A Hybrid Genetic Algorithm for Software Architecture Re-Modularization

2020 | Information Systems Frontiers | Citations: 0

Authors: Mu, Lifeng; Sugumaran, Vijayan; Wang, Fangyuan

Abstract: Software architectures have become highly heterogeneous and difficult to maintai ... Expand

Abstract: Software architectures have become highly heterogeneous and difficult to maintain due to software evolution and continuous change. Therefore, a software system usually must be restructured in terms of modules containing relatively dependent components to address the system complexity. However, it is challenging to re-modularize systems automatically to improve their maintainability. In this paper, we present a new mathematical programming model for the software re-modularization problem. In contrast to previous research, a novel metric based on the principle of complexity balance is introduced to address the issue of over-cohesiveness. In addition, a hybrid genetic algorithm (HGA) is designed to automatically determine high-quality re-modularization solutions. In the proposed HGA, a heuristic based on edge contraction and vectorization techniques is designed first to generate feature-rich solutions and subsequently implant these solutions as seeds into the initial population. Finally, a customized genetic algorithm (GA) is employed to improve the solution quality. Two sets of test problems are employed to evaluate the performance of the HGA. The first set includes sixteen real-world instances and the second set contains 900 large-scale simulated data. The proposed HGA is compared with two widely adopted algorithms, i.e., the multi-start hill-climbing algorithm (HCA) and the genetic algorithms with group number encoding (GNE). Experimental and statistical results demonstrate that in most cases, the HGA can guarantee better quality solutions than HCA and GNE. Collapse

Topics: systems development enterprise architecture agile software development systems design architectural quality

Methods: computational algorithm experiment Student's t-test parametric test simulation

Theories: graph theory

Design Capital and Design Moves: The Logic of Digital Business Strategy

2013 | Management Information Systems Quarterly | Citations: 142

Authors: Woodard, C. Jason; Ramasubbu, Narayan; Tschang, F. Ted; Sambamurthy, V.

Abstract: As information technology becomes integral to the products and services in a gro ... Expand

Abstract: As information technology becomes integral to the products and services in a growing range of industries, there has been a corresponding surge of interest in understanding how firms can effectively formulate and execute digital business strategies. This fusion of IT within the business environment gives rise to a strategic tension between investing in digital artifacts for long-term value creation and exploiting them for short-term value appropriation. Further, relentless innovation and competitive pressures dictate that firms continually adapt these artifacts to changing market and technological conditions, but sustained profitability requires scalable architectures that can serve a large customer base and stable interfaces that support integration across a diverse ecosystem of complementary offerings. The study of digital business strategy needs new concepts and methods to examine how these forces are managed in pursuit of competitive advantage. We conceptualize the logic of digital business strategy in terms of two constructs: design capital (i.e., the cumulative stock of designs owned or controlled by a firm) and design moves (i.e., the discrete strategic actions that enlarge, reduce, or modify a firm's stock of designs). We also identify two salient dimensions of design capital, namely, option value and technical debt. Using embedded case studies of four firms, we develop a rich conceptual model and testable propositions to lay out a design-based logic of digital business strategy. This logic highlights the interplay between design moves and design capital in the context of digital business strategy and contributes to a growing body of insights that link the design of digital artifacts to competitive strategy and firm-level performance. Collapse

Topics: digital business strategy digital ecosystem new product development economies of scale resource allocation

Methods: case study conceptual modelling design artifact theory development qualitative interview

Digital Cement: Software Portfolio Architecture, Complexity, and Flexibility

2011 | Americas Conference on Information Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: Dreyfus, David

Abstract: This paper is about the relationship between an organization's software portfol ... Expand

Abstract: This paper is about the relationship between an organization's software portfolio architecture and its ability to make changes to it. Responding to business and technology changes often involves modifying the software portfolio and the speed and cost of making changes to the software portfolio is a measure of the system's flexibility. The specific research question is: "How does software portfolio architecture affect software portfolio flexibility?"This research develops measures of architectural and component complexity and hypothesizes that these constructs affect one dimension of software portfolio flexibility: architectural flexibility. The hypotheses are tested by (1) collecting component and dependency data from a biopharmaceutical company's software portfolio, (2) combining this data with survey, system instrumentation, and archive data, and then (3) estimating and interpreting multiple regression models. The general conclusions from the research are that both complexity at the component level and complexity at the architectural level affect software portfolio flexibility. Collapse

Topics: source code architectural quality pseudonymity

Methods: survey regression analysis method F-test ordinary least square survey design

Usability Design and Psychological Ownership of a Virtual World

2011 | Journal of Management Information Systems | Citations: 53

Authors: Lee, Younghwa; Chen, Andrew N. K.

Abstract: Virtual worlds, immersive three-dimensional virtual spaces where users interact ... Expand

Abstract: Virtual worlds, immersive three-dimensional virtual spaces where users interact with projected identities of other users (avatars) and objects, are becoming increasingly popular and continue to grow as highly interactive, collaborative, and commercial cyberspaces. However, extant research in this context has not paid much attention to usability design of a virtual world and corresponding effects on users' psychological desire to own and control the space and objects within it and subsequent behavior intention. In this study, we apply concepts of Web site usability and psychological ownership to develop a model that illustrates the relationships between seven usability factors (legibility, firmness, coherence, variety, mystery, classic, and expressive visual aesthetics), four antecedents of psychological ownership (cognitive appraisals, perceived control, affective appraisals, and self-investment), psychological ownership, and use intention. A cross-sectional study with 239 Second Life users was conducted. The results demonstrate that designing a usable virtual world that induces strong psychological ownership is crucial to attract users to spend more time, participate in more activities, and revisit the virtual world. This is an important finding for forward-looking e-business managers looking to invest their limited resources in designing a usable virtual world. In addition, by using our model and corresponding survey items, designers can benchmark and evaluate the usability of their current virtual worlds, compare the results to the designs of competitors, and upgrade the offerings of virtual worlds, as needed, by allocating available resources to the most influential design factors to suit their specific needs. Collapse

Topics: virtual world usability usage intention architectural quality psychological ownership

Methods: survey psychometrics F-test mediation analysis cross sectional research

Designing Perferable Virtual Worlds: An Analogy of Space

2009 | Americas Conference on Information Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: Lee, Younghwa; Ellis, Mike; Chen, Andrew

Abstract: Based on an analogy of space, this study adopted two 2D-based web usability mode ... Expand

Abstract: Based on an analogy of space, this study adopted two 2D-based web usability models, namely landscape preference model (LPM) and architectural quality model (AQM), to test their applicability in 3D-based virtual worlds. An exploratory crosssectional study with Second Life users was conducted and data were analyzed using a partial least squares (PLS) technique. The findings of this study demonstrate that these models have strong psychometric properties and explain a large amount of variance of the attitudes and perceptions of virtual world users associated with its usability factors. For LPM, except for significant legibility-affective appraisal path and insignificant variety-cognitive appraisal path, all paths in the original model were confirmed. For AQM, all relationships held except an insignificant external security-firmness relationship. Although further investigation is warranted, the findings indicate these models can successfully be used as theoretical alternatives to design usable virtual worlds. Key implications for theory and practice are discussed. Collapse

Topics: virtual world usability architectural quality website customer loyalty

Methods: survey psychometrics partial least squares regression survey design Student's t-test

Businesses as Buildings: Metrics for the Architectural Quality of Internet Businesses

2002 | Information Systems Research | Citations: 0

Authors: Jinwoo Kim; Jungwon Lee; Kwanghee Han; Moonkyu Lee

Abstract: Metrics for the architectural quality of Internet businesses are essential in ga ... Expand

Abstract: Metrics for the architectural quality of Internet businesses are essential in gauging the success and failure of e-commerce. This study proposes six dimensions of architectural metrics for Internet businesses: internal stability, external security, information gathering, order processing, system interface, and communication interface. The metrics are based on the three constructs that have been used to evaluate buildings in the real world. The structural construct indicates that Internet businesses need to be stable internally and secure externally. The functional construct implies that Internet businesses should provide convenient functions in the information-gathering and order-processing phases. Finally, the representational construct indicates that they need to provide a pleasant interface both to the system and to those using it. For each of the six metrics, we have constructed questionnaires to measure the perceived level of architectural quality and identified feature lists that may be closely related to the perceived quality level. Large-scale empirical studies were conducted both to validate the proposed metrics and to explore their relevance across four Internet business domains. The validity of the metrics has been obtained in three ways. First, the content validity of the metrics was assured by pretests and pilot survey. Second, the results from the confirmatory factor analysis showed that the metrics had high convergent and discriminant validities. Finally, the reliability coefficients were found to be high enough to establish the reliability of the proposed metrics. The relevance of the metrics has been explored in two ways. Structural equation models were used to test the causal relations between the three constructs and user satisfaction, as well as customer loyalty, in four domains. Correlation analyses were used to explore the relations between the perceived architectural quality and objective design features in four domains. This paper ends with the implications and limitations of the study results. Collapse

Topics: electronic business architectural quality customer loyalty user satisfaction website

Methods: survey SEM tool correlation analysis pilot survey confirmatory factor analysis

The Utility of Qualitative Modeling in Architectural Evaluation

2001 | Americas Conference on Information Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: Galal, Galal; McDonnell, Janet; Paul, Ray

Abstract: The continuous change that organisations have to deal with today calls for a rad ... Expand

Abstract: The continuous change that organisations have to deal with today calls for a radical shift of thinking from striving towards stability, to accommodating continual change. Under these conditions, organisations always find that they have to integrate diverse and complex applications across the whole enterprise. This mandates a move away from applications-level view, and towards true architectural thinking that thoroughly researches the context, and the architectural features of the integrated whole. This paper discusses these issues and points out to the utility of qualitative modelling in supporting the systems architecting process. Collapse

Topics: enterprise information system enterprise application integration system integration organizational culture user satisfaction

Methods: grounded theory