Grades computacionais tem a finalidade de oferecer meios para o compartilhamento de recursos distribuídos geograficamente para o uso em aplicações que necessitem. A integração de Bancos de Dados distribuídos geograficamente pode ser obtida através do compartilhamento de recursos provido pela tecnologia de grades. Este trabalho utiliza middlewares de grade computacional, especificamente Globus e OGSA-DAI bem como outras tecnologias como LDAP e JDBC, especificando uma arquitetura distribuída para possibilitar a integração de Bancos de Dados, oferecendo também suporte a replicação. A arquitetura proposta possibilita a configuração de níveis hierárquicos de replicação. O presente trabalho apresenta a implementação de um protótipo desta arquitetura. Um driver JDBC é apresentado para possibilitar o uso dos bancos de dados expostos na grade. Tem-se como resultado deste trabalho, a definição da arquitetura e o desenvolvimento de ferramentas culminando em um protótipo funcional, bem como uma versão estável do driver JDBC. A possibilidade de integração de bancos de dados na grade com suporte a replicação, torna possível aplicações de alto desempenho e alta disponibilidade sem comprometer a autonomia local dos bancos de dados integrados. / Grid Computing have the goal of providing means to share resources to be used by applications that need these resources. The integration of geographically distributed databases can be obtained by sharing resources using grid computing technology. This work uses grid middlewares, specifically Globus Toolkit and OGSA-DAI, as well as other technologies as LDAP and Java JDBC, specifying a distributed architecture to allow database integration, also offering support for replication. The proposed architecture offers also its configuration in hierarchical levels of replication. The work also presents the implementation of a prototype based on the proposed architecture. A JDBC driver is presented, it allows the ease access to databases exposed in the grid. The results of this work are the definition of the architecture, the development of a functional prototype and a stable version of the JDBC Driver. The possibility of integrating databases with replication support allows applications of high performance and high availability without interfering in the local autonomy of the databases.

En pharmaco-épidémiologie, la mesure de l’exposition médicamenteuse est fondamentale. Des données déclaratives recueillies par interrogatoire des sujets ou des données extraites des bases de remboursement de l’Assurance Maladie peuvent être utilisées. Les objectifs de ce travail étaient de comparer l’exposition mesurée à partir de ces deux sources de données et d’évaluer l’impact du choix de l’une ou l’autre source sur les mesures de risque dans les études étiologiques. Les travaux ont été conduits au sein de l’étude des Trois-Cités, cohorte de sujets âgés pour laquelle étaient disponibles des données déclaratives et de remboursement. La concordance entre les expositions issues des deux sources ou la validité de l’exposition issue de l’une par rapport à celle issue de l’autre ont été évaluées dans différents contextes. La survenue d’événements a été simulée dans la population et des études cas-témoins nichées ont été conduites pour évaluer l’association entre l’exposition issue de chaque source et chaque événement. Pour les médicaments cardiovasculaires, les mesures d’exposition étaient peu différentes entre les deux sources. L’impact du choix de l’une ou l’autre source sur les mesures d’association entre l’exposition et un événement était faible. Pour les benzodiazépines ou les anti-inflammatoires non stéroïdiens, des différences étaient observées entre les expositions issues des deux sources. Pour ces médicaments, l’association avec un événement pouvait varier selon la source utilisée. Pour des médicaments pris de manière irrégulière ou intermittente, le choix de la source de données pour la mesure de l’exposition peut donc être un élément déterminant. / In pharmacoepidemiology, assessment of drug exposure is fundamental. It can rely on data collected through patient interviews or extracted from healthcare insurance system databases recording reimbursement claims. This work aimed to compare drug exposure measured from these two data sources and to evaluate the impact of choosing one source or the other on risk estimates in etiological studies. It was conducted as part of the Three-City Study, a cohort of French elderly persons for which both interview and reimbursement data were available. Agreement between exposures measured from both sources or validity of exposure measured from one source with reference to that measured from the other were evaluated in different backgrounds. Simulated outcomes were generated in the study population and nested case-control studies were conducted in order to estimate the association between the drug exposure measured from each source and each simulated outcome. For cardiovascular system drugs, exposure measured from interview data was close to that measured from reimbursement data. The choice of one source or the other had few impact on the estimated associations between the exposure and an outcome. For benzodiazepines or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, exposure measured from both sources could differ. For these drugs, the association between the exposure measured from each source and an outcome could vary. For drugs that can be used irregularly or intermittently, the choice of the source of data for drug exposure assessment could thus be of great importance.

En France, l'usage des bases de données médico-administratives dans le cadre épidémiologique est récent comparativement à d'autres pays d'Europe, du fait notamment de leur complexité, liée à leur développement initial mené dans une optique comptable. Les travaux menés ont porté sur l'apport de ces bases de données à l'étude de la prise en charge et de la morbidité évitable dans l'asthme et dans l'ostéoporose. Dans un premier temps, nous avons montré que ces bases de données permettaient au travers d'algorithmes d'identifier des nourrissons asthmatiques et leurs exacerbations, et que la prise en charge de ces nourrissons n'était pas optimale en France, avec une forte consommation d'antibiotiques et de corticoïdes oraux. Nous avons prolongé ces recherches par la description de la prise en charge des asthmatiques enfants/adolescents et adultes, et les constats ont été les mêmes. Une surconsommation des traitements de crise a pu être mise en évidence, ainsi que des sous-groupes de patients à risque d'exacerbation sévère. Ces résultats nous ont amené à nous intéresser tout particulièrement à l'adhésion aux traitements de fond. Dans une étude menée sur 5 000 patients asthmatiques, le taux de couverture par un traitement de fond était en moyenne de 51%, et seuls 24% des patients avaient un taux de couverture supérieur ou égal au taux minimal recommandé (80%). Enfin, concernant l'ostéoporose, nous nous sommes attachés à décrire la prise en charge des patients ostéoporotiques sur une période de 6 ans, en nous concentrant particulièrement sur les changements de stratégies thérapeutiques / Anglais In France, the use of claims data in the epidemiological context is recent compared to other European countries, in particular because of their complexity, linked to their initial development for accounting purposes. This work was focused on the contribution of these databases to study disease management and unmet needs in asthma and osteoporosis. First, we showed that it was feasible, through algorithms, to identify in these data infants with asthma and their exacerbations, and we noted that management of these infants was not optimal, with high use of antibiotics and oral corticosteroids. We extended this research by describing the treatment of asthmatic children/adolescents and adults, with similar findings. Overuse of reliever therapy was observed, beyond the identification of subgroups at risk of serious exacerbation. These results led us to focus on adherence to controller therapy. In a study including 5,000 asthma patients, the coverage by controller therapy was 51%, and only 24% of patients had a higher coverage than the recommended minimum (80%). Finally, regarding osteoporosis, we described the treatment of osteoporotic patients over 6 years, with a particular focus on treatment switches

Electronic gadgets such as touchpads and smartphones are becoming more popular in business and everyday life. The main advantage of mobile devices over personal computers is their portability. Cellular data plans allow Internet access without having permanent access point. There is a number of web-based applications available for gadgets. The primary goal of these apps is to provide their services through constant Internet access. However, it may affect the operation of both devices and applications. The objective of this thesis is to find a better way of client/server data synchronization in iOS development that can reduce the negative consequences of constant Internet access such as Internet traffic consumption, reduced battery life and cover area limitation of cellular services. As the result of the conducted research, the "FollowQTM" application was developed. Despite the fact, that the application is synchronized with web server, it does not require constant Internet access to operate.

In the United States, businesses have reported over 2,800 data compromises of an estimated 543 million records, with security breaches costing firms approximately $7.2 million annually. Scholars and industry practitioners have indicated a significant impact of security breaches on consumers and organizations. However, there are limited data on the best practices for minimizing the impact of security breaches on organizational performance. The purpose of this qualitative multicase study was to explore best practices technology leaders use to minimize data security breaches for increased business performance. Systems theory served as the conceptual framework for this study. Fourteen participants were interviewed, including 2 technology executives and 5 technical staff, each from a banking firm in the Northcentral United States and a local government agency in the Southcentral United States. Data from semistructured interviews, in addition to security and privacy policy statements, were analyzed for methodological triangulation. Four major themes emerged: a need for implementation of security awareness education and training to mitigate insider threats, the necessity of consistent organization security policies and procedures, an organizational culture promoting data security awareness, and an organizational commitment to adopt new technologies and innovative processes. The findings may contribute to the body of knowledge regarding best practices technology leaders can use for securing organizational data and contribute to social change since secure organizational data might reduce consumer identity theft.

Information technology (IT) managers worldwide have adopted cloud computing because of its potential to improve reliability, scalability, security, business agility, and cost savings; however, the rapid adoption of cloud computing has created challenges for IT managers, who have reported an estimated 30% wastage of cloud resources. The purpose of this single case study was to explore successful strategies and processes for managing infrastructure operations costs in cloud computing. The sociotechnical systems (STS) approach was the conceptual framework for the study. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 6 IT managers directly involved in cloud cost management. The data were analyzed using a qualitative data-analysis software to identify initial categories and emerging themes, which were refined in alignment with the STS framework. The key themes from the analysis indicated that successful cloud cost management began with assessing the current environment and architecting applications and systems to fit cloud services, using tools for monitoring and reporting, and actively managing costs in alignment with medium- and long-term goals. Findings also indicated that social considerations such as fostering collaboration among all stakeholders, employee training, and skills development were critical for success. The implications for positive social change that derive from effectively managing operational costs include improved financial posture, job stability, and environmental sustainability.

The World Economic Forum (WEF) found that Botswana's information and communication technology (ICT) networked readiness index (NRI) had declined from position 89 in 2012 to 104 in 2015. A decline in Botswana's ICT NRI resulted in a modest gross domestic product (GDP) growth increasing from 4.2% in 2012 to 5.0% in 2015. The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore strategies ICT service provider managers use to build employee competencies to address ICT infrastructure performance deficiencies. The target population for this study consisted of over 120 managers from 2 ICT service providers located in Gaborone and Francistown in Botswana. The conceptual framework for this study was information technology (IT) competency model. Face-to-face interviews with 15 managers and a review of 12 company documents were gathered and all interpretations from the data were subjected to member checking to ensure the trustworthiness of the study findings. The thematic analyses of participants' interviews and company documents resulted in the emergence of 3 common themes: developing professional employee competencies through training, promoting knowledge acquisition and skills transfer, and developing budgets for funding the development of employee competencies. Participants cited training and professional development as a reason for ICT infrastructure performance deficiencies. Social implications from this study include developing strategies business managers can use to build employee competencies to improve ICT infrastructure performance, which could result in improved services to citizens and enhanced national development, social transformation, and economic diversification.

Despite over 50 years of software engineering as a formal practice, contemporary developers of bespoke software follow development practices that result in low-quality products with high development and maintenance costs. This qualitative case study sought to identify strategies used by software and enterprise architects for applying architectural best practices to improve bespoke software quality and lower the total cost of ownership. The study population was application and enterprise architects associated with delivering bespoke software for the enterprise architecture team at a large enterprise in the Nashville, Tennessee metropolitan area. Interview data were collected from 7 enterprise or solution architects; in addition, 47 organizational documents were gathered. Guided by the principles of total quality management, thematic analysis was used to identify codes and themes related to management of quality in software solutions. Prominent themes included focusing on customer satisfaction, collaborating and communicating with all stakeholders, and defining boundaries and empowering people within those boundaries. The findings from this research have implications for positive social change, including improved work-life balance, morale, and productivity of software and enterprise architects through streamlining development and maintenance activities.

The purpose of this project was to develop an easy-to-maintain web site for the Gamma Lambda Chapter of Phi Beta Delta International Honor Society here at California State University, San Bernardino, which will manage complete and up-to-date information about the mission, members, officers and all the activities of the honor society.

Organizations across the United States lose hundreds of millions of dollars each year due to the lack of effective succession planning for information technology executives. The purpose of this single case study was to explore strategies for the development and implementation of effective succession plans for future information technology executives. Bass and Avolio's transformational leadership theory was the conceptual framework for this study. The 3 participants were selected based upon their roles as executives in technology-related positions and their experiences with succession planning. Data were collected using semistructured interviews with these executives from a company headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri. Organizational documents, including an employee assessment form and a description of attributes that each information technology professional is measured against, were also analyzed. Yin's 5-phase model was used to analyze the data; steps included compiling, disassembling, reassembling, clarifying, and the development of conclusions. The 3 major themes that emerged from data analysis were diversity of background, professional development, and sourcing of executives to improve the success of information technology executives. Using study findings, organizational leaders may help to bring about social change by enhancing the growth of high-performing information technology professionals. Assessing talent and tailoring development opportunities, coupled with mentorship, could help information technology professionals prepare for future positions that positively impact employee morale, establish a common vision across their organizations, and identify opportunities for interaction with local communities.