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In order to explore an image, the human eye functions like a spotlight, scanning the content from one object to the next. This visual search behavior is implemented with the help of attention control. The following work surveys the visual search behavior in "Wimmelpictures", a special type of busy pictures. The research objective is to analyze different search strategies and to work out possible differences concerning age and gender. The university experiment is carried out by an eye tracker that records the fixations and saccades of the test persons. The results indicate three forms of search strategy: based on a pattern, based on feature selection, or a mixture of both. Our data shows the search for special features of the target is the most successful. Furthermore there are no differences concerning gender but some concerning age. All age groups need more time to locate the target with an increasing number of distractors in the image. The size of the target is also relevant as a larger target is found more quickly than the smaller one.
In recent years, the rise of social media received significant importance in marketing research and practice. Consequently, interfaces to social media platforms have also been integrated into Business-to-Business (B2B) salesforce applications, although very little is as yet known about their usage and general impact on B2B sales performance. This paper evaluates 1) the conceptualization of social media usage in dyadic B2B relationships; 2) the effects of a more differentiated usage construct on customer satisfaction; 3) antecedents of social media usage on multiple levels; and 4) the effectiveness of social media usage for different types of cus-tomers. The framework presented here is tested cross-industry against data collected from dyadic buyer-seller relationships in the IT service industry. The results elucidate the precondi-tions and the impact of social media usage strategies in B2B sales relations.
Social media usage in business-to-business sales : conceptualization, antecedents, and outcomes
(2015)
In recent years, the rise of social media received significant importance in marketing research. Social media applications now provide executives with a raft of new options. Consequently, interfaces to social media platforms have also been integrated into Business to-Business (B2B) salesforce applications, although very little is as yet known about their usage and general impact on B2B sales performance. This paper evaluates 1) the conceptualization of social media usage in a dyadic B2B relationship; 2) the effects of a more differentiated usage construct on customer satisfaction; 3) antecedents of social media usage on multiple levels; and 4) the effectiveness of social media usage for different types of customers. The framework presented here is tested cross-industry against data collected from dyadic buyer seller relationships in the IT service industry. The results elucidate the preconditions and the impact of social media usage strategies in B2B sales relations.
Flash SSDs are omnipresent as database storage. HDD replacement is seamless since Flash SSDs implement the same legacy hardware and software interfaces to enable backward compatibility. Yet, the price paid is high as backward compatibility masks the native behaviour, incurs significant complexity and decreases I/O performance, making it non-robust and unpredictable. Flash SSDs are black-boxes. Although DBMS have ample mechanisms to control hardware directly and utilize the performance potential of Flash memory, the legacy interfaces and black-box architecture of Flash devices prevent them from doing so.
In this paper we demonstrate NoFTL, an approach that enables native Flash access and integrates parts of the Flashmanagement functionality into the DBMS yielding significant performance increase and simplification of the I/O stack. NoFTL is implemented on real hardware based on the OpenSSD research platform. The contributions of this paper include: (i) a description of the NoFTL native Flash storage architecture; (ii) its integration in Shore-MT and (iii) performance evaluation of NoFTL on a real Flash SSD and on an on-line data-driven Flash emulator under TPCB, C,E and H workloads. The performance evaluation results indicate an improvement of at least 2.4x on real hardware over conventional Flash storage; as well as better utilisation of native Flash parallelism.
In the present tutorial we perform a cross-cut analysis of database systems from the perspective of modern storage technology, namely Flash memory. We argue that neither the design of modern DBMS, nor the architecture of flash storage technologies are aligned with each other. The result is needlessly suboptimal DBMS performance and inefficient flash utilisation as well as low flash storage endurance and reliability. We showcase new DBMS approaches with improved algorithms and leaner architectures, designed to leverage the properties of modern storage technologies. We cover the area of transaction management and multi-versioning, putting a special emphasis on: (i) version organisation models and invalidation mechanisms in multi-versioning DBMS; (ii) Flash storage management especially on append-based storage in tuple granularity; (iii) Flash-friendly buffer management; as well as (iv) improvements in the searching and indexing models. Furthermore, we present our NoFTL approach to native Flash access that integrates parts of the flash-management functionality into the DBMS yielding significant performance increase and simplification of the I/O stack. In addition, we cover the basics of building large Flash storage for DBMS and revisit some of the RAID techniques and principles.
Real Time Charging (RTC) applications that reside in the telecommunications domain have the need for extremely fast database transactions. Today´s providers rely mostly on in-memory databases for this kind of information processing. A flexible and modular benchmark suite specifically designed for this domain provides a valuable framework to test the performance of different DB candidates. Besides a data and a load generator, the suite also includes decoupled database connectors and use case components for convenient customization and extension. Such easily produced test results can be used as guidance for choosing a subset of candidates for further tuning/testing and finally evaluating the database most suited to the chosen use cases. This is why our benchmark suite can be of value for choosing databases for RTC use cases.
Distraction of the driver is one of the most frequent causes for car accidents. We aim for a computational cognitive model predicting the driver’s degree of distraction during driving while performing a secondary task, such as talking with co-passengers. The secondary task might cognitively involve the driver to differing degrees depending on the topic of the conversation or the number of co-passengers. In order to detect these subtle differences in everyday driving situations, we aim to analyse in-car audio signals and combine this information with head pose and face tracking information. In the first step, we will assess driving, video and audio parameters reliably predicting cognitive distraction of the driver. These parameters will be used to train the cognitive model in estimating the degree of the driver’s distraction. In the second step, we will train and test the cognitive model during conversations of the driver with co-passengers during active driving. This paper describes the work in progress of our first experiment with preliminary results concerning driving parameters corresponding to the driver’s degree of distraction. In addition, the technical implementation of our experiment combining driving, video and audio data and first methodological results concerning the auditory analysis will be presented. The overall aim for the application of the cognitive distraction model is the development of a mobile user profile computing the individual distraction degree and being applicable also to other systems.
Managers recognize that software development project teams need to be developed and guided. Although technical skills are necessary, non-technical (NT) skills are equally, if not more, necessary for project success. Currently, there are no proven tools to measure the NT skills of software developers or software development teams. Behavioral markers (observable behaviors that have positive or negative impacts on individual or team performance) are beginning to be successfully used by airline and medical industries to measure NT skill performance. The purpose of this research is to develop and validate the behavior marker system tool that can be used by different managers or coaches to measure the NT skills of software development individuals and teams. This paper presents an empirical study conducted at the Software Factory where users of the behavior marker tool rated video clips of software development teams. The initial results show that the behavior marker tool can be reliably used with minimal training.
Entrepreneurs and small and medium enterprises usually have issues on developing new prototypes, new ideas or testing new techniques. In order to help them, in the last years, academic Software Factories, a new concept of collaboration between universities and companies have been developed. Software Factories provide a unique environment for students and companies. Students benefit from the possibility of working in a real work environment learning how to apply the state of the art of the existing techniques and showing their skills to entrepreneurs. Companies benefit from the risk-free environment where they can develop new ideas, in a protected environment. Universities finally benefit from this setup as a perfect environment for empirical studies in industrial-like environment. In this paper, we present the network of academic Software Factories in Europe, showing how companies had already benefit from existing Software Factories and reporting success stories. The results of this paper can increase the network of the factories and help other universities and companies to setup similar environment to boost the local economy.
Software process improvement (SPI) is around for decades: frameworks are proposed, success factors are studied, and experiences have been reported. However, the sheer mass of concepts, approaches, and standards published over the years overwhelms practitioners as well as researchers. What is out there? Are there new emerging approaches? What are open issues? Still, we struggle to answer the question for what is the current state of SPI and related research? In this paper, we present initial results from a systematic mapping study to shed light on the field of SPI and to draw conclusions for future research directions. An analysis of 635 publications draws a big picture of SPI-related research of the past 25 years. Our study shows a high number of solution proposals, experience reports, and secondary studies, but only few theories. In particular, standard SPI models like CMMI and ISO/IEC 15504 are analyzed, enhanced, and evaluated for applicability, whereas these standards are critically discussed from the perspective of SPI in small-to- medium-sized companies, which leads to new specialized frameworks. Furthermore, we find a growing interest in success factors to aid companies in conducting SPI.
For years, agile methods are considered the most promising route toward successful software development, and a considerable number of published studies the (successful) use of agile methods and reports on the benefits companies have from adopting agile methods. Yet, since the world is not black or white, the question for what happened to the traditional models arises. Are traditional models replaced by agile methods? How is the transformation toward Agile managed, and, moreover, where did it start? With this paper we close a gap in literature by studying the general process use over time to investigate how traditional and agile methods are used. Is there coexistence or do agile methods accelerate the traditional processes’ extinction? The findings of our literature study comprise two major results: First, studies and reliable numbers on the general process model use are rare, i.e., we lack quantitative data on the actual process use and, thus, we often lack the ability to ground process-related research in practically relevant issues. Second, despite the assumed dominance of agile methods, our results clearly show that companies enact context-specific hybrid solutions in which traditional and agile development approaches are used in combination.
Rapid value delivery requires a company to utilize empirical evaluation of new features and products in order to avoid unnecessary product risks. This helps to make data-driven decisions and to ensure that the development is focused on features that provide real value for customers. Short feedback loops are a prerequisite as they allow for fast learning and reduced reaction times. Continuous experimentation is a development practice where the entire R&D process is guided by constantly conducting experiments and collecting feedback. Although principles of continuous experimentation have been successfully applied in domains such as game software or SAAS, it is not obvious how to transfer continuous experimentation to the business to-business domain. In this article, a case study from a medium-sized software company in the B2B domain is presented. The study objective is to analyze the challenges, benefits and organizational aspects of continuous experimentation in the B2B domain. The results suggest that technical challenges are only one part of the challenges a company encounters in this transition. The company also has to address challenges related to the customer and organizational culture. Unique properties in each customers business play a major role and need to be considered when designing experiments. Additionally, the speed by which experiments can be conducted is relative to the speed by which production deployments can be made. Finally, the article shows how the study results can be used to modify the development in the case company in a way that more feedback and data is used instead of opinions.
Software development as an experiment system : a qualitative survey on the state of the practice
(2015)
An experiment-driven approach to software product and service development is gaining increasing attention as a way to channel limited resources to the efficient creation of customer value. In this approach, software functionalities are developed incrementally and validated in continuous experiments with stakeholders such as customers and users. The experiments provide factual feedback for guiding subsequent development. Although case studies on experimentation in industry exist, the understanding of the state of the practice and the encountered obstacles is incomplete. This paper presents an interview-based qualitative survey exploring the experimentation experiences of ten software development companies. The study found that although the principles of continuous experimentation resonated with industry practitioners, the state of the practice is not yet mature. In particular, experimentation is rarely systematic and continuous. Key challenges relate to changing organizational culture, accelerating development cycle speed, and measuring customer value and product
success.
Delivering value to customers in real-time requires companies to utilize real-time deployment of software to expose features to users faster, and to shorten the feedback loop. This allows for faster reaction and helps to ensure that the development is focused on features providing real value. Continuous delivery is a development practice where the software functionality is deployed continuously to customer environment. Although this practice has been established in some domains such as B2C mobile software, the B2B domain imposes specific challenges. This article presents a case study that is conducted in a medium-sized software company operating in the B2B domain. The objective of this study is to analyze the challenges and benefits of continuous delivery in this domain. The results suggest that technical challenges are only one part of the challenges a company encounters in this transition. The company must also address challenges related to the customer and procedures. The core challenges are caused by having multiple customers with diverse environments and unique properties, whose business depends on the software product. Some customers require to perform manual acceptance testing, while some are reluctant towards new versions. By utilizing continuous delivery, it is possible for the case company to shorten the feedback cycles, increase the reliability of new versions, and reduce the amount of resources required for deploying and testing new releases.
To evaluate the quality of a person´s sleep it is essential to identify the sleep stages and their durations. Currently, the gold standard in terms of sleep analysis is overnight polysomnography (PSG), during which several techniques like EEG (eletroencephalogram), EOG (electrooculogram), EMG (electromyogram), ECG (electrocardiogram), SpO2 (blood oxygen saturation) and for example respiratory airflow and respiratory effort are recorded. These expensive and complex procedures, applied in sleep laboratories, are invasive and unfamiliar for the subjects and it is a reason why it might have an impact on the recorded data. These are the main reasons why low-cost home diagnostic systems are likely to be advantageous. Their aim is to reach a larger population by reducing the number of parameters recorded. Nowadays, many wearable devices promise to measure sleep quality using only the ECG and body-movement signals. This work presents an android application developed in order to proof the accuracy of an algorithm published in the sleep literature. The algorithm uses ECG and body movement recordings to estimate sleep stages. The pre-recorded signals fed into the algorithm have been taken from physionet1 online database. The obtained results have been compared with those of the standard method used in PSG. The mean agreement ratios between the sleep stages REM, Wake, NREM-1, NREM-2 and NREM-3 were 38.1%, 14%, 16%, 75% and 54.3%.
We investigated the influence of body shape and pose on the perception of physical strength and social power for male virtual characters. In the first experiment, participants judged the physical strength of varying body shapes, derived from a statistical 3D body model. Based on these ratings, we determined three body shapes (weak, average, and strong) and animated them with a set of power poses for the second experiment. Participants rated how strong or powerful they perceived virtual characters of varying body shapes that were displayed in different poses. Our results show that perception of physical strength was mainly driven by the shape of the body. However, the social attribute of power was influenced by an interaction between pose and shape. Specifically, the effect of pose on power ratings was greater for weak body shapes. These results demonstrate that a character with a weak shape can be perceived as more powerful when in a high-power pose.
Information systems, which support the workflow in the clinical area, are currently limited to organizational processes. This work shows a first approach of an information system supporting all actors in the perioperative area. The first prototype and proof of concept was a task manager, giving all actors information about their task and the task of all other actors during an intervention. Based on this initial task manager, we implemented an information system based on a workflow engine controlling all processes and all information necessary for the intervention. A second part was the development of a perioperative process visualization which was developed based on a user centered approach jointly with clinicians and OR members.
In modern times markets are very dynamic. This situation requires agile enterprises to have the ability to react fast on market influences. Thereby an enterprise’ IT is especially affected, because new or changed business models have to be realized. However, enterprise architectures (EA) are complex structures consisting of many artifacts and relationships between them. Thus analyzing an EA becomes to a complex task for stakeholders. In addition, many stakeholders are involved in decision-making processes, because Enterprise Architecture Management (EAM) targets providing a holistic view of the enterprise. In this article we use concepts of Adaptive Case Management (ACM) to design a decision-making case consisting of a combination of different analysis techniques to support stakeholders in decision-making. We exemplify the case with a scenario of a fictive enterprise.
New or adapted digital business models have huge impacts on Enterprise Architectures (EA) and require them to become more agile, flexible, and adaptable. All these changes are happening frequently and are currently not well documented. An EA consists of a lot of elements with manifold relationships between them. Thus changing the business model may have multiple impacts on other architectural elements. The EA engineering process deals with the development, change and optimization of architectural elements and their dependencies. Thus an EA provides a holistic view for both business and IT from the perspective of many stakeholders, which are involved in EA decision-making processes. Different stakeholders have specific concerns and are collaborating today in often unclear decision-making processes. In our research we are investigating information from collaborative decision-making processes to support stakeholders in taking current decisions. In addition we provide all information necessary to understand how and why decisions were taken. We are collecting the decision-related information automatically to minimize manual time intensive work as much as possible. The core contribution of our research extends a decisional metamodel, which links basic decisions with architectural elements and extends them with an associated decisional case context. Our aim is to support a new integral method for multi perspective and collaborative decision-making processes. We illustrate this by a practice-relevant decision-making scenario for Enterprise Architecture Engineering.
An operating room is a stressful work environment. Nevertheless, all involved persons have to work safely as there is no space for mistakes. To ensure a high level of concentration and seamless interaction, all involved persons have to know their own tasks and the tasks of their colleagues. The entire team must work synchronously at all times. To optimize the overall workflow, a task manager supporting the team was developed. In parallel, a common conceptual design of a business process visualization was developed, which makes all relevant information accessible in real-time during a surgery. In this context an overview of all processes in the operating room was created and different concepts for the graphical representation of these user-dependent processes were developed. This paper describes the concept of the task manager as well as the general concept in the field of surgery.