Informatica Economica Vol. 20 No. 4/2016

Issue Topic: Agile Development

CONTENTS

Analyzing Agile Development – from Waterfall Style to Scrumban
Marian STOICA, Bogdan GHILIC-MICU, Marinela MIRCEA, Cristian USCATU 5
The spectacular evolution of information and communications technology in the last two decades and the growing obvious chase of utopian maximization of profit by economic organizations have made an impact on various fields, including that of methodological instruments regarding the lifecycle of software development. We will speak about the necessity of organizational ability to adapt to continuously changing market conditions, which leads undoubtedly to acquiring functional flexibility and, in the end, of business agility. Also, the agility of a business (not only in software development) is supported by the manifestation of agility on all three architectural levels: business, informational, technological. In this study we aim to identify the elements that impact on agility in developing software products, in a gradual approach, from the traditional waterfall model towards approaches like Scrumban. Additionally, we will understand the social dimension of using agile methodologies in software development projects and the main barriers in adopting such methodologies.
Keywords: Agile Development, Software Development Life Cycle, Project Management Tools, Incremental Model, Waterfall, Scrum, Kanban, Scrumban.

Controlling and Monitoring Specific Hardware Resources
Mihaela MUNTEAN, Gabriela MIRCEA, Andreea POP 15
Within an agile approach, a RIA application for controlling and monitoring specific hardware will be proposed. It is always a challenge to choose the suitable technologies and IT frameworks to transform the PIM model into the PSM model of the future RIA and after that to implement the prototype. The main technological aspects are presented; the approach makes direct referees to the developed tiers of the RIA prototype.
Keywords: Rich Internet Applications (RIA), Multi-Tier Architecture, Agile Development, RIA Frameworks

New Researches on the Role of Virtual Exhibitions in Digitization, Preservation and Valorization of Cultural Heritage
Cristian CIUREA, Florin Gheorghe FILIP 26
The current paper presents a scientific approach of implementing online virtual exhibitions on mobile devices in order to increase the number of visitors inside cultural institutions, such as galleries, libraries, archives and museums (GLAM). There are described the new opportunities offered by the cultural heritage to generate revenues for cultural institutions and to contribute at the economic development of the belonging countries. It is described the role of virtual exhibitions in the processes of digitization, preservation and valorization of cultural heritage. The most important features of virtual exhibitions, which makes the differences from simple image galleries and websites, are presented and detailed.
Keywords: Cultural Heritage, Virtual Exhibitions, Mobile Applications, Digitization.

Estimating Maintenance Cost for Web Applications
Ion IVAN, Mihai Liviu DESPA 34
The current paper tackles the issue of determining a method for estimating maintenance costs for web applications. The current state of research in the field of web application maintenance is summarized and leading theories and results are highlighted. The cost of web maintenance is determined by the number of man-hours invested in maintenance tasks. Web maintenance tasks are categorized into content maintenance and technical maintenance. Research is centered on analyzing technical maintenance tasks. The research hypothesis is formulated on the assumption that the number of man-hours invested in maintenance tasks can be assessed based on the web application’s user interaction level, complexity and content update effort. Data regarding the costs of maintenance tasks is collected from 24 maintenance projects implemented by a web development company that tackles a wide area of web applications. Homogeneity and diversity of collected data is submitted for debate by presenting a sample of the data and depicting the overall size and comprehensive nature of the entire dataset. A set of metrics dedicated to estimating maintenance costs in web applications is defined based on conclusions formulated by analyzing the collected data and the theories and practices dominating the current state of research. Metrics are validated with regards to the initial research hypothesis. Research hypothesis are validated and conclusions are formulated on the topic of estimating the maintenance cost of web applications. The limits of the research process which represented the basis for the current paper are enunciated. Future research topics are submitted for debate.
Keywords: Maintenance Cost, Web Development, Web Application Maintenance, Software Maintenance

From Natural Language Text to Visual Models: A survey of Issues and Approaches
Cristina-Claudia OSMAN, Paula-Georgiana ZALHAN 44
Over the last 20 years, research groups focused on automating the process of extracting valuable information from Natural Language text in order to discover data and process models. In this context, several tools and approaches have been proposed. The overall objective of this survey is to examine existing literature works that transform textual specifications into visual models. This paper aims to give a comprehensive account of the existing tools meant to discover data and process models from natural language text. Our analysis focuses on approaches of these tools in the model extraction process and highlight issues of each proposed approach. In the case of object oriented software modelling of data models extraction we analyze the degree of automation, efficiency and completeness of the transformation process. Regarding process models extraction, the study is not limited only to business process discovery, but it also provides case studies from several fields such as medical or archaeological. Even if not all the tools developed are clearly depicting a Natural Language Processing technique, a review of each approach is presented.
Keywords: Natural Language Processing, Data Model, Business Process Model

A Prototype for an e-Recruitment Platform using Semantic Web Technologies
Mihaela-Irina ENACHESCU 62
Nowadays, the continuous demand for qualified candidates in the IT domain has empowered the use of e-Recruitment tools, which are becoming more and more exploited at the expense of the traditional methods. This study focuses on the use of ontologies in developing a job recommender system, which helps to automatically match job offers with the candidates' profiles and in reverse. In order to design the IT e-Recruitment ontology we have gathered a list with all the features a platform of this kind should provide, for both the job seeker and the recruiter. Based on the selected requirements, we developed the ontology that offers all the necessary means to implement such a job recommender system, designed to connect people with job opportunities and backwards. The second part of the paper proposes a Java based architecture to implement the e-Recruitment platform. To convert the users' input into RDF description, RDF2Go and RDFBeans APIs are employed. Storing and retrieving the data make use of the Jena Framework, which provides dedicated interfaces for accessing the Fuseki2 Server over HTTP. Finally, the prototype of the e-Recruitment platform is presented, together with its core functionalities.
Keywords: Fuseki2 Server, IT Domain Ontology, Jena Framework, Job Recommender System, Mobile Application, RDF Representation

A Foreign Language Learning Application using Mobile Augmented Reality
Florentin - Alexandru DITA 76
In this paper is described a foreign language learning application using mobile augmented reality based on gamification method and text recognition. The mobile augmented reality is a technology that extends the real world elements with 2D or 3D computer generated objects and lets the users interact with them. A Gamification system is based on different mechanisms that increase the motivation of students, due to the impact that videogames have in their emotional, cognitive and social areas. The proposed solution applies Optical Character Recognition technique, using the camera of the mobile device, in order to identify the text written on a card. The implementation combines the features of gamification system and mobile augmented reality in order to make the learning process more easy and fun. This paper aims to present the results after testing the foreign language learning application in different scenarios.
Keywords: Gamification, M-Learning, Mobile Augmented Reality, Optical Character Recognition, Virtual Object

Money Demand Features in CEE Countries
Valentina-Ioana MERA 88
The existence of a stable relationship between money demand and its determinants is important for the efficiency of monetary policy. In this paper we carried a preliminary analysis on the variables that can influence money demand in five Central and Eastern European countries (Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Romania) in order to determine which characteristics define the evolution of money demand and its determinants, and how volatile they are. The results indicate a number of similarities in terms of monetary development and also suggest that some additional variables that may influence money demand in this specific sample.
Keywords: Money Demand, Inflation, Exchange Rates, CEE Countries

The 16th International Conference on Informatics in Economy, IE 2017 100

Publishing Guide for Authors 101

INFOREC Association 103