Describe And Ldentify Characteristics Of Candidate Systems

From the candidate systems considered, the team begins a preliminary evaluation in an attempt to reduce them to a manageable number. Technical knowledge and expertise in the hardware/software area are critical for determining what each candidate system can ad cannot do. In OUI' safe deposit example, a search for the available microcomputers and safe de­ posit billing packages revealed the information summarized in Table 7-1.

These packages were the result of a preliminary evaluation of more than 15 other packages-all purporting to meet the requirements of the safe deposit billing system. When the number is reduced to three key packages, the next step is to describe in some detail the characteristics of each package. For example, the first candidate system runs on an IBM PC with a minimum of 128K-bytes of memory. The software is written in Pascal, a relatively new language. In case of enhancements, change has to be made through the software house, since the source code is not available to the user. The first package was installed in Jal1ualY 1982. More than 200 pack­ ages have been installed to date.

The next two candidate systems are similarly described. The information along with additional data available through the vendor highlight the positive and negative features of each system. The constraints unique to each system are also specified. For example, in the IBM PC package, the lack of an available source code means that the user has to secure a maintenance contract that costs 18 percent of the Patrice of the package per year. In contrast, the HP 100 package is less expensive and offers a source code to the user. A maintenance contract (optional) is available at 8 percent of the price of the package.