At a time when we tend to search for new solutions for each and every technical problem, it’s refreshing to discover that sometimes the right answer has been there all along. Such is the case with symbolic modeling—a steadfast field with deep roots, yet growing steadily in new and successful applications. Before a system can […]
January 1999 - Vol. 42 No. 1
Features
Even though the gap continues to narrow between U.S. high school boys and girls in math and science, girls make up a smaller percentage of students in computer science classes, reports the American Association of University Women (AAUW). “Gender Gaps: Where Schools Still Fail Our Children,” is the first study to document the enrollment of […]
I was disappointed by the lack of quality in Richard Hsu’s "Viewpoint" ("Maintaining High Living Standards Through Innovation, Strong Patents," Oct. 1998, p. 27). Hsu fails to mention what he believes are the strengths and weaknesses of patent systems, implying that strong patent systems are flawless. He attacks faceless groups of "critics" (who I guess […]
Legally Speaking: The Communications Decency Act Is Not as Dead as You Think
When the Communications Decency Act was originally signed into law in 1996, there was a abundance of media coverage, particularly among media within the IS community. The focus of this coverage was on language in the CDA that sought to limit "indecency" on the Internet. In addition to the media coverage, the Internet’s own Blue […]
Digital Village: Value-Added Publishing
Without question, electronic publishing is one of the hottest topics in computing. Groups worldwide want to know how to do it well, how to advertise it effectively, how to enhance the capabilities of electronic publishing to include emerging multimedia technologies, and, most of all, how to make money at it. In the future it will […]
Viewpoint: The COPA Battle and the Future of Free Speech
The very future of free speech jurisprudence may be at stake.
From the President: Starr Wars
You’ve got to hand it to the U.S. Congress. It sure got the Starr Report posted promptly on the Internet. But the report, which answered some questions many of us never asked, prompted other very interesting questions. Like why is it that Congress is unable to post other relevant material in an equally timely fashion? […]
Modeling is a complex activity of abstracting information and knowledge from a particular domain in order to achieve a model containing the essentials from the perspective of the modelers and their given goals. While this definition includes building numeric models, for instance, we will focus here on symbolic modeling. Symbolic modeling is employed in a […]
From Object-Oriented to Goal-Oriented Requirements Analysis
Goal-oriented and object-oriented analysis should be seen as complementary, the former focusing on the early stages of requirements analysis ...the latter on late stages.
Connecting the Design of Software to the Design
When the software's preference contradicts good user work practice the power of computing quickly becomes an electronic bureaucrat—frustrating productivity while imposing overhead.
Scenarios have become key artifacts in systems engineering but their management is poorly understood.
Integrating Development of Task and Object Models
Interleaved analysis of user and object interaction scenarios promotes the understanding of reciprocal opportunities and constraints.
Embedding Formal Knowledge Models in Active Documents
Creating problem-solving documents.
User Interface Directions For the Web
If you think it's crowded now, just wait! The Web is heading toward its own year-end calamity unless some skillful maneuvering is applied—quickly.
Enhancing Data Quality in Data Warehouse Environments
Nothing is more likely to undermine the performance and business value of a data warehouse than inappropriate, misunderstood, or ignored data quality.
How the Internet Helps Build Collaborative Multimedia Applications
Start with the Internet itself for freely available software technologies, then add some custom software.
The Role of Knowledge in Software Development
Before the program can be written, humans have to describe and organize the knowledge it represents according to specific knowledge structures.
To make academic research relevant, researchers should try out their theories with practitioners in real situations and real organizations.
Technical Opinion: Roadblocks to Web Technology Adoption?
Despite the hype associated with Web technology, it is becoming clear that adoption of this technology is not as smooth sailing, as many business organizations assumed it would be. Granted, there are thousands of corporate Web sites and many organizations have implemented or are in the process of implementing their own Intranets. However, as recent […]
Inside Risks: Evolving Telephone Networks
The U.S. public telephone network (PTN) is changing—partly in response to changes in technology and partly due to deregulation. Some changes are for the better: lower prices with more choices and services for consumers. But there are other consequences and, in some ways, PTN trustworthiness is eroding. Moreover, this erosion can have far-reaching consequences. Critical […]
