Aristotles Reform of Paideia :: Paideia Artistotle Philosophy Essays

Aristotle's Reform of Paideia ABSTRACT: Ancient Greek education featured the pedagogical exercise of dialectic, in which a student defended a thesis against rigorous questioning by an instructor. Aristophanes’ Clouds, as well as Plato and Aristotle, criticize the practice for promoting intellectual skepticism, moral cynicism, and an eristic spirit - the desire to win in argument rather than seek the truth. I suggest Aristotle’s logic is meant to reform the practice of dialectic. In the first part of my paper, I defend the thesis that Aristotle’s syllogistic is an art of substantive reasoning against the contemporary view that it is a science of abstract argument forms. First, I show that Aristotle’s exclusive distinction between art and science makes syllogistic a techne for the higher forms of knowledge, science and practical wisdom. Then I argue that Aristotle’s treatment of demonstrative and dialectical syllogisms provides rigorous standards for reasoning in science and publi c debate. In particular I discuss a) the requirement that a demonstration use verifiable premises whose middle term points out a cause for the predicate applying to the conclusion; b) how his analysis of valid syllogisms with a "wholly or partly false" universal premise applies to dialectical syllogisms. Aristotle’s logic is a major achievement of Greek paideia, valued and preserved continuously even in dark ages following its commitment to writing. Here I look at its role in reforming Greek education. The mission of Greek paideia, Aristotle argues in the Politics, is to enable members of a community to discuss with each other serious matters of common interest requiring joint decisionmaking and action. A political organization requires "a method of deciding what is demanded by the public interest and what is just in men’s private dealings" (Politics 1328b2ff).(1) He also stresses the essential function of education to promote the intellectual excellence of the student. A distinctive feature of Greek education in Plato’s Academy and Aristotle’s Lyceum was dialectic – an intellectual exercise in which a student took a position on an issue and defended it against rigorous questioning from an instructor or another student. The origin of dialectic is So crates elenctic mode of inquiry. Socrates asked a willing or unwilling citizen to put forward a definition of an ethical notion, such as justice, then engaged in a cunning and often baffling conversation with him. By a circuitous route the colloquy ended with the student making an admission inconsistent with his original postulate.

Metalworks Case

| 2012| | KLU | Metalworks case study| Students: | Introduction : Metalwork is a company supplying cabinets and safety boxes. At the moment it has two plants and two warehouses which are â€Å"Des Moines† and â€Å"Dover†. Metalwork also uses an external supplier in case they can’t meet the demand. However in the case Metalwork has to buy products from supplier it doesn’t make any profit since the selling price $75 for the cabinet and $107 equals the buying price.Regarding this situation Metalwork has decided to improve its logistic efficiency by either increasing its capacity in â€Å"Des Moines† or investing in Juarez, Mexico by building up a new factory. Our job in this condition is to analyze the best option, to optimize the logistic efficiency and help Metalwork make a decision. At first we will see and optimize the current logistic system and then we will try to run the two solutions. And see which one is the best in order to give Metalwork th e best possible answer. Baseline scenario 1: without distance constrains and with direct shipment from supplier to customers.The first job we had to do was to actualize every data and verify everything was correct. This work consisted in adding the data for the 3 time periods missing (2011-2012-2013). So we added the data regarding warehouse capacity, production capacity, production costs, and customers demand. We allowed direct shipment from the supplier to customers. We also checked the flows between every actor of the logistic process (exhibit 1). We use the Rail Warehouses Midwest between warehouses and ABC fleet carrier from warehouses to customers. Then we made the software run for a first try and saw the results.So as a result we can see that first the scenario is feasible. Hopefully by the way since it is how the Metalwork is supposed to work. We can see that the total cost (which contains manufacturing, transportation, warehousing, variables, and holding costs) is $321  7 41  907 75 and total profit of $2  001  748  527 44. So the situation is pretty good since the company realizes profits. We can also see that in this baseline scenario we order 629  398 84 units to our supplier. Units on which we don’t make any profit. So we can clearly see that there is a need to invest in order to meet the demand thanks to our products.Baseline scenario 2 without distance constrains and without direct shipment from supplier to customers. In this scenario we will try to see if it is possible work without direct shipment from the supplier to the customers. That is why the lane visual changes compared to the first one. The answer in this case is that this scenario is not feasible, because of warehouses capacity. Indeed we begin to see that it is necessary to work with more than 2 warehouses. Baseline scenario with direct shipment and with distance constrains for warehouse to customer. In this scenario we will introduce constraints regarding the maxim um distance to customers.Indeed high quality service and responsiveness is highly important to Metalwork that is why we add a distance constraint of maximum 800 miles to Tier 1 customers and 1000 miles to Normal customers. We keep the same data and the same lanes and logistic system. Except that we allow this time delivery from the supplier to the customers. Because if not we would have add the same problem as in the second scenario since the situation is even harder regarding the distance constraints. That is why we decided to run it with this scenario. So we can see that the two warehouses supply the customers in within the 1000 miles away.That is why the supplier has to send directly to the other customers and also to supply the rest that is needed by the customers. We can see that only having two warehouses is really not enough. In this situation the supplier has much more importance and that has huge effects on the costs. Dual supply On the diagram bellow we can see that the su pplier has a huge importance on the production since it produces even more than the Plant in Dover. So in this situation we can see that the total costs have dramatically increased from $341  741  907 75 to $887  796  558, 11 and the profit has gone down to $1  435  693  607, 07.The manufacturing cost is really high: 749  750  420 $ compared to 138  145  001$ in the first scenario. Regarding the new constraint we really realize that Metalwork needs to invest in new plant and in new warehouses. Baseline scenario with direct shipment and with distance constrains for warehouse to customer and supplier to customer. The scenario is not feasible because the warehouse capacity is limited and the distance from supplier to some customers is greater than the distance restriction. We decided to apply this restriction because we fought it was necessary to apply the distance constraints to the supplier also.Indeed the service level must be equal for every product to every c ustomer. Indeed the customer doesn’t need to know and don’t care if the product is from the supplier plant or Metalwork plant. Increased demand scenario in Des Moines We increase capacity of Des Moines. The production capacity of the safety boxes increases by 25% and cabinets by 50%. We set the additional $1  250 000 operation costs. And we decrease the cost for each unit produced in Des Moines by 50 cents. We apply these directives into our data base for every time period. We also add the possibility to go from 2 warehouses to 4 warehouses for the 4 time period.Two of the warehouses are fixed. One in Des Moines and one in Dover. So in this scenario we can see that the total cost has decreased compared to the first baseline scenario. Now we have a total cost of $248  104  881 97 and a profit of $2  075  385  283 22 which is much higher than in the first baseline scenario. We can also notice that with these investments the supplier is no longer needed. So th e objective achieved. Plus we have 100% of the demand met. We clearly see that the Plant in Des Moines is the main motor of Metalwork. Plus even with the distance constraint we see that the scenario is feasible.This is able thanks to the 2 more warehouses available. So as we see on the map bellow, all the customers are supplied and the 4 warehouses are dispatched on every side of the United States. Plus there are only a few customers supplied by two warehouses, because of warehouse capacity. So clearly the result is conclusive. The demand is met the costs go down and the profit rises. Double supply Mexican Plant scenario In this scenario the objective of Metalwork is to improve the network of its plants and also to relocate its investment into a low labor cost country.The opening cost of this plant opening is $5  000  000. In order to make this scenario work we had to reset the data for the 4 time period, that is to say cancel the downsize in costs and production capacity in Des Moines. We also forbid the direct shipment from supplier to customer if needed. And used the railway West transportation for Railway warehouses West to supply our products to the warehouses. But we still have the same problem as in the previous scenario that is to say that some customers are supplied by two warehouses. Double supplyAs we can see can see in the chart below, our total cost is $ 243  950  541 68 which is smaller than in the previous scenario. The profit is also a little bit higher, with $2  079  539  623 51. 100% of the demand is met so we can say that the objective is met. And with better results on every side whether it is financial or quality we can say that we would recommend this investment rather than the first one. However this also depends on the image the brand wants to have, something such as made in America and avoid social problems in the plants.When the activity is relocated. We can see on the last chart that the production almost equally balanc ed between Des Moines and Juarez. The good thing is that the supplier is no longer needed. So every unit sold makes the company make profit. Conclusion: 1. After comparing the different scenarios based on the guidelines we had, we found that the scenario that involved building a plant in Juarez, Mexico turns out to be the best one. 2. While comparing the increased capacity scenario and the â€Å"Mexico† scenario we found that they are nearly the same.In both of these scenarios we find that we don’t need an external supplier, we would be able to supply the demand on our own. 3. Compared to the baseline scenario we can see that increasing the number of warehouses decreases the overall total costs. 4. While optimizing the solution, we figured out that having to use two given warehouses might not be the optimal choice, those two warehouses should be catalogued as potential, the maximum number of warehouses should be increased. 5. We observed baseline scenarios can’t compete with the improved capacity scenario or the â€Å"Mexico† scenario since the cost of buying from a supplier is too high.

Management of a Software Development Project Essay

Introduction Many years ago, general services offered by hotels like dinner reservations, room reservations and other services were done manually. Most hotels used books, ledgers and papers to record names of guests, their duration of stay and contact details. This required a lot of effort and time. Since the advent of the information age however, dynamic and interactive websites have been introduced which have more efficient and faster technological features and capabilities for the management of hotel services. For any business to remain competitive, it is necessary to maintain an online presence in order to reach out to customers all over the world and compete on a global platform. Reservations and payments are now done online to ensure that conduction of business is faster and more convenient for customers. Definition of Project Management A project is a temporary endeavor that is done to generate a unique product or service (Duncan 1996). Project Management is an activity that involves the overall supervision, management and co-ordination of all activities related to accomplishing a set activity. It always has a start and a finish date. According to Whitten, Project Management is a process that starts at the beginning of a project, is conducted throughout a project and doesn’t end until after the project is completed (2001).   According to Duncan (1996), Project management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to activities to fulfill stakeholders’ needs and expectations. It usually involves finding a balance among scope, time, cost, quality, and varying expectations of stakeholders. Another definition of Project Management is â€Å" the process of scoping, planning, staffing, conducting, directing, and managing the development of a system at an affordable cost within a specified time frame† (Whitten, Bentley & Dittman 2001, p.124). Importance of Project Management According to Dr Malcolm Wheatley, â€Å"Project management as a management discipline, supports much economic activity.† In major industries like Information Technology, Software Development, Construction, Pharmaceuticals, and Aerospace, project management is fundamental. Project Management is also important in governments that have set goals and milestones which can only be achieved with effective management practices. Data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis of the US Department of Commerce, estimated in 2001 that the US companies spend $2.3trn on projects every year (2000).   Project management is important in any economic activity because it ensures adequate planning, scheduling and successful execution of a project; it also helps to reduce possible risks associated with a project and ensure minimal hitches. Project Management is indeed important to every economy. Many projects fail because of poor knowledge of Project Management concepts. Its relevance cannot be over emphasized. Role of the Project Manager The project manager is in charge of daily management and supervision of the project. He manages the project to ensure that things go according to plan. He also communicates with all stakeholders and project team members to ensure that there’s a clear understanding of general requirements. The project manager confirms users’ requirements to make sure that these requirements are incorporated into the end-product. A project manager engages in scoping, planning, staffing, organizing, scheduling, directing, controlling and closing a project (Whitten 2001, p.127). Swot Analysis The Regency Hotels has several strengths that serve as advantages. It has the potential to expand its services to customers internationally due to the number of branches it has, internet availability and its unique services. It is also strategically located, can leverage on its positioning and has a wide customer base. Its two major weaknesses are: 1) it has a static website which cannot provide interactive functions like online payments, online reservations, message boards, fan clubs, and so on. 2) It does not have skilled IT staff in-house that can manage the online system when it is eventually deployed. There are however, opportunities for it to become one of the best hotels in the world by maintaining a consistent and interactive global presence.   Increased competition is the major threat to Regency Hotels. Most hotels today, have a strong online presence that offers customers various services that make their experiences with the hotel more memorable and convenient, like booking and paying online. Regency Hotels is yet to rise to the challenge. Development methodology The software development methodology to be adopted for the production of this system is the waterfall method. This is an approach to software development that specifies that a project should be grouped into phases and one phase must be completed before the next. The project is carried out in a logical manner through a pre-determined number of steps. This method is preferred because the duration of the project is only two weeks and the requirements are clear.   With the waterfall method, project reviews are conducted between stages, which represent milestones. This provides an organized scenario that ensures required documentation and quality management of the developed application is carried out (Sorensen 1995). Project Scope The project scope definition involves clarifying the boundaries of the project. Regency Hotels in addition to available technological features like retrieving customers’ information, billing, checking for room availability, desires a system with added capabilities of online booking and payment. This project involves building a system that can accept online booking and payment options by customers. A portal will be developed to include the following features: Online reservations, online payment, checking room availability, checking in, checking out, discussion group and general information on the hotel. Secure Socket Layer (SSL) will be added to the website to provide for added security when paying online; search functions will be provided on web pages to check for room availability and booking; e-mail and discussion group facilities will be included to facilitate communication between customers and the hotel; and other technological features from the available website will be incorporated into the new portal to ensure that a robust system that meets the expectations of Stakeholders at Regency Hotels is built. The final system will be deployed at the hotel and tested. Staff members that need to be trained will be identified and educated on how to use the system. The change management process will be made easier for staff of Regency Hotel by ensuring that they are adequately trained, resources are provide to assist them, and maintenance/ support plans are put in place. Result of using COCOMO model to estimate effort, duration and number of people required. The Constructive Cost Model, known as COCOMO was developed by Barry Boehm in 1981. It is based on the waterfall model and is used for estimating the number of person and months needed to develop software. It also estimates the development schedule in months. The development mode for this project is organic because it is a small and straight-forward one. A small team with sufficient experience work together to develop the portal system (Merlo-Schett 2002). COCOMO is defined in terms of three basic models: The Basic model, the Intermediate model and the detailed model. The KDSI is the size of the project in Kilo delivered source instructions. These are source lines that are created by the project team. Using the Intermediate COCOMO I, calculation is done as follows: Required: Portal system for online payment and booking Development Effort (MM) = a * KDSI b Effort and development Time (TDEV) =     2.5 * MM c With organic mode of development, a = 3.2, b = 1.05, c = 0.38 4 modules to implement: Data entry – 0.5 KDSI Data update – 0.3 KDSI Online Reservations – 0.8 KDSI Online Payment – 0.7 KDSI System SIZE 2.3 KDSI MM = 3.2 * 2.3 1.05   = 7.7 TDEV = 2.5 * MM c = 2.5* 7.7 0.38 = 5.4 (Project needs more than 5 months to complete) Number of people to be hired = MM/TDEV = 7.7/5.4 = 1.4 (This means that more than one team member is needed to execute the project). The major shortcoming of the above calculation is that value of the KDSI used is approximate (Merlo-Schett 2002). Hardware and Software Requirements At least four separate computers will be needed for building the portal, testing it and hosting it.   Softwares like Macromedia Dreamweaver, Java, PHP, SQL Server and Visual Basic .NET will be needed for building the portal. A central server for hosting and managing user connections to the portal will also be required.   Work Breakdown Structure Work Breakdown Structure shows the hierarchical decomposition of projects into phases, activities and tasks (Whitten 2001, p.135). SOFTWARE REQUIREMENT SPECIFICATION 1.1  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Identify sponsors and stakeholders 1.2  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Meet with sponsors and stakeholders to clarify system requirements 1.3  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Produce Software Requirements Specification Draft 1.4  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Sign-off on software requirements TECHNOLOGY SPECIFICATION 2.1  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Determine hardware and software needed for developing the system 2.2  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Procure hardware and software needed for system development 2.3  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Set-up hardware and software for use SCOPE MANAGEMENT 3.1  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Develop a written scope statement as a basis for future project decisions 3.2  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Verify Scope of the Project with sponsors 3.3  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Perform Scope Change Control to prevent scope creep COST & SCHEDULE MANAGEMENT 4.1  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Develop an estimate of project costs 4.2  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Schedule Meeting with Stakeholders to agree on cost and deadline 4.3  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Receive Payment from Stakeholders 4.4  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Allocate cost estimates to individual work items 4.5  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Evaluate actual versus projected schedule 4.6  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Control changes to project budget to avoid going over the budget 4.7  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Compare actual and budgeted costs 4.8  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Schedule Development 4.9  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Schedule Control HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT PHASE 5.1  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Identify Project Roles/Conduct Organizational Planning 5.2  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Determine Skills of People needed to develop system 5.3  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Determine number of people to work on the project 5.4  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Recruit Project Team Members 5.5  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Engage staff with appropriate skills 5.6  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Develop individual and group skills to enhance project performance ACTIVITY MANAGEMENT PHASE 6.1  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Develop activity list for project team members 6.2  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Sub-divide major project deliverables into smaller components 6.3  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Assign Team Members to tasks and deliverables 6.4  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Supervise activities within the project team 6.5  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Evaluate Performance and Productivity 6.6  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Update activity list as necessary 6.7  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Conduct meetings and review status reports on software development PROJECT OFFICE ADMINISTRATION 7.1  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Attend to daily activities or events concerning the project 7.2  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   General project supervision PROJECT COMMUNICATIONS 8.1  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Determine information and communication needs of stakeholders 8.2  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Provide information to stakeholders in a timely fashion 8.3  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Put contact details of all team members and stakeholders into the database 8.4  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Performance reporting to stakeholders through status reports, progress measurement and forecasting 8.5  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Set up meetings with project team members 8.6  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Develop status reports for the project RISK MANAGEMENT 9.1  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Identify all possible risks within the project and effects on project 9.2  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Define steps for responding to threats 9.3  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Respond to changes in risks during the course of the project QUALITY MANAGEMENT 10.1  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Identify quality standards relevant to the project and how to satisfy them 10.2  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Evaluate overall project performance 10.3  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Define Quality Assurance Specifications 10.4  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Code and check the system for compliance with quality standards 10.5  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Test System to make sure it fits clients’ requirements Hand-Over of Project 11.1  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Ensure adherence to client requirement 11.2  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Conduct Customer Acceptance Tests 11.3  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Review Software User Manuals 11.4  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Sign off & Certify Solution Development 11.5  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Submit Project Close-out Report 11.6  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Terminate Project Project scheduling (Please refer to attached Microsoft Project document for dependency between activities, network diagram, critical path and Gantt chart) A Project network diagram displays the logical relationships of project activities. A Gantt chart is a horizontal bar chart that shows tasks against timelines. Each bar is equivalent to a project task. Gantt charts show, tasks that can be performed at the same time (Whitten 2001, p.128).Any tasks on the critical path cannot be delayed. Name of Activity  Ã‚      Duration Starting Date    Finishing Date    Software Requirement Specification 1 Day Wed 4/23/08 Wed 4/23/08 Technology Specification       1 Day Thu 4/24/08 Thu 4/24/08 Scope Management       10 Days    Wed 4/23/08 Tue 5/6/08       Cost & Schedule Management       12 Days Wed 4/23/08 Thu 5/8/08 Human Resources Management Phase 8 Days Wed 4/23/08 Fri 5/2/08       Activity Management Phase       10 Days Wed 4/23/08 Tue 5/6/08 Project Office Administration       10 Days Wed 4/23/08 Tue 5/6/08 Project Communications       10 Days Wed 4/23/08 Tue 5/6/08 Risk Management       10 Days Wed 4/23/08 Tue 5/6/08 Quality Management       10 Days Wed 4/23/08 Tue 5/6/08 Hand-Over of Project       10 Days Wed 4/23/08 Tue 5/6/08 Possible risks related to the software development project Every project has its own share of risks. Risks associated with this project are outlined below: The period of time given for the execution of the project is short. The COCOMO model shows that a project of such magnitude requires at least 5 months for completion. There is a risk of the project exceeding the time frame allocated by the stakeholders. User requirements may change or expand during the duration of project. There is a risk of having to accommodate changes to the design of the portal. This is known as scope creep and may affect the schedule and budget (Whitten 2001). With the obvious need to procure softwares for the development of the portal system, resources like time and money may not be sufficient. There is a risk of taking short cuts around the system development methodology in order to meet the deadline and not exceed the budget. This might affect the quality of the final product. Another potential risk is that of feature creep. This refers to the uncontrolled addition of technical features to a system that is being developed without regard to schedule and budget (Whitten 2001, p.125). A portal system is a robust application that is designed to fulfill various needs of an organization. The temptation to add more features is always a prevalent risk There is the risk of a team member resigning from the project. This will cause a considerable loss of time. There is also the risk of insufficient communication within the project team which may lead to misunderstanding of customers’ requirements, and cause a deviation from the project plan, budget and schedule. Project Monitoring Project monitoring involves supervising the project throughout its lifecycle. This is important in order to know how things are going and to solve any problem that may arise during the course of the project. This can be done via meetings, emails, reports on progress and finances and also by observing project management best practices. Conclusion   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Applying the principles of Project Management to the development of the portal system at Regency Hotels will go a long way to ensure that the objectives are met on time, within budget and that the software product will be of the desired quality. Project Management is a crucial practice that should be encouraged in every sector of the economy. It ensures that money, energy and time are not wasted on failed projects. With sufficient project management practices in place, stakeholders and contractors can conduct businesses without bothering about the hitches involved with long-term projects. Regardless of the end product, which could be a new service, product or knowledge, project management ensures that a successful outcome is achieved within the available resources and time frame. References Whitten, JL, Bentley, LD, & Dittman, KC 2001, Systems Analysis and Design Methods, 5th edn, Mc Graw-Hill, New York. Wheatley, M 2000, The Importance of Project Management, Project Smart. Available from: [22 April 2008] Sorensen, R 1995, A comparison of Software Development Methodologies, Software Technology Support Centre. Available from: [24 April 2008] Duncan, WR 1996, A Guide to Project Management Body of Knowledge, PMI Standards Committee. Available from: [24 April 2008] Merlo-Schett, N 2002, ‘COCOMO Constructive Cost Model’, Proceedings of the seminar cost estimation W 2002/2003, pp. 1-24. Available from: [22 April 2008].   

Understanding Javas Cannot Find Symbol Error Message

Understanding Java's Cannot Find Symbol Error Message When a Java program is being compiled, the compiler creates a list of all the identifiers in use. If it cant find what an identifier refers to (e.g., there is no declaration statement for a variable) it cannot complete the compilation. This is what the cannot find symbol error message is saying- the compiler  doesnt have enough information to piece together what the Java code is intended to execute. Possible Causes For the  Cannot Find Symbol Error Although the Java source code contains other things like keywords, comments, and operators, the Cannot Find Symbol error references the name of a specific package, interface, class, method or variable. The compiler needs to know what every identifier references. If it doesnt, the code is basically looking for something that the compiler doesnt yet comprehend. Some possible causes for the Cannot Find Symbol Java error include: Trying to use a variable without declaring it.Misspelling a class or method name.  Remember that  Java is case sensitive  and spelling errors are not  corrected for you. Also, underscores may or may not be necessary, so watch out for code that use them when they shouldnt be used or vice versa.The parameters used do not match a methods signature.The packaged class has not been referenced correctly using an import declaration.Identifiers  look  the same but are actually different. This problem can be hard to spot, but in this case, if the source files use UTF-8 encoding, you may be using some identifiers as if theyre identical but really theyre not because they simply appear to be spelled the same.Youre looking at the wrong source code. It may seem hard to believe that youre reading a different source code than the one producing the error, but its definitely possible, and especially for new Java programmers. Check file names and version histories carefully.You forgot a new, like this:  String s String();, which should be  String s new String(); Sometimes, the error arises from a combination of problems. Therefore, if you fix one thing, and the error persists, check for different problems still affecting your code. For example, its possible that you are trying to use an undeclared variable and when you fix it, the code still contains spelling errors. Example of a Cannot Find Symbol Java Error Lets use this code as an example: This code will cause a cannot find symbol error because the System.out class does not have a method called â€Å"prontln†: The two lines below the message will explain exactly what part of the code is confusing the compiler. Mistakes like capitalization mismatches are often flagged in a dedicated integrated development environment. Although you can write your Java code in any text editor, using IDEs and their associated linting tools reduces typos and mismatches. Common Java IDEs include Eclipse and NetBeans.

Lady Gaga Can Teach You How to Never Give Up

Lady Gaga Can Teach You How to Never Give Up Everybody fails. Even the fanciest and most successful of celebrities, historical figures, and our most idolized idols. Even Lady Gaga. She’s won 5 Grammy awards. She’s been Billboard’s Artist of the Year as well as one of Forbes’ 100 most powerful women, and one of TIME’s most influential people. She’s broken records for record sales and made absurd amounts of money on global tours. Plus, she’s universally accepted as analogous for cool.But before she was Lady Gaga, she was Stefani Germanotta, a little girl who lived in Manhattan and played the piano by the age of four. She went to NYU’s conservatory to study music at the age of 17, but dropped out two years later to try and make it as a musician. The Stefani Germanotta band played a few local gigs, and netted her a manager, but was disbanded within a year.That manager, Rob Fusari, took her on, but had a very difficult time convincing the major labels to do the same. She was to ld she didn’t have the right look, the right sound, and that her songs just weren’t hits. She even left one meeting at Sony in a rage of tears.Then, an accident of autocorrect occurred. Fusari typed her name and his phone corrected it to â€Å"Lady Gaga.† A star was born? Not so fast. The newly named Lady Gaga then got a great deal with Island Def Jam records and began work on an album, only to be dropped without explanation after three months. She hit a low point, turning to drinking and drugs for solace, trying not to give up on her dreams despite being told she wasn’t pretty enough to be a singer songwriter and simply play and sing at a piano. The only work she could get was writing songs for other artists, which did nothing to satisfy her desire to perform herself.For the next couple of years, she took to the NYC underground scene, experimenting, working with performance art, dressing like a goth stripper, drawing attention, making waves. She died her hair platinum blond after being confused with Amy Winehouse. And then, finally, another artist took notice and forced the Interscope label head to listen to one of her songs. That song was â€Å"Just Dance.† A star was born? Yep. You know the rest.At any point, Gaga could have given up. But she didn’t. She tried and tried and failed, and she changed her tactic, changed her brand. When she hit on the right one, she was ready for the results.So remember: don’t be afraid of failure. Use it to push yourself in a better, new direction. One that just might put you in the groove and get you where you need to go.

Why The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Was Banned

Why 'The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn' Was Banned Mark Twain isnt who most people think of when the topic of banned books comes up but the popular author has managed to earn a spot on the ALAs list of most contested books almost every year. His popular novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has been contested for many reasons. Some readers object to the strong and sometimes racist language and think its inappropriate for children. However, most educators think given a proper context the book is a great read. The history of people attempting to censor the novel goes back further than many realize. A History of Huckleberry Finn and Censorship The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn  was first published in 1884. Twains novel, a hilarious, rollicking adventure story, is widely considered one of the greatest American novels ever written. It follows Huck Finn- a poor, motherless boy with an abusive father, an ingenious way with words, a love-hate relationship with societal conventions, and a strong streak of decency- as he sails down the Mississippi River with Jim, an escaped slave. Despite the praise heaped on the book, it has proven a magnet for controversy. In 1885, Concord Public Library banned the book, attacking the novel as absolutely immoral in its tone.† One library official noted that all through its pages there is a systematic use of bad grammar and an employment of inelegant expressions.† Mark Twain, for his part, loved the controversy for the publicity it would generate. As he wrote to Charles Webster on March 18, 1885: The Committee of the Public Library of Concord, Mass., have given us a rattling tip-top puff which will go into every paper in the country. They have expelled Huck from their library as trash and suitable only for the slums. That will sell 25,000 copies for us sure. In 1902, the Brooklyn Public Library banned  The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn  with the statement that Huck not only itched but he scratched, and that he said sweat when he should have said perspiration. Why Was It Banned? In general, the debate over Twains  The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn  has centered around the language of the book, which has been objected to on social grounds. Huck Finn, Jim and many other characters in the book speak in regional dialects of the South. It is a far cry from the queen’s English. More specifically, the use of the word â€Å"n*gg*r† in reference to Jim and other African American characters in the book, along  with the portrayal of those characters, has offended some readers, who consider the book racist. Although many critics have argued that Twain’s ultimate effect is to humanize Jim and attack the brutal racism of slavery, the book frequently flagged and protested by students and parents alike. It was the fifth most-frequently-challenged  book in the United States during the 1990s, according to the American Library Association. Yielding to public pressure, some publishers have substituted slave or servant for the term that Mark Twain uses in the book, which is derogatory to African Americans. In 2015, an ebook version published by the company CleanReader offered a version of the book with three different filter levels- clean, cleaner, and squeaky clean- a strange edition for an author known to enjoy swearing.

A SYSTEM TO MANAGE THE POSTGRADUATE COMPUTING PROJECTS Literature review

A SYSTEM TO MANAGE THE POSTGRADUATE COMPUTING PROJECTS - Literature review Example In order to perform configuration management, this research indicates that Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) version 1.1, and the Project IN Controlled Environment (PRINCE) version 2 calls attention to the proper execution of Configuration control activities because of their criticality for the successful operation of the product in the deployment environment. Focusing on the similarities and correlation between these two initiatives, author has mapped PRINCE 2 Configuration Management Component to the CM process in continuous representation. To achieve good transformation results there is a need to apply appropriate software metrics on each and every sub process and sub practice. According to the author’s idea, mapping between two initiatives is never so easy because it requires the specification of suitable granularity level of maps between models. On high level it may be hard to get sufficient understanding of commonalities and variations while on a low level it may result in a large number of connections, make it hard to achieve the appropriate mapping. The mapping performed according to the proposed approach shows that PRINCE 2 and CMMI 1.1 continuous representation deal with the project management by following an improved process management approach. Principally the configuration management activities in aforementioned standards are normally correlated to each other at higher granularity level. It is nearly impractical to achieve one to one mapping between these two and low granularity level because of differences in process improvement approach adopted by CMMI at optimizing level (Luqman, 2006). (Dr. Asim ur rehman et al., 2007), highlight the importance of the understanding of mangers about the strategies being adopted for the management of different aspects of the project. According to their views, Managers while managing a project, tend to show the preference for a specific project management strategy. They find it difficult to manag e another project if a dissimilar project management is adopted. Because they usually are in short of knowledge about how much commonality exists between the preferred and the new required project management methodology. This research is basically focused towards that enhancement of understanding of managers by providing highlighting different aspects of different project management frameworks. Results can be useful by intelligently combining powerful features of different methodologies. To perform the analysis five major project management methodologies, including PRINCE2, have been compared with PMBOK. Prince2 methodology has certain shortcomings when compared with other methodologies. PRINCE2 is not designed to promise proficient results in short period of time. It requires deep concentration from the managers to get the promised results and also it is insufficient if the project requires higher degree of contract and people management. This research also highlights certain commo nalities between PMBOK and PRINCE2 such as the documentation must provide sufficient information to suit the occasion. Usually it does not provide information about how to perform a specific task or use any of the tools described. They are intended to provide a brief sketch of processes involved, their