.

Accounting for Intangibles: Can Capitalization of R&D Improve Investment Efficiency?

This paper investigates the potential for accounting rules to mitigate under‐investment induced by myopic managerial incentives. It exploits the difference within US GAAP requiring the capitalization of some research and development (R&D) costs in software development but proscribing the capitalization of R&D in other industries. We first investigate whether other hi‐technology firms with no capitalization of R&D costs suffer higher levels of under‐investment in myopic settings relative to software development firms. Second, we investigate whether the capitalization rule assists in mitigating under‐investment within the software development industry, and whether this comes at the cost of over‐investment in the presence of financial flexibility. Our findings are consistent with the mitigation of under‐investment in the software development setting but we find no evidence of over‐investment in the presence of high financial flexibility. Other hi‐tech firms that cannot capitalize R&D costs suffer higher levels of under‐investment relative to software development firms. Finally, we find that the ability to capitalize for the sample of software firms does reduce the probability of cutting R&D investment when managers are under earnings pressure. The findings in this paper are relevant to standard setters seeking to understand the costs imposed by (understandably) conservative accounting rules, and how verification of points of feasibility alongside less conservative accounting can prevent dysfunctional investment outcomes. This is the first study to consider whether the ability to (justifiably) capitalize the costs of internally generated intangibles can improve investment efficiency (the allocation of resources).

Application of XenServer in Computer Laboratory

In the teaching of computer network operating system, teachers need to set up the teaching environment in independence server. Teachers and students often need to carry out software development, testing and other scientific research work under different network operating system environments. At present, the majority of servers are occupied by the school’s core application system, and the server resources are insufficient to meet the needs of teachers for teaching and scientific research. This paper explores the use of Citrix’s XenServer system to virtualize the server, so as to solve the problem of insufficient server resources in teaching and scientific research.

The two paradigms of software development research

The most profound conflict in software engineering is not between positivist and interpretivist research approaches or Agile and Heavyweight software development methods, but between the Rational and Empirical Design Paradigms. The Rational and Empirical Paradigms are disparate constellations of beliefs about how software is and should be created. The Rational Paradigm remains dominant in software engineering research, standards and curricula despite being contradicted by decades of empirical research. The Rational Paradigm views analysis, design and programming as separate activities despite empirical research showing that they are simultaneous and inextricably interconnected. The Rational Paradigm views developers as executing plans despite empirical research showing that plans are a weak resource for informing situated action. The Rational Paradigm views success in terms of the Project Triangle (scope, time, cost and quality) despite empirical researching showing that the Project Triangle omits critical dimensions of success. The Rational Paradigm assumes that analysts elicit requirements despite empirical research showing that analysts and stakeholders co-construct preferences. The Rational Paradigm views professionals as using software development methods despite empirical research showing that methods are rarely used, very rarely used as intended, and typically weak resources for informing situated action. This article therefore elucidates the Empirical Design Paradigm, an alternative view of software development more consistent with empirical evidence. Embracing the Empirical Paradigm is crucial for retaining scientific legitimacy, solving numerous practical problems and improving software engineering education.

Abstract 2596: MediSapiens Explorer Technology Platform - Integrated Solution for big biomedical data

Abstract During recent years, the increasing throughput and decreasing cost of technologies for genomic, transcriptomic, proteomic and other high throughput profiling of samples has enabled collection of very rich data sets on large sample cohorts. As methods have been developed to analyze e.g. large human germline sequencing studies, it has simultaneously become clear that the potential of the data can be fully and effectively leveraged only if technical solutions are developed to curate, store, harmonize and jointly use these omics data sets together with clinical and phenotypic data on the samples. In the field of modern data-driven research, heterogeneous data is increasingly available through many dispersed resources, and in many cases, data from public sources is combined with proprietary data for analysis. Thus, it is not only important to have effective solutions for data storing and data management, but for data curation and data analysis and visualization. Data curation ensures that data from various sources are harmonized, standardized and cross-comparable. Powerful data analytics and visualization is pivotal in transforming data into information, new insights and added value. To address these problems, MediSapiens has developed the Explorer™ Technology Platform solution, based on its extensive experience in both industrial software development and academic biomedical research. The Explorer™ Technology Platform has been designed for all of the three major parts of the data research workflow: For curating data, storing and managing data, and analyzing and visualizing data. This web browser based, integrated solution provides functionalities to import, curate, ontology map and store rich clinical data, as well as very large data sets of gene expression, copy number, mutation and other profiling data for both bulk and single-cell analyses (e.g. single-cell RNA-seq), and perform various analyses and visualization on the data. Existing software components in the Explorer™ Technology Platform can quickly and efficiently be used to construct custom UI tools to query, analyze and interpret data according to individual customer needs. Further, the platform provides APIs which enable retrieval of data for integration with other systems, or development of custom analyses using e.g. R. Here, we will illustrate the application of Explorer Technology Platform concept to solve a variety of problems in preclinical cancer research and personalized medicine, starting from efficient automated curation of clinical data through to integration of clinical and multi-omics data. Citation Format: Henrik Edgren, MediSapiens bioinformatics and development teams. MediSapiens Explorer Technology Platform - Integrated Solution for big biomedical data [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2017; 2017 Apr 1-5; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2017;77(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 2596. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2017-2596

Predicting software revision outcomes on GitHub using structural holes theory

Many software repositories are hosted publicly online via social platforms. Online users contribute to the software projects not only by providing feedback and suggestions, but also by submitting revisions to improve the software quality. This study takes a close look at revisions and examines the impact of social media networks on the revision outcome. A novel approach with a mix of different research methods (e.g., ego-centric social network analysis, structural holes theory and survival analysis) is used to build a comprehensible model to predict the revision outcome. The predictive performance is validated using real life datasets obtained from GitHub, the social coding website, which contains 32,962 pull requests to submit revisions, 20,399 distinctive software project repositories, and a social network of 234,322 users. Good predictive performance has been achieved with an average AUC of 0.84. The results suggest that a repository host's position in the ego network plays an important role in determining the duration before a revision is accepted. Specifically, hosts that are positioned in between densely connected social groups are likely to respond more quickly to accept the revisions. The study demonstrates that online social networks are vital to software development and advances the understanding of collaboration in software development research. The proposed method can be applied to support decision making in software development to forecast revision duration. The result also has several implications for managing project collaboration using social media.

Method of Software Development Research Based on Mobile Platform

Software Engineering in 1968 made ​​by the NATO Science Committee, put forward the concept of the original software engineering software development rambling into a systems engineering, software development work to drive from individual behavior to the collaborative development forward, which also large systems may provide software development, this paper now mobile platform software development, how to introduce the concept of software engineering research, analysis software differences in the characteristics of mobile platform software development and in the traditional sense, learn software engineering concepts to guide the movement software development platform.

Software Development and Application Research Based on Android Operating System

In the field of computer, android operating system is a new smart phone platform developed by Google Company. Through the analysis of platform, its advantages are no boundaries between applications, openness, rapid and convenient application development, and equality application, etc. On this basis, this article makes the in-depth study of android system architecture, development and application of related important functional components and related problems such as environment configuration and verifies the availability of the android platform finally by means of relatively short message application.

Research of Software Development Model Based on the Theory of Software Engineering

purpose of research of software development is to attempt to develop lower cost , high reliability, and a variety of software to meet user needs. This paper introduce the advantages and disadvantages of various software development model from software engineering perspective.It proposed use of scientific principles and methods of engineering specifications to guide the development of the software , run and maintain , and trying to organize the work of software development , and then explore a new way to get rid of the software crisis.

Applying a Macroergonomic Approach to The Design and Analysis of Business Software

Business software is often seen as more of a nuisance to employees than an aid to more efficient work practices. Many companies are working toward improving this unfortunate phenomenon by attempting to improve the user experience (UX) of business software. This paper proposes that expanding beyond the UX perspective with a macroergonomic approach can improve both the research and design phases of business software development, ultimately providing a more complete picture of the UX by placing more emphasis on the context of use. Toward that end, we present here a preliminary application of macroergonomics to one business software project. First, we present an overview of business software. Then, a macroergonomics approach is defined and the potential value for business software is discussed. Next, we present an example of using macroergonomic principles on a project and the lessons learned during this exercise. Finally, we discuss what we’re doing to further expand upon this concept of applying macroergonomic principles to the design and analysis of business software.

Defect Prediction for Object Oriented Software using Support Vector based Fuzzy Classification Model

In software development research, early prediction of defective software modules always attracts the developers because it can reduces the overall requirements of software development such as time and budgets and increases the customer satisfaction. In the current context, with constantly increasing constraints like requirement ambiguity and complex development process, developing fault free reliable software is a daunting task. To deliver reliable software, it is essential to execute exhaustive number of test cases which may become tedious and costly for software enterprises. To ameliorate the testing process, a defect prediction model can be used which enables the developers to distribute their quality assurance activity on defect prone modules. However, a defect prediction models requires empirical validation to ensure their relevance to a software enterprises. In recent past, several classification and prediction models, based on historical defect data sets, have been used for early prediction of error-prone modules. Considering these facts, in this paper, a new Support Vector based Fuzzy Classification System (SVFCS) has been proposed for defective module prediction. In the proposed model an initial rule set is constructed using support vectors and Fuzzy logic. Rule set optimization is done using Genetic algorithm. The new method has been compared against two other models reported in recent literature viz. Naive Bayes and Support Vector Machine by using several measures, precision and probability of detection and it is found that the prediction performance of SVFCS approach is generally better than other prediction approaches. Our approach achieved 76.5 mean recall and 34.65 mean false alarm rate on three versions of Eclipse (Eclipse (2.0, 2.1, 3.0) and Equinox software bug data sets which strongly endorse the significance of proposed model in defect prediction research.

Design patterns selection: An automatic two-phase method

Over many years of research and practices in software development, hundreds of software design patterns have been invented and published. Now, a question which naturally arises is how software developers select the right design patterns from all relevant patterns to solve design problems in the software design phase. To address this issue, in this paper, we propose a two-phase method to select a right design pattern. The proposed method is based on a text classification approach that aims to show an appropriate way to suggest the right design pattern(s) to developers for solving each given design problem. There are two advantages of the proposed method in comparison to previous works. First, there is no need for semi-formal specifications of design patterns and second, the suitable design patterns are suggested with their degree of similarity to the design problem. To evaluate the proposed method, we apply it on real problems and several case studies. The experimental results show that the proposed method is promising and effective.

Understanding technology use in global virtual teams: Research methodologies and methods

Context The globalisation of activities associated with software development and use has introduced many challenges in practice, and also (therefore) many for research. While the predominant approach to research in software engineering has followed a positivist science model, this approach may be sub-optimal when addressing problems with a dominant social or cultural dimension, such as those frequently encountered when studying work practices in a globally distributed team setting. The investigation of such a team reported in this paper provides one example of an alternative approach to research in a global context, through a longitudinal interpretive field study seeking to understand how global virtual teams mediated the use of technology. The study involved a large collective of faculty and support staff plus student members based in the geographically and temporally distant locations of New Zealand, the United States of America and Sweden. Objective Our focus in this paper is on the conduct of research in the context of global software activities, and in particular, as applied to the actions and interactions of global virtual teams. We consider the appropriateness of various methodologies and methods in enabling such issues to be addressed. Method We describe how we undertook a substantial field study of global virtual teams, and highlight how the adopted structuration theory, action research and grounded theory methodologies applied to the analysis of email data, enabled us to deliver effectively against our goals. Results We believe that the approach taken suited a research context in which situated practices were occurring over time in a highly complex domain, ensuring that our results were both strongly grounded and relevant to practice. It has resulted in the generation of substantive theory and techniques that have been adapted and applied on a pilot basis in further field settings. Conclusion We conclude that globally distributed teamwork presents a complex context which demands new research approaches, beyond the limited set customarily applied by software engineering researchers. We advocate experimenting with different research methodologies and methods so that we have a more rounded repertoire to address the most important and relevant issues in global software development research, with the forms of rigour that suit the chosen approach.

Framework for component model selection

Advances in component-oriented software development research have led, among others, to the birth of a large number of component models, which has caused difficulties to the software developers in selecting the suitable component models to be used. To overcome the difficulties, a framework for component model selection is proposed in this study. The framework allows software developer to specify the criteria of the component model that they would like to use and recommends the component model(s) that fits most of the criteria. An application of the framework shows that it has the potential to be used by the software developers in determining the suitable component models.

Method and developer characteristics for effective agile method tailoring

It has long been acknowledged that software methods should be tailored if they are to achieve optimum effect. However comparatively little research has been carried out to date on this topic in general, and more notably, on agile methods in particular. This dearth of evidence in the case of agile methods is especially significant in that it is reasonable to expect that such methods would particularly lend themselves to tailoring. In this research, we present a framework based on interviews with 20 senior software development researchers and a review of the extant literature. The framework is comprised of two sets of factors—characteristics of the method, and developer practices—that can improve method tailoring effectiveness. Drawing on the framework, we then interviewed 16 expert XP practitioners to examine the current state and effectiveness of XP tailoring efforts, and to shed light on issues the framework identified as being important. The article concludes with a set of recommendations for research and practice that would advance our understanding of the method tailoring area.

Smart Client approaches to digital archiving of e‐journals

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present the results of a research project undertaken by Prosentient Systems and partially funded by the ALIA 2007 research study grant. The focus of the project was a proof‐of‐concept implementation of a Smart Client application for digital archiving of e‐journal subscriptions held by special libraries.Design/methodology/approachThis research comprised a survey of libraries in the area of electronic journal archiving and software development research. The quantitative survey was distributed to 254 member libraries of the GratisNet and GLASS special library networks in Australia. Seven questions explored current practice in e‐journal archiving. In total, 164 responses were received, of which only seven indicated current progress toward e‐journal archiving. Based on the survey results, the second phase of the project comprised software development research.FindingsThe research outcomes indicate that a cross‐platform “Smart Client” approach to e‐journal archiving is achievable and the presentation will review architectural design techniques that support cross‐platform deployment and simple installation using open source smart client tools.Practical implicationsThe transition to e‐journal subscriptions has not been matched with attention to methods for local archiving of e‐journal subscriptions. This research demonstrates the feasibility of simple solutions suitable for special libraries to implement local e‐journal archives.Originality/valueThis research presents an innovative approach to e‐journal archiving for special libraries. The approach differs from current, peer‐to‐peer approach by implementing a central metadata server and a simple easy to deploy desktop archiving agent. Furthermore, limitations imposed by copyright restrictions are the principal impediment that libraries face in implementing e‐journal archives, and the centralised metadata approach can help libraries distinguish journals for which local archiving is allowed.

Utilizing front‐end‐of‐innovation concepts in software development

PurposeThe traditional front‐end‐of‐innovation (FEI) research and requirements engineering (RE) in software development have realized the opportunities for overall innovation process improvements by focusing on improving the front‐end activities. The purpose of this paper is to investigate and compare the managerial perceptions on the similarities and differences in the FEI concepts between software industry and the traditional industrial sector.Design/methodology/approachThe research approach of this paper can be categorized as a case study. Causal cognitive maps are used as graphic tools for collecting and analyzing the perceptions of selected experts about the concepts of FEI, and for recognizing the perceived interrelationships between these concepts.FindingsThe paper presents the similarities and differences in the FEI concepts between the two industries. The most similarly assessed concept is that the quality of a product or software development project can be most often influenced by successful execution of detailed customer needs analysis.Research limitations/implicationsThe selection of a purely academic interview group representing the traditional industrial sector has some limitations.Practical implicationsThis paper provides viewpoints to managers and project team members on the most important factors in their front‐end activities influencing the success of product or software development projects.Originality/valueThe intersection between FEI and RE and its handling by causal cognitive mapping is a novel territory in academic research. In addition, this paper opens up a new strand for academic discussion by connecting these two domains previously unconnected in literature.

Dynamic capabilities in the software process

Software development is an important dynamic capability of a software-developing organisation. This paper explores product development in general and software development in particular from the viewpoint of the dynamic capabilities research stream that is associated with the Resource-based View (RBV) of the firm. We discuss software development from a process viewpoint, assessing each phase separately. The main results of the paper are twofold: first, via a dynamic capabilities-based analysis of the software process, we formulate by inductive reasoning a general product development resource transformation typology that supports the analysis of developing and managing industrial product innovation activities through a dynamic capabilities approach. Second, we present a research agenda that incorporates a synthesis of recent scholarly discourse about dynamic capabilities into product development and especially software development research.