Blog Posting #4: Proposals and Statements of Work (SOW)

Part 1
              Our team faces the third situation that we must define our problem ourselves. To enhance the experience, we have to review the overall goals. For the logical development of the project, the tasks/topic should be divided into sub tasks/subtopics and taken care of from bottom up. We should check the details such that we understand who our primary and secondary audiences are.
Our system is set to use data from a student's schedule to send notifications after their class ends about available buses and routes they could take to get to their next class in the least amount of time. All the students and faculties that use the GT bus service will be affected by our system. There are similar applications in existence. From the survey that we conducted, mostly everyone uses the NextBus and GTBuses application. This app lacks the feature to send notifications to students right after their class. A large number of students rely on the bus system to get from one class to another. It would be beneficial for the students to have a way of knowing if a bus is available at a particular stop at the time they would be needing it. This was the motivation for the system to be developed

Part 2
       For Sample 1: Safe house the most evident difference is the inclusion of details in every step. The final version begins with an example why their system is important while version 0.1 just states it. The final version has a cover page with all team member's names and class year. The final version is improved because it has broken down the objectives, problem statement, functional and nonfunctional requirements, etc further. The use of images is also helpful because it provides an idea of the system architecture. The use of the word "must" helps the reader think that the team will get the tasks done on time.
         For Sample 2: Healthcare, as opposed to version 0.1, the final version has a table of contents making it easier to find whats needed quicker. The use of  diagrams and images will help the user grasp the need and use of this system better. Another difference between the versions is in the applicable standards. Instead of just stating that there are HIPAA requirements affecting their project, they specified how it will be affected in the final version. The chart portrays a more organized step by step approach
 Part 3
 The rankings:

• Healthcare
• Safe House
• Website Redesign

The Healthcare system's problem statement was voted best because it is well organized and lists the separate problems. It includes why the problem is significant without suggesting a solution. They seem to have described all the problems without leaving anything off. At the beginning it focuses on the team as well. I chose the website redesign to be the worst because it is not concise and some of the problems seems to be duplicated. It also does not explain why the problems are problems.Additionally, it is not focusing on the team in the beginning. Even though the website redesign shows the problem step by step, it seems to be ambiguous.