by Li Wai Ming. / Thesis (M.B.A.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1996. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 78-79). / ABSTRACT --- p.ii / TABLE OF CONTENTS --- p.iii / LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS --- p.v / PREFACE --- p.vi / Chapter / Chapter I. --- INTRODUCTION --- p.1 / Company Background --- p.1 / Polymers Division --- p.2 / Project Objectives --- p.3 / Methodology --- p.4 / Chapter II --- LITERATURE REVIEW - THE EMERGING CONCEPT & TECHNOLOGY OF EIS --- p.7 / Evolution of EIS --- p.7 / Definition and Characteristics of EIS --- p.9 / The Executive's Role --- p.10 / Chapter III --- REVIEW OF CURRENT SYSTEM AND INFORMATION NEEDS --- p.15 / BPCS - AS/400 --- p.15 / Personal Computer Usage --- p.17 / Local Area Network --- p.17 / Management Information System --- p.18 / Limitations of Current Management Information System --- p.19 / Information Needs of Executives --- p.20 / Chapter IV --- CONCEPTUAL DESIGN OF THE EIS --- p.23 / Addressing Problems of the Current MIS --- p.23 / New System --- p.24 / Chapter V --- SELECTION OF TOOLS --- p.26 / Considerations for Hardware and Software Selection --- p.26 / Client Server Concept --- p.28 / Microsoft Visual Basic 3.0 for Windows & Microsoft SQL Server4.21 --- p.29 / Potential Problems --- p.34 / Chapter VI --- COST ESTIMATION --- p.36 / Hardware --- p.36 / Software --- p.36 / Personnel Cost --- p.36 / Time Frame of Development --- p.37 / Chapter VII --- RESOURCE ALLOCATION --- p.38 / Existing Computing Resources in PO Division --- p.38 / Chapter VIII --- DESIGNING THE EIS INTERFACE AND DATABASE STRUCTURE OF THE NEW SYSTEM --- p.40 / User Interface --- p.41 / Information Provided by the System --- p.41 / Database Structure --- p.42 / Data Security --- p.43 / Chapter IX --- DISCUSSION --- p.44 / Implementation Problems --- p.44 / Evaluation --- p.45 / Chapter X --- CONCLUSION --- p.48 / APPENDIX --- p.53 / BIBLIOGRAPHY --- p.78

Abstract User involvement in information systems design has recently gained interest in the media. Numerous systems have been digitalized during product development to help people’s everyday lives. But are information systems designed to meet users’ needs or support users’ goals? The goal of this research was to understand how user involvement is perceived in information systems design and how users are involved. Is the basis of user involvement what a user Says or what a user Does, or is a user actively participating in the whole design process? The informants of the present study entailed different design projects that were investigated with a qualitative method by interviewing 20 designers of selected design cases. At first an a priori model of user involvement in information systems design was created based on an analysis of extant literature. The model was used in the analysis of information systems design cases. Based on the empirical data a revised, a posteriori model, UICD model was developed. The UICD model provides on overall picture of user involvement in information systems design. UICD model can aid designers to understand user involvement comprehesively: what users Say, what users Do and what users Make in design process. Compared to the a priori model, UICD model includes the impact of other key stakeholders in information systems design process. / Tiivistelmä Käyttäjien osallistuttaminen tietojärjestelmien suunnitteluun on herättänyt julkista keskustelua. Monia yhteiskunnallisia ja yksityisiä palveluja on digitalisoitu sekä tuotteiden yhteyteen on suunniteltu järjestelmiä helpottamaan asiakkaiden toimintaa. Mutta ovatko suunnittelut ratkaisut käyttäjän tavoitteiden mukaisia ja vastaavatko ne käyttäjien tarpeisiin? Tämän tutkimuksen tavoitteena oli ymmärtää kuinka käyttäjien osallistuttaminen käsitetään informaatiojärjestelmien suunnittelussa ja miten käyttäjiä on osallistettu. Perustuuko käyttäjien osallistuttaminen tietoon siitä mitä hän sanoo tai mitä hän tekee vai osallistuuko hän koko suunnitteluprosessin ajan tulevan ratkaisun kehittämiseen? Tutkimuksen kohteina oli 20 erilaista projektia, joihin syvennyttiin laadullisella tutkimuksella haastattelemalla projekteissa toimineita suunnittelijoita. Tässä tutkimuksessa laadittiin ensin kirjallisuuskatsaukseen pohjalta malli käyttäjien osallistuttamisesta informaatiojärjestelmien suunnittelutyöhön. Mallia käytettiin empiirisesti kerätyn tiedon analyysin pohjana. Tämän jälkeen mallia muokattiin siten, että se selittää tutkimuksen havainnot. Näin saatu UICD malli luo kokonaiskuvan käyttäjälähtöisyyden ulottuvuuksista informaatiojärjestelmien suunnittelutyössä. UICD malli auttaa suunnittelijoita ymmärtämään käyttäjien osallistuttamisen kokonaisvaltaisesti: mitä käyttäjät sanovat, mitä käyttäjät tekevät ja miten käyttäjät osallistuvat informaatiojärjestelmien suunnitteluun. UICD malli laajentaa aiemman tutkimuksen näkemystä muun muassa keskeisten sidosryhmien vaikutuksesta informaatiojärjestelmien suunnitteluun.

This paper seeks to describe the process by which a database-centric web application was redesigned and rewritten to take advantage of Apache’s Lucene - an open-source information retrieval software library written in the Java programming language. After the implementation of a Lucene-based text index of “semi-structured data”, a college radio station's card catalog application was able to deliver higher-quality search results in significantly less time than it was able to do using just a relational database alone. Additionally, the dramatic improvements in speed and performance even allowed the search results interface to be redesigned and enhanced with an improved pagination system and new features such as faceted search/filtering.

<p>In the area of information systems design it is important to select an appropriate methodology in order to get an information system that functions as expected. The perspective behind the methodology is seldom stated explicitly. The epistemology that a methodology is based on has impacts on the design of the system. Therefore, the process of selecting an appropriate methodology is important. The aim of this work is to study how the process of metamodelling or metathinking is considered in the area of information systems design.</p><p>Interviews and a study of the literature have been performed in order to investigate the awareness of metamodelling thinking in the area of information systems design.In the literature we found that only a small part dealt with the process of metamodelling. The method engineering (ME) approach was found as a way of thinking that seems to consider metamodelling thinking. We have evaluated ME according to a synthesis of the works by van Gigch, Churchman, and Flood and Carson. The evaluation has shown that ME deals with metamodelling thinking. In order to improve the metamodelling thinking in ME, it is important to explicitly define how ME considers the aspect of participation of motivated actors and the iterative process. The interviews have shown that information systems designers use some kind of metamodelling thinking, but they do not seem to be aware of the process.</p><p>In an information system design process, it is important to shift perspectives from reality to modelling, and to the metamodelling level, in order to apply metamodelling thinking. Further work should be performed with the purpose of making the information systems designers aware of the importance of applying metamodelling thinking.</p>

In the area of information systems design it is important to select an appropriate methodology in order to get an information system that functions as expected. The perspective behind the methodology is seldom stated explicitly. The epistemology that a methodology is based on has impacts on the design of the system. Therefore, the process of selecting an appropriate methodology is important. The aim of this work is to study how the process of metamodelling or metathinking is considered in the area of information systems design. Interviews and a study of the literature have been performed in order to investigate the awareness of metamodelling thinking in the area of information systems design.In the literature we found that only a small part dealt with the process of metamodelling. The method engineering (ME) approach was found as a way of thinking that seems to consider metamodelling thinking. We have evaluated ME according to a synthesis of the works by van Gigch, Churchman, and Flood and Carson. The evaluation has shown that ME deals with metamodelling thinking. In order to improve the metamodelling thinking in ME, it is important to explicitly define how ME considers the aspect of participation of motivated actors and the iterative process. The interviews have shown that information systems designers use some kind of metamodelling thinking, but they do not seem to be aware of the process. In an information system design process, it is important to shift perspectives from reality to modelling, and to the metamodelling level, in order to apply metamodelling thinking. Further work should be performed with the purpose of making the information systems designers aware of the importance of applying metamodelling thinking.

Some argue that we live in an “information age”; others claim that we live in a “knowledge society”. This research suggests we live in an era of adaptable and customizable widgets in which users are no longer passive receivers of ad hoc technological solutions, but active agents controlling the behaviour, content modalities, and multiple technological layers transforming the representation and interpretation of information. This study adopts a critical perspective and examines the meaning of access to information and the pertinence of customization. Specifically, it analyzes how the ISO standard AccessForAll (ISO/IEC 24751, 2008) conceptualizes the customization of e-learning environments. A qualitative approach and discourse analysis are used as a methodological strategy. The research analyzes responses to ten interviews conducted with a diverse group of participants. This foundation provides for a discussion about the challenges of customization design and recommendations for the future development of adaptive and flexible learning environments.

Some argue that we live in an “information age”; others claim that we live in a “knowledge society”. This research suggests we live in an era of adaptable and customizable widgets in which users are no longer passive receivers of ad hoc technological solutions, but active agents controlling the behaviour, content modalities, and multiple technological layers transforming the representation and interpretation of information. This study adopts a critical perspective and examines the meaning of access to information and the pertinence of customization. Specifically, it analyzes how the ISO standard AccessForAll (ISO/IEC 24751, 2008) conceptualizes the customization of e-learning environments. A qualitative approach and discourse analysis are used as a methodological strategy. The research analyzes responses to ten interviews conducted with a diverse group of participants. This foundation provides for a discussion about the challenges of customization design and recommendations for the future development of adaptive and flexible learning environments.

<p><em>Knowledge has become one of the most important assets for companies nowadays. Knowledge Management (KM) uses organizational knowledge as a resource to make companies more competitive. Knowledge Management Systems (KMS) are gaining popularity, however, the failure rate remains high, with many projects not achieving their goals or being shut down early. KMS are often underestimated and treated as normal systems. IS practices do not cover certain aspects specific to KMS, aspects that do not show in other IS (e.g. socio-cultural issues). There are many studies concerning the KMS failures but they just focus on the symptoms and do not provide a solution to the problem. The goal of this master’s dissertation is to generate a preventive tool that will help the KM field. With The experience gained by working in a real KMS project within a textile agency in Sweden and relevant literature, an Information Systems Design Theory (ISDT) for KMS was developed. As some authors suggest, KM needs an ISDT of it’s own. An ISDT will guide practitioners through the process by restricting practices and features of the system to a more effective set. It will also encourage the academia to work on this theory for its improvement, completion, and validation</em></p>

This research examines situated behaviours and perceptions around textual navigation as it is practiced in situ by professionals working in various domains. In its investigation of interactions between human cognition and mediating artifacts, this research relies heavily on the resources of cognitive ethnography, including both observation and in-depth interviews with participants. Relevant contributions from the fields of information studies, book history, digital humanities, and human-computer interaction are presented to further elucidate the findings of this study. The findings reveal several emergent, interrelated navigational strategies, such as the use of annotations as navigational aids, reliance on automated interface actions, and the navigational value of interface metaphors. In further addressing the practice of textual navigation, this research also describes the creation of a prototype interface reflecting the study’s findings. This research proposes new ways of conceptualizing textual navigation and designing interfaces that support emergent textual interaction.

This research examines situated behaviours and perceptions around textual navigation as it is practiced in situ by professionals working in various domains. In its investigation of interactions between human cognition and mediating artifacts, this research relies heavily on the resources of cognitive ethnography, including both observation and in-depth interviews with participants. Relevant contributions from the fields of information studies, book history, digital humanities, and human-computer interaction are presented to further elucidate the findings of this study. The findings reveal several emergent, interrelated navigational strategies, such as the use of annotations as navigational aids, reliance on automated interface actions, and the navigational value of interface metaphors. In further addressing the practice of textual navigation, this research also describes the creation of a prototype interface reflecting the study’s findings. This research proposes new ways of conceptualizing textual navigation and designing interfaces that support emergent textual interaction.