Welcome Students!
Thank you for your interest. This page provides some information mainly for students of 066 921, 924 (Software Engineering - Business) with an interest in the area of Multimedia Interactive Information Systems and focus on Human Centred Development (HCD). It provides some guidance on how to proceed with your academic work (mini-project, master-project, thesis).
The aim of your academic work thesis is to show that you are able to work scientifically. We want to change, therefore, as in any engineering discipline, the main focus is on the appropriate use of development methods, resulting in a working prototype, including a conceptual architecture and formal model. Since software is mostly used by humans, a solid evaluation, validation or experimental examination is most important. While it is important that you ENJOY your work, it must also be GOOD high quality work. If your work is good, then this is good for me, therefore I WANT your work to be GOOD! This page can be used as a navigation aid for you, in order to steer your project thesis through the rough waters of reality. I am looking forward to working with you. More information is available in the booklet "Process Guide for Students for Interdisciplinary Work in Computer Science/Informatics" (ISBN 978-3839150726) [Instructions Manual - Handbuch für Studierende]
European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (1 ECTS = 25 to 30 hours workload) [ECTS Guide]
Science Citation Index, originally produced by the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI), 1960. It covers, in the expanded version (SCIE), more than 6.000 top journals of science and engineering. Available via the Web of Science database, a part of the Web of Knowledge collection of databases (see section 3.2 below)
Austrian Statistics, or more precise ÖFOS which is the Austrian Version of FOS (Fields of Science and Technology). [ÖSTAT] This is important when applying for national grants, example OESTAT Code: 1108 = Informatics, Computer Science (Informatik), 1109 = Information Processing (Informationsverarbeitung), 1138 = Information Systems (Informationssysteme), 1157 = Usability Research, 1161 = Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), usw.
2.4 ACM Classification, this is the subjects classification according to the Association of Computing Machinery (ACM), [ACM Classification] the subjects are classified by capital letters and numbers D. = Software and H. = Information Systems, e.g. H.5. = INFORMATION INTERFACES AND PRESENTATION (e.g. HCI), H.5.1 Multimedia Information Systems (Animations, Artificial, augmented, and Virtual Realities (VR), Audio input/output, Video, Speech) usw.
First of all talk to me after the lecture or just drop an e-Mail to a.holzinger at tugraz.at for an appointment. You can think of a topic in which you are interested most, but be aware that the topic is required to be in the area of Applied Informatics and should deal with both developmental and experimental aspects focused on the end user. I am committed to Research Based Teaching (RBT). You are an engineer, consequently you must design and develop something, however - and this is the difference in the HCI area - and experimentally test, validate and evaluate your work.
If you have a specific topic in mind, please carefully look for relevant background state-of-the-art, which is constituted by both patents and publications.
3.2.1 - First, check if you are sitting within the Campus - from section on 3.2.4 your IP-address will be checked - you can install a VPN-client (CISCO) then you will be properly identified from anywhere, see [VPN: Secure Remote Access to TUGnet]
3.2.2 - Start your search by use of the European Patent Office [EPO], see detailed comments on software oriented patents in section 5.11)
3.2.3 - Do NOT use the Web for a literature research and I do NOT recommend using Google Scholar. If you do use it, than please use it with great care and only for a first overview. Beware of importing references as they may be wrong. Rather, proceed to reliable sources, according to 3.2.4, 3.2.5, 3.2.6, 3.2.7.
3.2.4 - Carry out a SCI literature research first, by using - from within the campus [Web of Knowledge] - Or you must have installed a VPN client if you are outside the campus (check with section 3.2.1)
3.2.5 - Carry out a literature research by using the [ACM Digital Library]
3.2.6 - Carry out a literature research by using the [IEEE Computer Science Digital Library]
3.2.7 - If you have located the most important papers, download the papers via the electronic journal library [Elektronische Zeitschriften Bibliothek EZB]
If you have found YOUR relevant topic (see section 8) then you must produce a first proposal by filling out this form [Student Work Proposal] - please send this form back as word or pdf via e-Mail and attach to your e-Mail the most important patents and/or papers.
If you have my ok, then you can fill out the official form [Anmeldung einer Masterarbeit] -> sign it -> let me sign it -> submit it to the [Dekanat Informatik] - the Studiendekan must approve it - he has the final word!
Immediately start your work by applying the formal structure (please refer to section 5 [Formal Structure of the Thesis] and you can use the TEMPLATE provided in section 5.2). Do not hesitate. Start immediately to write. Sometimes students want to read ("Einlesen"), please do NOT. Start with writing ("Einschreiben") and the reading will immediately follow, but it should be a swapping process: Writing - Reading - Writing - Reading - Writing ...
Along with your Master thesis you need to take the "DiplomandInnenseminar" course LV 706.117 (3 SE, 5 ECTS), Group Holzinger. Within this seminar you have to present your work at least three times:
3.6.1 First review and first Presentation - After a few weeks after your start you have to present your topic to your colleagues (using ppt or any other presentation tool). The focus should be on the aims, goals, objectives of your work, background and related work and the methods and materials you want to use. Along with this presentation you have to submit the first 10 to 20 pages of your work and on this basis you will get detailed professional feedback.
3.6.2 Midterm Review - At a progress report meeting, the direction will be checked, the progress tracked and future work discussed.
3.6.3 Final presentation - You present in a plenum and discuss your outcome. Only cosmetic details should be finished at this time.
3.7.1 - As soon as you have done ALL your exams (Pflichtfächer, Wahlfächer und Freifächer) proceed to http://online.tugraz.at > Prüfungsergebnisse > Abschlussprüfungen > Details. Here you assign (zuweisen) all exams to the 4 blocks (Pflichtfach, Wahlfachkatalog1, Wahlfachkatalog2, Freie Wahllehrveranstaltungen). ATTENTION: This button (Abschlussprüfungen) is only accessible after you have sent an e-Mail to the Dekanat: kirchsteiger@tugraz.at and you have asked for "Freischaltung für die Zuordnung". Note in German: Die Zuordnung kann man schon von Beginn des Masterstudiums an machen. So hat man auch einen ausgezeichneten Überblick über die absolvierten ECTS! ACHTUNG: bei den freien Wahlfächern gilt (im derzeitigen Studienplan) 1 SEMESTERSTUNDE = 1 ECTS, egal was auf dem Zeugnis steht (nur für Freifächer).
3.7.2 - Wenn alle Zuordnungen fertig sind (wenn man alle notwendigen Prüfungen hat) und das auch schon vor der Diplomprüfung: klick auf 'Freigabe durch die Fachabteilung'. Dann überprüft das Dekanat alles formal und gibt schon rechtzeitig Bescheid, falls etwas nicht stimmt. Dann hat man noch Zeit zu reagieren.
3.7.3 - Anlegen der Abschlussarbeit im TUG Online. Dazu braucht man im Falle einer englischsprachigen Arbeit - also wie hier stets der Fall - AUCH den deutschen Titel und das deutsche Abstract (=Zusammenfassung). Die Arbeit muss in einem gewissen Acrobat Format vorliegen. Falls die Arbeit unter einem anderen Format abgespeichert wird, wird sie zurückgewiesen. Am besten den Hilfebutton beim Anlegen verwenden. Da steht das dann drinnen.
3.7.4 - Anmeldung zur Diplomprüfung: mindestens 6 Wochen vor der Prüfung. Formular gibt es auf der Dekanatsseite. Die Unterschriften des Betreuers als Erstprüfer und weiteren zwei selbst zu wählenden Professoren (habilitiert) sind selbst einzuholen.
3.7.5 - Die Anmeldung muss mit allen anderen Dingen abgegeben werden und zwar:
- Eine hart gebundene Masterarbeit (inklusive unterschriebener eidesstattlicher Erklärung).
- Prüfungsanmeldung
- Sperrantrag (optional). Achtung: Wenn aus der Arbeit ein Patent entstehen soll (siehe Abschnitt 5.11), sollte das bereits bei Beginn der Arbeit besprochen werden - es ist ein Formular für eine Meldung dazu erforderlich.
- Gutachten der Arbeit (im Original und unterschrieben [Gutachten Masterarbeit]) - wird meist vom Institut direkt ans Dekanat weitergeschickt. Bitte auch kontrollieren, dahintersein.
- Anmeldung zur Sponsionsfeier (sofern erwünscht). Mindestens 4 Wochen vorher sind die 7 Euro für die Rolle zu überweisen und die Einzahlungsbestätigung im Dekanat abzugeben (unter Bekanntgabe des gewünschten Sponsionstermins).
Please ensure to find a date where all three examiners are available. The examination consists of 30 minutes of presenting your work (including live demonstration), strictly following scientific standards (spartanic, no Schnick-Schnack - NOT showing what you are able to produce with ppt or any other presentation software, just following: Introduction and Motivation for Research.
After you have succeeded don't forget to celebrate - you have deserved it :-)
ENGLISH - No debate. The language of Science and Engineering is English, as it was Greek in ancient times and Latin in mediaeval times (Garfield, 1989), (Jakob, 2008).
Here you find a printed guide on the aspects around "How to write a thesis" >[Instructions Manual - Handbuch für Studierende]
First, a word about formatting: NO SCHNICK-SCHNACK - no frills! Standard text in Times New Roman, 12 pt., 1 1/2 line spacing - nothing else!! Headers can be used in Arial and a larger font (e.g. 16 pt.).
Here you find a template for your thesis, basically there are two common recommendations (although there are a lot of alternatives of various word processors, I know):
5.2.1 MS Word - Although, there is a long debate about Word, Word has - apart from many disadvantages - some advantages which are invaluable in academic work: Word allows change tracking - this is invaluable if you want rapid feedback - other people can provide feedback by just inserting or deleting text. Word is available in every bamboo hut. Word also works well with EndNote (see section 5.8). [WORD TEMPLATE] (Word-doc file, 124KB)
5.2.2 Latex - If you use many mathematical expressions and formulas, then LATEX is surely the better choice - and it works well with BibTex. However, collaboration on one document with more than one person is strenuous. It is, however, possible to use subversion and there are plaintext diff tools also available. Be warned, subversion is not an ideal solution for collaboration. [LATEX TEMPLATE] Latex file, 70KB
5.2.3 Backup - Under all circumstances produce more than one backup of your files and store them in different places. A crash is rare but can occur. A good solution is [dropbox].
Always save your documents under a name which includes your work acronym, name, date and initials within the filename, e.g. ACRONYM_NAME_20100306xy.doc (Please, do never send a file DIPLOMARBEIT.doc ;-)
Do not forget to include the [Statutory Declaration]
A word about the length of your thesis. Although an average Master's thesis has approximately 100 pages, there is no strict rule about the number of pages. Good theses sometimes have 70 pages and bad theses sometimes have 150 pages.
My personal proverb is: "Eine Literaturliste ist höchstens zu kurz!" (A reference list can never be too short ;-). I require from my students that they know the most important related work of their field. This includes the most important patents, the most important journal papers and conference papers. These constitute the body of the state-of-the-art of the related field, which everybody must know. The quality of the references determines a good part of the total quality of the work. Please avoid URLs - whenever possible. It is annoying if the reader clicks on an URL and it appears as a broken link. When it is absolutely unavoidable to reference to a URL, please put the date of your last visit (e.g. last visited: 2010-03-07). Please avoid any online sources (e.g. Wikipedia) whenever possible: Rely only on solid archival literature which can be easily retrieved (any paper with a Volume number, Issue number and page numbers, which is in a scientific database is an archived paper). Attention: In engineering and natural sciences we mostly use references - rarely quotes (citations). You reference a paragraph of your work in order to reference the background literature or related work, thereby you acknowledge the source of your information or ideas within the text of your work. The only exception is, if you take a piece of text from an author word-for-word, if you want to quote the author's exact words to support your argument, you quote it ("zitieren" in German). Hence, we most often reference ("referenzieren" in German). I also encourage you to provide a commented reference list (kommentierte Literaturliste). It is very helpful for you and your reader if you describe in a few words what the paper is about and what it's main strengths and main limitations.
There are an abundance of various styles, however, the easiest one is often the best one: Surely one of the easiest for the reader is the Harvard Style, which is used mostly throughout the world. The reference within the text appears as (Author, Year), therefore it is called Author-Year Style, too. Have a look at [HARVARD Style]. If you use a reference management software (e.g EndNote, see section 5.8) you can change your reference styles to any other style with the press of a button.
If you only intend to do an academic work once, than you can overlook section 5.8. However, if you want to keep on doing academic work (publish, further thesis, doctoral work) than the use of an reference management software is highly recommendable and soon pays off.
5.8.1 - Along with Word [EndNote] works pretty well and without any problems. Older versions also work very well and are much cheaper to get.
5.8.2 - Along with Latex [Bibtex] is the first choice. JabRef is a front end for Bibtex files.
5.8.3 - There are other reference managers available, e.g. Sente, Papers, etc. etc. just have a look, but be critical. In case of any doubt rely on either EndNote or Bibtex.
Under NO circumstances you are allowed to use any sources without acknowledgment to the source. Every work will be run through a plagiarism detector for making completely sure. However, referencing has very positive aspects: If something is wrong and you have referenced it, then you are not to blame ;-)
Whatever you do - do it consistently. Be consistent. Do not mix.
An important issue is, on what criteria your work will be graded. The grading follows the Austrian 5-point-grading scale and ranges from very good (Sehr gut - 1 -) to fail (Nicht genügend - 5 -). I apply a 100 point scale, whereby each criteria will get up to 10 points - apart from formal criterias which must be fulfilled otherwise the work is not accepted. [Grading Criteria Checklist].
5.11.1 Formal criteria - Is the thesis formally complete? Is the cover sheet correct? Title? Abstract? Keywords? eidestattliche Erklärung? table of abbreviations? table of contents? Formal structuring? Margins? Paging? Line Spacing 1,5? Font Size 12 pt? Font Times New Roman? Correct Page Breaks? Readable Figures? Consisent Layout? Consistent Reference Style?
5.11.2 Style and Language - Correct Spelling (Spell check)? Correct Grammar? Logical Sentences? Readability? Consistency?
5.11.3 Content - Introduction: Is the problem well defined? Motivation: Is it clearly described why this work is important and how it contributes to the scientific/engineering community? Is the theoretical background sufficiently described? Is the relevant related work described and commented? Are the methods and materials appropriately described? Is the design and development appropriately described? Are the results adequately described and interpreted? Is the business case described? Is the conclusion appropriate? Is there an interesting future outlook? Are the references complete?
5.11.4 Presentation - During your master thesis seminar (Diplomandenseminar) you have to present the progress of your thesis three times: The first presentation is at the very beginning, about the problem, the background and related work and possible solutions. The second presentation is during your work as a progress presentation. The third presentation is a trial run (Probegalopp) before your real masters defensio. The presentation will be graded according to: Is the problem well defined? Is it clearly communicated why this work is important? Is the relevant related work discussed? Are the methods and materials well presented? Is the outcome of the work clearly shown? Is the future work clearly described? Can the candidate deal with specific questions? Would the candidate survive during an international conference?
Software based or computer implemented inventions are a matter of long debate. Some countries grant patents for all types of software, but in Europe this is extremely difficult and bascially software (i.e. code, algorithms) are principally NOT patentable. However, the developers may explicitly show that their invention actually makes a contribution in a technical field (to proof "Technizität" in German). See for more info from the EPO [Patents for Software: European law and practice]
5.12.1 Why read patents anyway? - Patents along with Papers constitute the state-of-the-art. If you want to cover the state-of-the-art, or even want to go beyond-state-of-the-art then you must know the patents in your area. However, please take into consideration that especially software patents can be bogus and consequently a threat for progress. IIlegitimate patent applications make their way through the US patent examination process without thorough review, especially in the software and web domain where state-of-the-art is widely spread but poorly documented in archival literature. The result are trivial patents. Have a look at [Electronic Frontier Foundation].
5.12.2 Legal (law) requirements - According to the patent law (although there are differences between US and EU), an invention must be novel, non-obvious, and have utility. Novelty refers to the fact that it is not yet published anywhere - even the Web. Any publication in any medium immediately makes it non novel. Non-obvious means that the invention is not trivial, however, this is a a legal definition and not a scientific one. The patent examiner decides, consequently, the applicant can rebut the examiner’s presumption through argument and written evidence. Finally, utility says that an invention must perform some function, be operable, and must be beneficial to society - this is exactly what we are striving for.
5.12.3 Scientific requirements - It must be a method and technical solution to go beyond-state-of-the-art.
5.12.4 Commercial requirements - A patent costs money (we are speaking about a range from approximately 10k EUR to 250k EUR), consequently the most important question is: Who pays. Therefore a market analysis is an absolute must.
5.12.5 Checklist - Checklist for deciding if a work is patentable (under construction)
5.12.6 Sample Patents - [Good example - patent granted: EP 771 280] - [Bad example - patent not granted: EP 1 139 245]
Every finished work must be presented orally.
You can use any type of presentation software, e.g. PowerPoint (ppt), Apple Keynote, Adobe pdf, Latex etc.
A standard slot for a final examination is 30 Minutes (20 Minutes presentation and 10 minutes live demonstration) + 10 Minutes questions.
Your presentation should be scientific, i.e.without any Schnick-Schnack, a sans serif font (e.g. Arial, large enough) no frills, please no demo of what you are able to do with your presentation software, the best is black sans-serif font on white background. Presentation should contain:
6.4.1 Titlepage
- Title of your work (and a short acronym),
- Name, Matrikelnummer, Studienkennzahl (e.g. 924),
- the name of the Work Type (LV Miniproject, Diplomandenseminar, Masterpractical, Final Examination Thesis, ...) and the corresponding LV-Number (e.g. 706.046, 706.116, ...),
- along with your e-Mail Address,
- and the Logos of the main Institutions where or for whom you performed your work (TUG-Logo, MUG-Logo, Company Logo, Funding body logo, ... ).
6.4.2 Agenda - Overview on what the audience can expect in the next 20 to 30 minutes - 1 slide
6.4.3 Introduction and Motivation for your Research - Problem statement, Interesting facts, Business aspects etc. - 1 to 2 slides
6.4.4 Background and Related Work - A good scientific work must be based on existing work (state-of-the-art), CAN go beyond state-of-the-art (but please are not disappointed if you do not win the Nobel Prize ;-), and SHOULD be the basis for future work), related work includes the essential literature (references!) and existing solutions (related work) - 2 to 4 slides
6.4.5 Methods and Materials - System architectures, software components, technologies used, development methods, experimental settings, test procedures, etc. - 3 to 6 slides
6.4.6 Results - System overall concept, test results, outcome etc. - 2 to 4 slides
6.4.7 Discussion, Lessons Learned - Live Demo, insights - 2 to 4 slides
6.4.8 Future work - Which problems are still to solve, which future research must/should/can be done? - 1 slide
6.4.9 Conclusion - What is the main outcome of your work? What problem did you solve? What is the main essence of your work? What is the main contribution to the scientific community - body of knowledge? - 1 slide
6.4.10 References - 1 slide
6.4.11 Glossary - 1 slide
6.4.12 Backup Slides - A good idea is to provide some additional backup slides for deeper insights on demand, or as a reserve for discussion.
Number of slides. This is a result of the balance of the formal structure described in section 6.4 and can be between 15 and 30 slides (but there are exceptions of course!) - do not forget a page numbering (Page x of y) on EVERY slide.
Every finished valuable work can also provide a poster (as a trophy).
At conferences or workshops posters have dedicated sessions, during which poster authors must be next to their poster to answer questions from the audience.
The poster size must not exceed the A0 (84 cm X 118 cm) portrait format. Use an appropriate font size and graphic size, so that they are readable by the participants at least from 1.5 meter away. The poster message should be clear and understandable even without oral explanation.
Excellent work can be the basis for a "real" scientific contribution amongst a conference, symposium or workshop, or more valuable for a solid archival journal contribution.
There are many good sources available, so here only a few suggestions for further reading:
- Day, Robert A. (1998): How to Write and Publish a Scientific Paper (5th Edition). Westport (CT): Oryx Press. [A classical 275 pages reader from an university professor of English who taught scientific and technical writing and editing. An excerpt from the preface: "The goal of scientific research is publication (of the results in order to change, comment from A.H.). Scientists, starting as graduate students, are measured primarily ... by their publications ... original research must be published; only thus can new scientific knowledge be authenticated and then added to the existing scientific knowledge". Strengths: Nice to read, interesting, seen from a relatively subject neutral viewpoint; including e.g. chapter 29: How to present a paper orally, p.182; chapter 32: Use and Misuse of English, p. 200; Weaknesses: a very general, verbose introduction to the art of scientific writing for beginners - not specifically for engineering; it is a reader, not a checklist]
- Koopman, Philip (1997): How to write an abstract. Carnegie Mellon University. Online available: [http://www.ece.cmu.edu/~koopman/essays/abstract.html]
Basically there are various types of work possible with various workloads, please feel free to chose and select your ideal work, nearly every thematic area and topic (section 8) can be approached with different intensity and depth:
- Miniproject within the Lecture 706.046 4,5 ECTS
- Project Information Systems - Projekt Informationssysteme LV 706.119, 10 ECTS (Wahlfach Multimediale Informationssysteme)
- Bachelor Thesis 15 ECTS
- Master Practical - Master-Projekt, LV 706.116, 15 ECTS
- Master Thesis - Diplomarbeit, 30 ECTS + along with the Diplomandenseminar LV 706.117, 5 ECTS
- PhD Thesis - Doktorarbeit
Here you find only a small selection of open work opportunities. Please contact me personally after the lectures, or drop an e-Mail for an appointment. (SP = Student Project)
1108 = Informatics/Computer Science (Informatik), 1109 = Information Processing (Informationsverarbeitung), 1138 = Information Systems (Informationssysteme), 1157 = Usability Research, 1161 = Human-Computer Interaction (HCI)
Basic Thematic Clustering: Applied Computer Science (Angewandte Informatik) > Multimedia Interactive Information Systems (Multimediale, interaktive Informationssysteme)Request: That it is in any kind a BENEFIT for an end user (Human-Centred)
Application Areas (Anwendungsgebiete): Medicine and Health Care (Medizin und Gesundheitswesen), Education, Learning and Teaching (Bildung, Lernen und Lehren), Business Applications, ...
- Medicine and Health Care (Medizin und Gesundheitswesen), e-Health,...
- Education, Learning and Teaching (Bildung, Lernen und Lehren), e-Education, e-Learning, e-Teaching, p-Learning, u-Learning,...
- Business Applications (Geschäftsanwendungen), e-Business, e-Commerce, e-Procurement,...
- Governmental Applications (Öffentlich-Rechtliche Anwendungen), e-Government, e-Voting,...
- Patients, Medical Doctors, Nurses, Administrative Professionals,...
- Children, Elderly People,...
- Learners, Teachers, Tutors, Coaches, Administrative Professionals,...
- Novices, Intermediates, Experts,...
- Able-bodied, Disabled, Impaired,...
- In the hospital, at the workplace, in the office, at home, at school, in the classroom, at University, in the car, in an aeroplane, outdoors, in the swimming pool,...
- Business, Pleasure, Leisure, Emergency,...
- Relaxed, wellness, well-being, feeling safe, secure, healthy, independent, creating new ways of User Experience,...
- Chaotic, hectic, stressful,...
- Large screen devices, small screen devices,...
- Haptic touch devices, Multi-touch devices, Tablet-PCs (e.g. iPad), Smartphones (e.g iPhone),...
- Mobile, wearable Computers, ubiquitous and pervasive, ambient devices,...
- Gameboys, Play consoles (e.g. Nintendo Wii + WiiMote,...), interactive Television (iTV),...
- Creativity, Thinking, Aid, Tacit, Productivity, Decision Support,...
- Collaborative, Individual, Personal, Confidential, Passive, Handheld,...
- Security, Stability, Quality, Sustainability,...
- Speech, Gestures, Face recognition, Eye-Movement based,...
- Extreme Mobility, Hyper-Connectivity, Affective Computing, Perceptual Interfaces,...
- Multiple mixing and mashing,...
- Transdisciplinary (learning from other areas, import models from other disciplines),...
- Tangible Interfaces, non-WIMP Interfaces, context-aware interfaces, virtual and augmented reality,...
In the following section you find only a sample collection of possible work opportunities. Please contact me personally via a.holzinger at tugraz.at or the related contact given.
Background:
The well known Data Context Interaction (DCI) architecture, proposed by Reenskaug, encompasses potential to bridge the gap between Software engineering (SE) and Usability Engineering (UE). Interestingly, there are implementations for many languages, including C++, C#, Ruby and Python. However, its uptake by the programming community has not been so enthusiastic. Possibly, this is due to the fact that programmers rarely consider usability issues systematically, and they are generally of the opinion that the traditional Model View Controller (MVI) paradigm satisfactorily deals with the separation of the logic and view. However, software developers must be shown the real-world advantages of the DCI architecture, so that its usefulness is clear and apparent, and that more useful paradigms other than MVC do exist.
Questions of Research:
s there any way a programmer can write code that will directly affect the end user’s experience with the software? Perhaps there is a programming paradigm that software engineers could follow that would allow for better cooperation between software and usability engineers?
These are the central questions posed in this thesis, and there is certainly much room for improvement is this area. Current ideas include the DCI architecture, Aspect Orient Programming, and several others, yet they have not sparked much interest in the programming community.
Expected Results: Testing will have to be performed to gauge any benefits that the researched methodologies are supposed to bring. A sample proof-of-concept project should be developed using one of the researched methodologies to prove or disprove any claims made by the proposed methodology.
In this work a proof of concept should be performed, so that the DCI architecture's advantages can be measured, gauged, and compared with existing methodologies. We promote these advantages by describing a real-world implementation of a program, which strictly adheres to the DCI paradigm.
By programming a project in this method, and by clearly outlining the advantages which the paradigm offers, programmers can see how the DCI architecture would make the development life-cycle easier for both themselves and for the usability engineers who eventually use their APIs and design the user interfaces based on these back-ends. Insight and prove whether or not different programming practices can actually alter or improve an end user’s experience when using software. As well as this, it is important to research and discover any programming or engineering methods that could be used to bridge the gap between software and usability engineers.
Lieberherr, K., Orleans, D. & Ovlinger, J. (2001). Aspect-oriented programming with adaptive methods - Java programmers can easily experiment with AOP ideas by using the DJ library. Communications of the ACM, 44, 10, 39-41.
- GADI 2010 LV 706.009, Wednesday, 03.03.2010, 17:00 (s.t.), Methods for improving User Experience in Information Systems [Link to Video on the TUG ePresence Server]
- AK HCI: Applying User-Centered Design LV 706.046, Monday, 08.03.2010, 14:00 (s.t.), [Slides of 1st presentation]
- AK HCI: Applying User-Centered Design LV 706.046, Monday, 15.03.2010, 14:00 (s.t.), [Slides of 2nd presentation]
- AK HCI: Applying User-Centered Design LV 706.046, Monday, 19.04.2010, 14:00 (s.t.), [Slides of 3rd presentation]
- AK HCI: Applying User-Centered Design LV 706.046, Monday, 10.05.2010, 14:00 (s.t.), [Slides of 4th presentation]
- AK HCI: Applying User-Centered Design LV 706.046, Monday, 31.05.2010, 14:00 (s.t.), [Slides of 5th presentation]
- AK HCI: Applying User-Centered Design LV 706.046, Monday, 14.06.2010, 14:00 (s.t.), [Slides of 6th presentation]
TOPMoney is a necessary factor for all type of research at all levels, i.e. to finance manpower, equipment, materials, mobility, workshops, travels, etc., Here you find some information about the most important research grant possibilities. A fist start to look is [Grant Database]
Mobility - From the early beginning students are encouraged to participate in exchange programs or just spend a short time at an international institution, there are several funding possibilities:
- Mobility Local: Outgoing Short Travel Fund from TU Graz for Masterstudents [TU Graz Outgoing Students]
- Mobility Regional: [Styrian Mobility Programs]
- Mobility National: [OEFG Förderprogramm]
- Mobility European: [FP 7 People Program]
- Mobility European: [ERASMUS Program]
- Stipendien - first of all check if you apply for a scholarship - Stipendium
- Stipendienrechner (a very useful tool) [OEH-Stipendienrechner]
- European Research Information: [CORDIS]
- German Research (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft): [DFG]
- Austrian Research Stand-alone Projects: [FWF Einzelprojekt]
- Austrian FFG Grant Assistant: [FFG Förderassistent]
- Slovenian Research Agency: [ARRS]
- US National Science Foundantion: [NSF]
- UK Wellcome Trust: [Wellcome Trust]