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published_or_final_version / abstract / toc / Computer Science and Information Systems / Master / Master of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / Computer Science / Master / Master of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / Computer Science and Information Systems / Master / Master of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / Electrical and Electronic Engineering / Master / Master of Philosophy

No description available.

This investigation focuses on configurable technologies, a term which refers to technologies that are highly parameterizable and are built from a range of components to meet the very specific requirements of a particular organization. They cannot be seen independently of their representations through external intermediaries who "speak" for the technology by providing images, descriptions, demonstrations, policies, templates and "solutions". I use the term technology-configuring mediation to refer to the process characterized by a socially constructed relationship between clients and consultants, where visions of how the technology should operate are negotiated. Configurable tools are well illustrated by ERP projects and represent an important trend in IS, drawing its popularity from the hope of benefiting from increased economies of scale and access to cumulative knowledge supposedly "embedded" into these technological artifacts. / From a critical interpretive perspective that combines ideas from structuration theory, social shaping views of technology and critical discourse analysis, this dissertation is based on an empirical investigation that spanned one year and is primarily organized in three papers. The first paper investigates the use of structuration theory in the IS field, asking: How can we successfully apply structuration theory in IS empirical research? Paper 1 contributes to the advancement of interpretive research methods by describing, analyzing and illustrating the ways IS scholars have used Giddens' theory in their research. In addition, it presents a repertoire of research strategies that may help overcome barriers to the empirical application of structurationist theory by dealing with three core elements: time, context and duality of technology. / The second paper discusses the rhetorical closure that often dominates discourses about IT, arguing that configurable technologies are social constructions and, to different degrees, are always open to change. Taking ERP projects as a typical illustration of configurable IT, Paper 2 describes a multilevel framework that identifies occasions for ERP package negotiation and change at three levels---segment, organization and individual---thereby breaking down the rhetorical closure that seems to dominate public debate. Paper 2 draws on structurationist and political streams of thinking about technology to set out a theoretical framework that contributes to advancing our knowledge of configurable IS phenomena. / The third paper addresses the question: How does the mediation process influence the negotiation between global principles and local contexts during the implementation of configurable IS, and how does such a negotiation influence the success of the implemented technology? Paper 3 provides a new understanding of configurable technology implementation. The structuring of a new configuration is seen as a mediation process where knowledge and power dependencies are created and recreated over time by consultants and clients, the entire process being bordered by internal and external constraints. Paper 3 recognizes different patterns of mediation and explains how these patterns affect the negotiation of global principles and local contexts as well as the project results. The study ends by identifying a collection of mediating strategies that are likely to improve the implementation of configurable IS.

The notion of information space (iSpace) is that a collective context of transmitters and receivers can serve as a medium to share, exchange, and apply data and knowledge between a group of human beings or software agents. Inhabiting this space requires a perception of its dimensions, limits, and an understanding of the way data is diffused between inhabitants. One of the important aspects of iSpace is that it expands the limits of communication between distributed designers allowing them to carry out tasks that were very difficult to accomplish with the diverse, but not well integrated current communication technologies. In architecture, design team members, often rely on each others' expertise to review and problem solve design issues as well as interact with each other for critic, and presentations. This process is called Collaborative Design. Applying this process of collaboration to the iSpace to serve as a supplementary medium of communication, rather than a replacement for it, and understanding how design team members can use it to enhance the effectiveness of the design process and increase the efficiency of communication, is the main focus of this research. The first chapter will give an overview of the research and define the objectives and the scope of it as well as giving a background on the evolving technological media in design practice. This chapter will also give a summary of some case studies for collaborative design projects as real examples to introduce the subject. The second chapter of this research will study the collaborative design activities with respect to the creative problem solving, the group behaviour, and the information flow between members. It will also examine the technical and social problems with the distributed collaboration. The third chapter will give a definition of the iSpace and analyze its components (epistemological, utilitarian, and cultural) based on research done by others. It will also study the impact of the iSpace on the design process in general and on the architectural product in particular. The fourth chapter will be describing software programs written as prototypes for this research that allow for realtime and non-realtime collaboration over the internet, tailored specifically to suit the design team use to facilitate distributed collaboration in architecture. These prototypes are : 1. pinUpBoard (realtime shared display board for pin-ups) 2. sketchBoard (realtime whiteboarding application with multisessions) 3. mediaBase (shared database management system) 4. teamCalendar (shared interactive calendar on the internet) 5. talkSpace (organized forums for discussions)

No description available.