| Previous | Up |
|
Glossary
The Evolving Artifact Approach |
- Artifact
- From Webster: "a product of artificial character due to extraneous (as human) agency." In other words, anything made by humans. This definition includes human-made objects, such as buildings and books, as well as institutions, such as governments. Liberal interpretation of this definition might even include knowledge, language and even reality itself (e.g., "the social construction of reality").
- Augmentation of Human Intelligence
- Human intelligence can be augmented and amplified by cognitive artifacts. A famous quote of Einstein states: ''My pencil is cleverer then I.'' Examples of cognitive artifacts are: Calculators, external information stores (to compensate for the limitations of short term memory), spreadsheets, domain-oriented systems, etc.
- Backtalk of a Situation
- Making thoughts, ideas and plans explicit by writing them down or by developing an artifact, we create situations which talk back to us. Often this backtalk is limited, and we need critics to enhance the backtalk.
- Breakdowns
- Designers act until they experience a breakdown (e.g., they are lacking knowledge to proceed, or they cannot satisfy conflicting requirements). These breakdowns are either noticed by the designers themselves through the backtalk of the situation, or they are signaled by a human collaborator or a computational critic.
- Cognitive Artifact
- "An artificial device designed to maintain, display, or operate upon information in order to serve a representational function" (Don Norman). Cognitive artifacts are technologies that aid the mind by complementing abilities and strengthening mental powers. Examples are writing, books, computational tools.
- Communication
- The creation of shared understanding through interaction among two or more agents. Communication depends upon interpretation of some message by the listener. Shared understanding is constructed through the detection and repair of misunderstandings (as opposed to a one-way transmission of data). The understanding created through communication can never be absolute or complete, but instead is an interactive and ongoing process in which common ground, i.e., assumed mutual beliefs and mutual knowledge, is accumulated and updated.
- Community of Practice
- A group of practitioners involved in a common activity, albeit performing different roles. Essential characteristics of communities of practice are: 1) they are not defined by organizational mandate (e.g., the "org chart"), but rather by the ways people actually work together, 2) they involve many different roles, as opposed to a flat structure, and 3) they experience an ongoing flux of community members, who enter the community from the periphery and gain status as knowledgeable members through participation in the community of practice.
- Constructionism
- An educational philosophy emphasizing that learning is a process of active knowledge construction and not of passive knowledge absorption. Stresses the connection between understanding and experience, particularly with respect to creating and experimenting with objects to learn about abstract concepts.
- Context
- DODEs model a partial context for a specific domain. New problems/tasks are solved, by articulating the task against this context. In communication between people, context is the implicit (unstated and unstatable) background against which interpretation takes place. Artifacts can provide an explicit context for communication.
- Cooperative Problem Solving Systems
- Systems which cooperate with the user, i.e., certain tasks are done by the user, others by the system. Systems that combine the computer's strengths with the user's strengths to solve a problem.
- Critics
- A computational mechanism that gives context-sensitive advice regarding a product under development. Critics needs a metric to evaluate the quality of a solution. Specific classes of critics are: generic critics, specific critics, interpretive critics, pluralistic critics.
- Cross-cultural Communication
- Design is often a collaborative activity bringing together stakeholders from different domains (different work cultures, and different geographical cultures). Communication across these cultures is difficult. Artifacts often play an important role to ground this communication and to incrementally create a shared understanding.
- Descriptive Objects
- A primitive in the EVA Knowledge Construction Environment. Descriptive objects are containers for information that is not interpreted by the system. Implemented as hypertext. Used for documentation and communication in the evolving artifact approach.
- Design
- Design is concerned with how things ought to be in order to attain goals and to function. In constructive design, a specific artifact is designed. In argumentative design, the design space and the design trade-offs of a class of designs is discussed.
- Design Artifacts
- Explicit products (i.e., representations) of design, including intermediate solutions, rationale, specifications and models.
- Design Domain
- Design domains are open-ended in the sense that there are no fixed boundaries to the knowledge that is relevant to a particular domain. Each design problem is unique in some sense, and can require information from outside the given domain. For example, the design of a kitchen for a handicapped person might present a new problem for a kitchen designer (i.e., outside the current domain of kitchen design). In principle, each design problem can contain some unique aspect which forces the designer to extend his or her knowledge of the domain.
- Design Rationale
- Successful computational artifacts will evolve over long periods of time. To support changes, the rationale behind the existing artifact is needed. In DODEs, design rationale is recorded in the argumentation component.
- Domain Model
- In the traditional software engineering perspective, a precise representation of specification and implementation concepts that define a class of existing systems (i.e. a domain). Produced through domain analysis. In a constructionist perspective, a domain model is the set of objects and behaviors contained in a domain-oriented system. In this perspective, the domain model evolves over time as users modify system to meet changing requirements.
- Domain-Oriented Design Environments (DODEs)
- Knowledge-based systems that support the design of an artifact by giving examples, knowing how components fit together, showing demonstrations, criticizing (partial) designs. They extend construction kits by supporting not just the design of an artifact, but the design of a good artifact.
- Domain-Oriented Objects
- Domain-Oriented Objects allow users to interact with the problem domain rather than with the computer, per se. Domain-oriented objects model the basic abstractions of a domain, thereby tuning the semantics of primitives to the specific domain of discourse. See Human problem-domain communication.
- Domain-Oriented System
- Domain-oriented systems contain tools and information relevant to a certain domain - i.e., that are relevant to a set of problems that share important characteristics. By focusing on a particular domain, these systems can be programmed to offer "intelligent" assistance to users. General purpose systems, on the other hand, can know little about the specific tasks their users wish to perform, and therefore can offer only general-purpose assistance. An example of a domain-oriented system is the Janus Kitchen Design Environment. An example of a general purpose system is a spread sheet, such as Excel.
- Downstream Design Activities
- Design processes create mappings between three different entities: the world, specifications and implementations. Downstream design activities are the translations between specifications and implementations.
- Dynamic Forms
- A form-based interface technique that automatically hides and/or displays fields in a context-sensitive manner.
- Evolutionary Growth
- The SER model postulates that domain-oriented systems will undergo evolutionary growth through its use. This growth is driven by knowledge construction in use.
- Evolving Artifact Approach
- A set of strategies and computational support for operationalizing knowledge construction in software development. The evolving artifact approach calls for systems to be developed as evolving artifacts that contain descriptive objects as well as functional objects.
- Expert Systems
- Refers to computer programs that apply substantial knowledge of specific areas of expertise to the problem solving process. The term expert is intended to apply both narrow specialization and competence where success of the system is often due to this narrow focus.
- Functional Object
- A primitive in the EVA Knowledge Construction Environment. Functional objects are containers for computer instructions (programming code). Used to implement functionality (e.g., prototypes) in the evolving artifact approach.
- Human Problem-Domain Communication
- Extension and specialization of human computer communication, where the computer remains invisible, i.e., the communication takes place in terms of the problem domain, not of the computer. Requires domain-oriented abstractions as a basis for shared knowledge. Reduces the representational gap between the real world and computational representations of it.
- Hypertext
- Nonlinear text. Pieces of text interconnected with multiple links. The reader can choose one of many possible sequences. Methodology for information representation and access (e.g., in argumentative design).
- Ill-Defined Problems
- Situations in which there is no clear formulation of the problem to be solved (also called wicked problems). Ill-defined problems require that a structure, or framework, be imposed on the situation, before a solution can be found. Design theory suggests that in ill-defined problems, problem definition proceeds in parallel with problem solution, meaning that attempts to solve a problem lead to a greater understanding of what the problem really is.
- Incremental Formalization
- Computers require knowledge to be formally represented to interpret it. But designers often find it difficult to express their knowledge in formal terms - especially before they clearly understand it themselves. Incremental formalization is an approach whereby designers can input information into a system without being required to completely formalize it. Then, when the information is better understood, the designer can add formality to the information so the system can interpret the information. Frank Shipman explored incremental formalization and developed tools to support this process in his Ph.D. thesis.
- Indirect, Long-Term Collaboration
- Complex artifacts often develop over long periods of time. Indirect collaboration occurs when knowledge or products are shared through some persistent medium, such as a database or other repository. Indirect collaboration is required when direct (face-to-face) collaboration is not possible or impractical. Long-term collaboration takes place over arbitrary time frames, and also requires some persistent medium in which knowledge or products can be stored. Design environments support indirect, long-term collaboration by storing design artifacts and design knowledge which can be accessed, reused and modified by designers in the future. This type of collaboration is necessary in the design and maintenance of artifacts that evolve over long periods of time, such as computer networks.
- Information Access
- Finding information in an information space, such as the representative's handbook or a computerized database. Impediments to information access include: 1) knowing one needs information, 2) knowing information exists in a given information space, 3) knowing how to search an information space, 4) the time and knowledge required to judge what information is relevant to one's information needs. Characterizes situations where users actively search for information (either in the form of information retrieval or information exploration).
- Intent Articulation
- The descriptive mechanism in design environments to allow users to describe the task at hand (e.g., a partial specification and a partial construction).
- Interpretation
- The transformation of knowledge through a progression of forms. The act of transforming tacit knowledge to explicit is interpretation, as is transforming explicit knowledge in the head to external knowledge in an artifact.
- Knowledge Construction
- A methodological approach which assumes that the knowledge for many system developments is not out there (and therefore needs to be only acquired), but needs to be constructed. Knowledge construction is a co-evolution of artifacts and understanding.
- Knowledge Construction Culture
- An organization in which organizational learning and individual learning serve each other, facilitated by evolving group memories. The organization learns by collecting knowledge that is constructed by individuals in the course of their day-to-day work. Individuals, in turn, learn in the course of their day-to-day work, benefiting from the innovations of their peers.
- Knowledge Construction in Use
- The continuous evolution of domain-oriented systems driven by users as they create artifacts and solve problems.
- Knowledge Delivery
- Active presentation of stored information that is relevant to a need the user is experiencing. Intelligent computational mechanisms can access information relevant to the user's task at hand and present the information to the user. The critic mechanisms in Janus are examples of knowledge delivery mechanisms. Complements information access and is needed in situations where users are unable to articulate the need for information or are unaware that they may profit form information.
- Knowledge-Based Systems
- Difference to expert systems: they are focused on the knowledge the systems carry, rather than on the question of whether or not such knowledge constitutes expertise. These systems have explicit knowledge bases and some flexibility in the use of the knowledge.
- Knowledge-Intensive Domains
- Domains in which workers are surrounded by information sources, but have difficulty accessing the information they need when they need it. Workers in these domains rely on external information resources to augment their mental abilities to comprehend and solve complex problems. The problem for workers isn't the existence of information. It is that there is so much information available that relevant information is difficult to find when it is needed. Examples of knowledge-intensive domains include law, planning, and design.
- Languages of Doing
- (Ehn, 1988) The largely unspoken (tacit) conventions associated with actions and routines.
- Learner-Centered Design
- Acknowledges the fact that designers using computational artifacts are not just static users but learners and that these learning processes need to be supported by the system.
- Learning on Demand
- Situated learning in a working context which occurs at the user's discretion - often triggered by an impasse. In large information stores, such as high-functionality computer systems, where users only have a partial knowledge, learning on demand is the only viable strategy.
- Life-Long Learning
- Postulates that learning does not end when one leaves school. It is more than "adult education." It is applicable to the educational experience of both children and adults by bringing the child's experience closer to meaningful and personalized work and the adult's experience closer to one of continued growth and exploration.
- Making Argumentation Serve Design
- Designers often require information (i.e. argumentation) to help them understand problematic aspects of the design situation. In order to serve the design activity, argumentation must be available when it is relevant to the specific problem the designer trying to understand.
- Malleable Systems
- Systems which are adaptive and adaptable.
- Organizational Learning
- Working and learning become increasingly collaborative activities based on the limitations of the individual human mind. Individual learning needs to be complemented by organizational learning. DODEs can support organizational learning by their function as organizational and artifact memories.
- Participatory Design
- When users are intimately involved in the design of systems they will eventually use. The symmetry of ignorance makes participatory design a necessity.
- Practice
- A view of work that focuses on the tasks workers do, and the understanding needed to do the tasks. Whereas traditional perspectives on work assume that workers create error, a practice perspective assumes that workers solve problems. The development of new computational tools offers the possibility to change work practice by creating a new distribution of labor between workers, their tools, and their information resources.
- Problem Framing and Problem Solving
- In the real world, problems are not given but need to be framed. But problem framing often requires attempts to partially solve the problem. Therefore problem framing and solving need to be integrated. DODEs support this integration with specification and construction components.
- Problem Setting
- Donald Schoen describes problem setting as "the process in which, interactively, we name the things to which we will attend and frame the context in which we will attend to them" (Schoen1983). Problem setting is essential to the design activity because problems do not come as givens in any absolute or detailed sense, but rather they must be constructed from problematic situations which are complex and only partially understood.
- Representation
- An explicit expression (e.g., verbal utterance, diagram, computer code) of some idea. Representations have meaning only in the sense that they are interpreted by someone, or something (such as a computer). People interpret representations within a social context and against their individual background.
- Representational Formalism
- A language for expressing and interpreting representations. Formal representations, such as mathematical expressions and programming code, are interpreted by strict rules. Representations, such as natural language text, free-form diagrams, and pictures, are considered informal because the rules for interpreting them are unstated and flexible.
- Representations for Mutual Understanding
- To support different groups of stakeholders in design to incrementally understand each other, representations are needed which can be understood by all participants. Representations for mutual understanding are a vehicle for knowledge construction.
- Reseeding
- Reseeding is a coordinated effort between environment developers and domain designers to cleanup, organize and incrementally formalize DODEs which have grown through evolutionary growth processes.
- Rich Pictures
- Ad hoc drawings or diagrams that serve as vehicles to help users explain their domain to developers. Rich pictures do not have a formal syntax, but they do make use of symbols and diagrammatic conventions to represent a particular situation in a manner that is explicit and understandable by users. Rich pictures give users the opportunity to identify important aspects of their work, missing elements and incorrect terminology.
- Seeds
- Domain-oriented systems that are build to evolve. Seeds are built in a collaborative fashion involving developers and users. These systems are called seeds to indicate that they can never be complete but must grow through their use.
- SER Model
- The SER model is a process model for sustained evolution in domain-oriented systems. It is fundamentally different from expert system approaches in AI and from software engineering approaches which are specification driven.
- Service Provisioning
- The design or modification of a telephone service configuration to meet a customer's needs.
- Shared Understanding
- Somewhat of a misnomer. Because interpretation is essentially an individual act, understanding between people is never absolute, but it need not be absolute for people to perform coordinated activities and to communicate. Shared understanding is constructed through communication.
- Situated Action/Cognition
- Emphasizes that real world activities are situated in the environment in which they take place. By using the world as a resource we can simplify planning processes and overcome their restrictive elements.
- Situation Model
- Specification of a problem in terms of the situation the user is in, i.e. a situation is characterized with respect to the user's goals. The gulf of execution and evaluation is the effort to bridge the gap between the situation model and the system model.
- Software Artifacts
- 1) artifacts describing software, such as requirements documents, software specifications and code. 2) representations expressed using software as a medium, such as software systems and the artifacts created using software systems.
- Stakeholders
- All people affected by the design and use of a computer system. Typically, stakeholders are grouped into users and developers, where users might include the management as well as operators of a computer system, and developers might include designers, evaluators, maintainers, and so forth.
- Symmetry of Ignorance
- (Rittel 1984) Real world design problems transcend the knowledge of individuals and specific groups. All participants who have a stake in the design activity should be able to contribute their knowledge.
- System Model
- A description of a system in its own terms without references to goals and plans which the system might help to achieve.
- System Requirements
- Goals that a computer system should meet. Most software development models require requirements to be explicitly and completely articulated prior to the system design. The implemented system is then evaluated in terms of whether it meets the requirements. In work-oriented domains, requirements do not exist de facto and are never complete. Instead, they surface in the context of breakdowns experienced during the use of the system.
- Upstream Design Activities
- Design processes create mappings between three different entities: the world, specifications and implementations. Upstream design activities are the translations between the world and the specifications.
- Usable Systems
- Systems that are easy to learn and to use. Usability does not automatically include usefulness.
- Useful Systems
- Systems which have a broad functionality and which have sophisticated ways to increase productivity. They are not necessarily usable - especially for the non-expert.
- User-Centered System Design
- Designing systems from the outside (i.e., the user) and not from the inside (i.e., the hardware); a design philosophy that emphasizes the needs and abilities of the user, which is generally opposed to a philosophy that concentrates on efficient computation.
- Utility
- Defined as the quotient Value / Effort. It postulates that users will not mind a real effort to learn or to do something in cases where they can expect a substantial value.
- Workplace Culture
- Paraphrased from Webster: cultures are the characteristic features typical of a group of people. In general, cultures are shared ways of thinking and acting that provide coherence and continuity to a group of people. Workplace cultures are the tools, artifacts, routines and ways of thought held by a group of workers in their workplace environment.