Chapter : Architecture & User

Interface Design

Software Architecture

The software architecture of a program or computing system is the

structure or structures of the system, which comprise the software
components, the externally visible properties of those components,
and the relationships among them.
It is not operational software but it is representation that enables
software engineer to

Analyze the effectiveness of design in meeting its stated

requirement.

consider architectural alternatives at a stage when making

design changes is still relatively easy,

reduce the risks associated with the construction of the software.

Importance of Software Architecture

Representations of software architecture are an

enabler for communication between all parties
(stakeholders) interested in the development
Architecture highlights early design decisions
that will have a profound impact on all software
engineering work that follows.
Architecture constitutes a relatively small,
intellectually graspable model of how the system
is structured and how its components work
together

Data Design
The structure of data has always been an
important part of software design.
Component level the design of data
structures and the associated algorithms
required to manipulate them is essential to
the creation of high-quality applications.
Application level the translation of a data
model into a database design

Data Design at architectural design

Today, business (i.e. irrespective of its size large or

small) have dozens of database serving many
applications encompassing hundreds of gigabytes of
data.
Challenge is to extract useful information from its data
environment, particularly when the information desired is
cross-functional.
To solve this challenge, developed technique called
Data Mining (also called knowledge discovery in
databases (KDD)),
Data Warehouse
Data mining that navigate through existing databases in
an attempt to extract appropriate business-level
information

However, the existence of multiple databases, their

different structures, the degree of detail contained with
the databases, and many other factors make data mining
difficult within an existing database environment.
A data warehouse is a separate data environment that is
not directly integrated with day-to-day applications but
encompasses all data used by a business
A data warehouse is a large, independent database that
encompasses some, but not all, of the data that are
stored in databases that serve the set of applications
required by a business.

Data design at the component level

Component level focuses on the representation of data structures
that are directly accessed by one or more software components.
Principles are applicable to data design
1. The systematic analysis principles applied to function and
behavior should also be applied to data.
2. All data structures and the operations to be performed on each
should be identified.
3. A data dictionary should be established and used to define both
data and program design (operations)
4. Low-level data design decisions should be deferred until late in the
design process.

5.

6.
7.

The representation of data structure should be known

only to those modules that must make direct use of the
data contained within the structure.
A library of useful data structures and the operations
that may be applied to them should be developed.
A software design and programming language should
support the specification and realization of abstract
data types.

Architectural Style
Style describes a system category that encompasses
1. A set of components (e.g., a database, computational
modules) that perform a function required by a system;
2. a set of connectors that enable communication, coordinations and cooperation among components;
3. constraints that define how components can be integrated to
form the system
4. semantic models that enable a designer to understand the
overall properties of a system
It can be represent by
Data-centered architecture
Data flow architecture
Call and return architecture
Object oriented architecture
Layered architecture.

Data-centered architecture

Data-centered architecture

A data store (e.g., a file or database) resides at the center of this

architecture and is accessed frequently by other components that
update, add, delete, or otherwise modify data within the store.
Client software accesses a central repository which is in passive
state (in some cases).
client software accesses the data independent of any changes to
the data or the actions of other client software.
So, in this case transform the repository into a Blackboard.
A blackboard sends notification to subscribers when data of
interest changes, and is thus active.
Data-centered architectures promote integrability.
Existing components can be changed and new client
components can be added to the architecture without concern
about other clients.
Data can be passed among clients using the blackboard
mechanism. So Client components independently execute
processes

Data Flow architecture

Pipes and filters

Batch Sequential

Data Flow architecture

This architecture is applied when input data are to be

transformed through a series of computational or
manipulative components into output data.
A pipe and filter pattern (Fig .1) has a set of components,
called filters, connected by pipes that transmit data from
one component to the next.
Each filter works independently (i.e. upstream,
downstream) and is designed to expect data input of a
certain form, and produces data output (to the next filter) of
a specified form.
the filter does not require knowledge of the working of its
neighboring filters.
If the data flow degenerates into a single line of transforms,
it is termed batch sequential.

Call and return architecture

Call and return architecture

1.

2.

Architecture style enables a software designer

(system architect) to achieve a program structure
that is relatively easy to modify and scale.
Two sub-styles exist within this category:
Main/sub program architecture:
Program structure decomposes function into a
control hierarchy where a main program invokes
a number of program components, which in turn
may invoke still other components.
Remote procedure Call architecture:
The components of a main program/subprogram
architecture are distributed across multiple
computers on a network

Object-oriented architecture

Object-oriented architecture

The object-oriented paradigm, like the abstract data type

paradigm from which it evolved, emphasizes the
bundling of data and methods to manipulate and access
that data (Public Interface).
Components of a system summarize data and the
operations that must be applied to manipulate the data.
Communication and coordination between components
is accomplished via message passing.

Layered Architecture

A number of different layers are defined,

each accomplishing operations that
progressively become closer to the
machine instruction set.
At the outer layer, components examine
user interface operations.
At the inner layer, components examine
operating system interfacing.
Intermediate layers provide utility services
and application software functions.

User Interface Design

User interface design creates an effective
communication medium between a human
and a computer.
Following a set of interface design
principles, design identifies interface
objects and actions and then creates a
screen layout that forms the basis for a
user interface prototype.

Design Evaluation

user interface evaluation cycle

After the design model has been completed, a first-level

prototype is created.
The prototype is evaluated by the user, who provides the
designer with direct comments about the efficiency of the
interface.
In addition, if formal evaluation techniques are used (e.g.,
questionnaires, rating sheets), the designer may extract
information from these data.
Design modifications are made based on user input and
the next level prototype is created.
The evaluation cycle continues until no further
modifications to the interface design are necessary.
The prototyping approach is effective, but is it possible to
evaluate the quality of a user interface before a prototype
is built?
If potential problems uncovered and corrected early, the
number of loops through the evaluation cycle will be
reduced and development time will shorten.

1.

2.

3.

4.

Evaluation criteria can be applied during early design

reviews:
The length and complexity of the written specification
of the system and its interface provide an indication of
the amount of learning required by users of the
system.
The number of user tasks specified and the average
number of actions per task provide an indication of
interaction time and the overall efficiency of the
system.
The number of actions, tasks, and system states
indicated by the design model imply the memory load
on users of the system.
Interface style, help facilities, and error handling
protocol provide a general indication of the complexity
of the interface and the degree to which it will be
accepted by the user.

Once the first prototype is built, the designer can collect

a variety of qualitative and quantitative data that will
assist in evaluating the interface.
To collect qualitative data, questionnaires can be
distributed to users of the prototype.
Questions can be all
simple yes/no response,
numeric response,
scaled (subjective) response,
percentage (subjective) response.
Likert scale (e.g. strongly disagree, somewhat agree).
Open-minded.

Example

If quantitative data desired, a form of time

study analysis can be conducted.
Users are observed during interaction, and
data such as

number

of tasks correctly completed over a

standard time period,
frequency & sequence of actions,
time spent "looking" at the display,
number and types of errors,
error recovery time,
time spent using help, and number of help
references per standard time period.