Principles Of Designing And Developing Spreadsheet-based Decision .
PRINCIPLES OF DESIGNING AND DEVELOPINGSPREADSHEET-BASED DECISION SUPPORT SYSTEMSByMICHELLE M. HANNAA THESIS PRESENTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOLOF THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENTOF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OFMASTER OF SCIENCEUNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA2004
Copyright 2004byMichelle M. Hanna
This document is dedicated to my parents for their continuous love andsupport.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTSI would like to thank Ravindra K. Ahuja for being my advisor and friendthroughout this work. I am very grateful for the opportunities he has given me toresearch, write, and teach this material. I am also thankful to my fiance Onur Sereffor his constant love and encouragement.iv
TABLE OF CONTENTSpageACKNOWLEDGMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .ivLIST OF TABLES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .viiiLIST OF FIGURES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .ixABSTRACT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .xiiiCHAPTERS123INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11.11.21.31.41.51.6.136789DSS DEVELOPMENT PROCESS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .102.12.22.32.42.52.6.101113182832GUI DESIGN AND PROGRAMMING PRINCIPLES . . . . . . . . . . .393.139393941454848An Introduction to DSS . . . . . . . .Defining DSS . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Excel Spreadsheets . . . . . . . . . . .VBA for Excel Programming LanguageThe DSS Development Process . . . . .Case Studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Defining the Development ProcessApplication Overview . . . . . . .Spreadsheets . . . . . . . . . . . .User Interface . . . . . . . . . . .Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . .Resolve Options . . . . . . . . . .GUI Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3.1.1 The Theory Behind Good GUI3.1.1.1 Users, tasks, and goals .3.1.1.2 Clarity . . . . . . . . . .3.1.1.3 Consistency . . . . . . .3.1.2 Good and Bad GUI Designs .3.1.2.1 Buttons . . . . . . . . .v. . . .Design. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.48494951515252545454575758WAREHOUSE LAYOUT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .614.1.6161686869727487RELIABILITY ANALYSIS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .983.244.24.34.44.555.15.25.35.45.563.1.2.2 Text boxes versus list boxes and combo boxes3.1.2.3 Tab strips and multi pages . . . . . . . . . . .3.1.2.4 Check boxes versus option buttons . . . . . .3.1.2.5 Frames . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3.1.2.6 Labels versus text boxes . . . . . . . . . . . .3.1.2.7 Dynamic controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3.1.2.8 Multiple forms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3.1.2.9 Event procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Programming Practices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3.2.1 Consistent Style . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3.2.2 Naming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3.2.3 Comments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3.2.4 Efficiency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Application Overview .4.1.1 Model Definition4.1.2 Input . . . . . .4.1.3 Output . . . . .Spreadsheets . . . . . .User Interface . . . . .Procedures . . . . . . .Resolve Options . . . .Application Overview .5.1.1 Model Definition5.1.2 Input . . . . . .5.1.3 Output . . . . .Spreadsheets . . . . . .User Interface . . . . .Procedures . . . . . . .Resolve Options . . . . . . . . . . . . .and Assumptions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .and Assumptions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .989899100100105109121CONCLUSION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1286.16.26.36.4The Importance of DSS . . . . .Spreadsheet-Based DSS . . . . .Developing a DSS . . . . . . . .Conclusion and Future Directionvi.128128128129
REFERENCES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131vii
TableLIST OF TABLESpage2–1 Summary: Application Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .122–2 Summary: Spreadsheets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .192–3 Summary: User Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .292–4 Summary: Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .322–5 Summary: Resolve Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .373–1 Summary: Users, Tasks, and Goals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .413–2 Summary: Clarity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .453–3 Summary: Consistency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .483–4 Summary: GUI Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .553–5 Summary: Programming Principles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .604–1 Algorithm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .684–2 Summary: Spreadsheets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .714–3 Summary: User Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .744–4 Summary: Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .904–5 Summary: Resolve Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .955–1 Summary: Spreadsheets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1055–2 Summary: User Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1095–3 Summary: Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1205–4 Summary: Resolve Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123viii
FigureLIST OF FIGURESpage1–1 A schematic view of a decision support system. . . . . . . . . . . . . .42–1 An example of a “Welcome” sheet. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .132–2 An example of using spreadsheets to take input from the user. . . . .142–3 An example of a large set of data imported from a text file. . . . . . .152–4 An example of having input, calculations, and output on the samesheet. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .152–5 An example of a complicated calculations sheet. . . . . . . . . . . . .162–6 An example of using a graph to illustrate results in an output sheet. .182–7 An example of histograms in the output sheet of a simulation-basedDSS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .192–8 An example of a navigational output sheet. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .202–9 An pivot table report sheet is one of the output sheets. . . . . . . . .202–10 The corresponding pivot chart is another report sheet. . . . . . . . . .212–11 An example of buttons on the spreadsheet to work with input andcalculations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .232–12 An example of dynamic form controls on the spreadsheet. . . . . . . .252–13 An example of controls on a form and spreadsheet. . . . . . . . . . .262–14 An example of dynamic form controls. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .272–15 An example of a “floating” form. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .282–16 The output sheet for the Reliability Analysis case study. . . . . . . .342–17 The first resolve option: modify input in table and rerun simulation. .352–18 The second resolve option: suggestion is made to aid decision maker.362–19 Two “Modify” buttons give the user different resolve options. . . . . .383–1 Clear instructions and descriptions on each sheet and form. . . . . . .42ix
3–2 Buttons are clearly separated into navigation and calculation groups.423–3 Labels clearly designate functionality of controls. . . . . . . . . . . . .433–4 Control tips clarify control functionality. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .433–5 Formatting guidelines. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .443–6 Clear formatting and default values. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .453–7 The navigational buttons are together and consistent in the sheet. . .463–8 Consistent formatting and clear constructions. . . . . . . . . . . . . .473–9 Combo boxes reduce user memorization and chance for errors. . . . .493–10 Tab strips and multi pages can be replaced if too many tabs are needed. 503–11 Option buttons are used for mutually exclusive options and checkboxes are used for other options. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .513–12 Frames have more than one control each. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .523–13 Labels are used for non-changeable values. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .533–14 Some functions are active and some are inactive. . . . . . . . . . . . .534–1 An example warehouse layout. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .624–2 The warehouse area is discretized into bay areas of value 1. . . . . . .664–3 The final warehouse layout for five products and two docks. . . . . . .674–4 The welcome sheet. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .694–5 The first input sheet for dock information. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .704–6 The second input sheet for product information. . . . . . . . . . . . .714–7 The output sheet with its navigational buttons and resolve options. .724–8 The user form asks for the first input values. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .734–9 The Main procedure and public variable declarations. . . . . . . . . .754–10 The ClearPrevious procedure clears values and formatting on all sheets;it also initializes some variables. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 764–11 The cmdOK Click procedure assigns the input values to their corresponding variables. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .774–12 The beginning of the NumberingBay procedure. . . . . . . . . . . . .79x
4–13 The end of the NumberingBay procedure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .804–14 The SelectionChange event procedure enables the user to click on thesheet to place the docks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .814–15 The DockInfo procedure records the dock information. . . . . . . .824–16 The FinalSteps procedure performs the main calculations and callthe procedures which execute the algorithm. . . . . . . . . . . . . .834–17 The ComputeF procedure computes the weighted distances based onthe dock frequencies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .844–18 The SortItems procedure calculates the product type weights and sortsthem. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 854–19 The SortBays algorithm sorts the bays in ascending order of theirdistance weights. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .864–20 The beginning of the Assign procedure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .884–21 The end of the Assign procedure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .894–22 The navigational procedures. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .894–23 The first input sheet is revisited and some of the dock information ischanged. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .904–24 The second input sheet is revisited and the product type informationis changed. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .914–25 The new layout is displayed after pressing the “Resolve” button. . . .914–26 The resolve options allow the user to specify a particular product’slayout on the Resolve Layout grid. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .924–27 The layout has been resolved with the user’s specifications enforced. .934–28 Bay assignments for multiple product types can be enforced. . . . . .934–29 The final layout is modified to honor the enforced bay assignments. .944–30 The SelectChange event procedure allows the user to enforce particular bay assignments for selected product types. . . . . . . . . . . .964–31 The Resolve procedure records changes made to input values and honors enforced bay assignments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .975–1 An example of a parallel serial system. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .995–2 The welcome sheet. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101xi
5–3 The calculation sheet for optimizing the Weibull parameters. . . . . . 1025–4 The hidden calculation sheet for the simulation data. . . . . . . . . . 1035–5 The simulation sheet with the animation layout and input table. . . . 1045–6 The third calculation sheet for the results of the simulation runs. . . . 1045–7 The top half of the output sheet. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1065–8 The bottom half of the output sheet. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1075–9 The input form with the dynamic label value for machine type “A.” . 1085–10 The Input Box. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1085–11 The Message Box. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1095–12 The Main procedure and variable declarations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1115–13 The ClearPrev procedure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1125–14 The cmdOK Click event procedure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1135–15 The CalcWeibull procedure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1145–16 The PrepSim procedure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1155–17 The beginning of the StartSim procedure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1165–18 The end of the StartSim procedure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1175–19 The CreateData procedure and WeibullInv function. . . . . . . . . . . 1185–20 The AnalysisPrep procedure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1195–21 The navigational procedures. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1205–22 An example of the first resolve option. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1215–23 Updated analysis from the first resolve option. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1225–24 The Resolve procedure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1245–25 The resolve form. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1255–26 The initialization event procedure for the resolve form. . . . . . . . . 1255–27 The Click event procedure for the ”OK” button on the resolve form. . 1265–28 An example of the second resolve option. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127xii
Abstract of Thesis Presented to the Graduate Schoolof the University of Florida in Partial Fulfillment of theRequirements for the Degree of Master of SciencePRINCIPLES OF DESIGNING AND DEVELOPINGSPREADSHEET-BASED DECISION SUPPORT SYSTEMSByMichelle M. HannaAugust 2004Chair: Ravi K. AhujaMajor Department: Industrial and Systems EngineeringA decision support system (DSS) is a model-based or knowledge-based systemintended to support a managerial decision making user. A spreadsheet-based DSSuses spreadsheets to organize data and perform some spreadsheet functions. Ituses a basic programming language to design user interface and implement modelalgorithms and calculations. A DSS should also offer the user some options toresolve his problem for a comparative analysis which may enhance the decisionmaking process. This thesis proposes design principles and a development processfor building a spreadsheet-based decision support system.xiii
CHAPTER 1INTRODUCTION1.1 An Introduction to DSSEquipped with the modeling and algorithmic skills taught in the standardOperations Research (OR) curriculum, many industrial engineering graduates feelready to solve real-world problems. With a knowledge and understanding of theoryand applications of mathematical programming, simulation techniques, and supplychain management, they are ready to help their companies solve any distribution,forecasting, or planning problems. But then, as they interact more with coworkersand managers, they realize that the models they have learned cannot be appliedeasily to many of the real word problems they now face.Many of these problems are decision-making problems which require simplesolutions without the details of the mathematical models used to solve them. Mostmanagers would prefer a software solution for such decision problems. However,most industrial engineering graduates know the right model but not how topackage a model and present it with a friendly graphical user interface (GUI). Themanagers need to be able to easily use it, see the results with graphs or charts,and modify inputs to analyze different business scenarios. The desired softwareprograms should also be able to pull data from larger databases and manipulate itappropriately.This is a widely prevalent problem which is not addressed in the currentOR curriculum. Models need data which is mostly available in spreadsheets ordatabases. Hence, OR graduates need to know how to extract data from thesedata sources. They need to know how to check data integrity and perform dataanalysis and data manipulation. As OR practitioners, OR graduates are support1
2staff members and are required to build systems for non-OR users. They mustknow how to package OR models so that they can be comfortably used by topmanagers and other co-workers. Real-life decision making often requires buildinginteractive systems, which OR graduates must know how to design and implement.To summarize, OR graduates must learn sufficient information technology skills tothat they can build intelligent information systems, alternatively, called decisionsupport systems, which can run sophisticated models at the back-end, but arefriendly enough at the front end to be used comfortably by any user.A decision support system (DSS) gives its users access to a variety of datasources, modeling techniques, and stored domain knowledge via an easy to useGUI. For example, a DSS can use the data residing in spreadsheets, prepare amathematical model using this data, solve it or analyze it using problem-specificmethodologies, and assists the user in the decision-making process through agraphical user interface. The importance of DSS development skills has becomewell noted in the literature: “Given the growing complexity and uncertainty inmany decision situations, helping managers use quantitative models to supporttheir decision making and planning is an important research topic” ( [1]). DSSapplications are usually intended to be designed for non technical users presentedwith an easy to use interface.OR graduates are frequently being employed in positions that require developing DSS which are gaining widespread popularity. As more and more companiesinstall enterprise resource planning (ERP) packages and invest in building datawarehouses, those who are able to create decision technologies driven applicationsthat interface with these systems and analyze the data they provide will becomeincreasingly valuable. Indeed, imparting DSS development skills, which combineOR skills with IT skills, will make graduates highly sought after in the modernworkplace.
3Developing courses that teach OR students how to build DSS has been achallenging task so far since it requires the availability of platforms which allowedthe integration of various technologies (data, models, codes, etc.). However, inthe past few years, several platforms have become available which allows suchintegration. One such platform is Microsoft Excel. Excel, which is the most widelyused spreadsheet package among managers and engineers, allows data storage andmodel building. Excel also has many built-in program as well as many add-onprograms available that wallow optimization and simulation of various modelsbuilt in Excel. Excel also has a macro programming language, Visual Basic forApplications (VBA), which allows building GUIs and manipulating Excel objects.Thus, Excel provides a platform using which fairly sophisticated DSS applicationscan be built.1.2 Defining DSSA decision support system (DSS) is a model-based or knowledge-based systemintended to support managerial decision making. A DSS is not meant to replace adecision maker, but to extend his/her decision making capabilities. It uses data,provides a clear user interface, and can incorporate the decision maker’s owninsights. Some of the major DSS capabilities are the following.1. A DSS brings together human judgment and computerized information forsemi-structured decision situations. Such problems cannot be convenientlysolved by standard quantitative techniques or computerized systems.2. A DSS is designed to be easy to use. User friendliness, graphical capabilities,and an interactive human-machine interface greatly increase the effectivenessof a DSS.3. A DSS usually uses models for analyzing decision-making situations and mayalso include a knowledge component.4. A DSS attempts to improve the effectiveness of decision making rather thanits efficiency.
4Model BaseDatabaseKnowledge BaseGUIUserFigure 1–1: A schematic view of a decision support system.5. A DSS provides support for various managerial levels from line mangers totop executives. It provides support to individuals as well as groups. It can bePC-based orA DSS application contains five components: database, model base, knowledgebase, GUI, and user (see Figure 1.1). The database stores the data, model andknowledge bases store the collections of models and knowledge, respectively, andthe GUI allows the user to interact with the database, model base and knowledgebase. We now present a more detailed look at each of these components.Database The database provides the data with which decisions are made. Thedata may reside in spreadsheets or a data warehouse, a repository forcorporate relevant decision-making data. The database allows a user toaccess, manipulate, and query data. Some examples of databases wouldinclude a spreadsheet containing personal banking account information or adata warehouse containing shipment records of various products.Model Base A model base contains statistical, financial, optimization, or simulation models that provide the analysis capabilities in a DSS. Some popular
5optimization models include linear programming, integer programming, andnonlinear programming. The DSS allows the ability to invoke, run, andchange any model or combine multiple models. An example of a model basewould be an integer programming model used to solve a capital budgetingproblem. Most common DSS applications are primarily model driven. A keyDSS component is its resolve options. A user should be able to manipulatetheir input values to compare multiple results for scenario analysis. The DSSshould be designed for repeated use to aid in a recurring decision situation. Itshould be dynamic enough to handle various problem sizes, input values, andobjectives.Knowledge Base Many managerial decision making problems are so complexthat they require special expertise for their solution. The knowledge basepart of a DSS allows this expertise to be stored and accessed to enhance theoperation of other DSS components. For example, credit card companiesuse a DSS to identify credit card thefts. They store in their knowledge basethe spending patterns that usually follow credit card thefts; any abnormalactivity in an account would trigger checking for the presence of those pattersand a possible suspension of the account.GUI The graphical user interface (GUI) covers all aspects of communicationbetween a user and a DSS application. The user interface interacts with thedatabase, model base, and knowledge base. It allows the user to enter dataor update data, run the chosen model, view the results of the model, andpossible rerun the application with different data and/or model combination.
6The user interface is perhaps the most important component of a DSSbecause much of the poser, flexibility, and ease of use of a DSS are derivedfrom this component.User The person which use the DSS to support the decision making process iscalled the user, or decision maker. A DSS has two broad classes of users:managers and staff specialists, or engineers. When designing a DSS, it isimportant to know for which class of users the DSS is being designed. Ingeneral, managers expect a DSS to be more user-friendly than do staffspecialists.A DSS should be distinguished from more common management informationsystems (MIS). An MIS can be viewed as an information system that can generatestandard and exception reports and summaries for managers, provide answers toqueries, and help in monitoring the performance of a system using simple dataprocessing. A DSS can be viewed as a more sophisticated MIS where we allow theuse of models and knowledge bases to process the data and perform analysis.1.3 Excel SpreadsheetsMicrosoft Excel spreadsheets have become one of the most popular softwarepackages in the business world, so much so that business schools have developedseveral popular Excel based courses. A spreadsheet application has functionality forstoring and organizing data, performing various calculations, and using additionalpackages, called Add-Ins, for more advanced problem solving and analysis. Excelspreadsheets are easy for a user to interact with and easy for a student to use
7while developing the DSS. We consider two aspects of Excel to be important indeveloping a DSS: basic functionality and extended functionality.Excel basic functionality includes referencing and names, functions andformulas, charts, and pivot tables. These are standard tools that may be commonto most spreadsheet users. Excel extended functionality includes statisticalanalysis, the Solver and modeling, simulation, and querying large data. Thesetools are especially important for building a decision support system. The abilityto model a problem and solve it or simulate it adds the model base component ofthe DSS we are building. It is important that a DSS developer become familiarwith the capabilities of Excel so that they know what they can offer the user whendeveloping a decision support system.1.4 VBA for Excel Programming LanguageVBA for Excel is a programming language that allows for further manipulationof the Excel functionalities. VBA for Excel also allows the developer to createdynamic applications which can receive user input for the model base componentof the DSS. VBA allows users without knowledge of Excel to be able to usespreadsheet-based DSS applications. There are several important features of VBAfor Excel.Some of these features include recording macros and working with variables,procedures, programming structures, and arrays in VBA. VBA for Excel is aneasy to understand programming language. Even if a student has not programmed
8before, they should be able to program several types of applications after a basicintroduction to VBA.A DSS developer can also create a user interface in VBA. These featuresincludes building user forms, working with several different form controls, usingnavigational functions, and designing a clear and professional application. VBA isbeneficial as it places all of the complicated spreadsheet calculations and any otheranalysis in the background of a user-friendly system.Some of the extended Excel functionality topics can be further enhanced byusing VBA. The modeling, simulation, and query features of Excel can becomedynamic using VBA commands. These techniques are especially important tounderstand in order to build complete DSS applications.1.5 The DSS Development ProcessWe present a chapter on the DSS development process to explain how theExcel spreadsheet functionality and VBA programming features can be combinedto develop a complete DSS application. We propose five basic steps for thisdevelopment process: i) outlining the application, its model and assumption;ii) determining how many spreadsheets will be needed and for what purposes;iii) constructing a general layout of the user interface features; iv) outliningthe programming procedures needed; and v) ensuring that resolve options willbe integrated into the DSS. We describe these steps in detail and give severalexamples in this chapter.
9We also present a chapter on GUI design and programming principles. Thereis much literature on these two topics which are important in developing any DSS.We summarize the issues that are most relevant to developing spreadsheet-DSSapplications in this chapter.1.6 Case StudiesWe present two case studies to illustrate the relevance and importance ofdecision support systems in the fields of industrial and systems engineering andbusiness. We strive to accomplish this by showing how to develop DSS applicationswhich integrate databases, models, methodologies, and user interfaces.These case studies consist of developing a complete decision support systemand are based on an important application of IE/OR or business. Through casestudies, graduates will learn how IE/OR and business techniques apply to real-lifedecision problems and how those techniques can be effectively used to build DSSapplications.These case studies are just some of the numerous case studies we develop inorder to illustrate how DSS applications can be developed by combining information technology tools with operations research and business tools to solve importantdecision problems.
CHAPTER 2DSS DEVELOPMENT PROCESS2.1 Defining the Development ProcessNow that we have discussed in great detail the components of a spreadsheetbased decision support system (DSS), we need to learn the process of putting thesecomponents together to build a complete DSS application. Before entering formulasinto Excel or coding sub procedures in VBA, it is necessary to construct an overalllayout for the DSS and give some thought to the
SPREADSHEET-BASED DECISION SUPPORT SYSTEMS By Michelle M. Hanna August 2004 Chair: Ravi K. Ahuja Major Department: Industrial and Systems Engineering A decision support system (DSS) is a model-based or knowledge-based system intended to support a managerial decision making user. A spreadsheet-based DSS
Designing your Tesla Coil September 2003 Rev 2 www.spacecatlighting.com Designing your Tesla Coil Introduction When I was in the process of designing my first tesla coil in May of 2002, I was hardpressed to find one source that comprehensibly described the process of designing a tesla coil from scratch.
Designing FIR Filters with Frequency Selection Designing FIR Filters with Equi-ripples Designing IIR Filters with Discrete Differentiation Designing IIR Filters with Impulse Invariance Designing IIR Filters with the Bilinear Transform Related Analog Filters. Lecture 22: Design of FIR / IIR Filters. Foundations of Digital .
naires. When it comes to designing Web-based questionnaires, however, sim-plicity is usually best. Design Principles for Web-Based Questionnaires Dillman (2000) identified a set of design principles that can be applied to Web-based questionnaires. These principles were an extension of
10 object-oriented systems analysis and design using uml 261 part iv the essentials of design 11 designing effective output 301 12 designing effective input 343 13 designing abdta ases 371 14 human–computer interaction and ux design 410 part v quality assurance and implementation 15 designing accurate data entry procedures 447
there is a need for the expertise of an interior designing company to assist with designing the above-mentioned offices and also procurement of new furniture. SCOPE OF WORKS The interior designing company will be expected to look into the following space areas: Office of the CEO X1 Office of CFO X1 General Managers offices X 8
APPAREL AND TEXTILE SCIENCE PROGRAMMES 1. B.Sc.(Hons) - Fashion Designing 2. M. Sc. Fashion Designing 3. M.Sc. 4. Ph.D COURSE REQUIREMENT M. Sc. Fashion Designing Field of specialization Fashion Designing Required courses FD 501, FD 502, FD 503, FD 504, FD 505, FD 506 Supporting courses St
p. 5 for more on these groups.) In addition to our wearables design principles, you'll find recom-mendations for designing specifically for each of these groups. Between the design principles and targeted recommendations, we've included insights into designing the physical hardware, creating
International Principles on the Application of Human Rights to Communications Surveillance (The Necessary and Proportionate Principles), the Johannesburg Principles on National Security, Freedom of Expression and Access to Information, the Global Principles on National Security and the Right to Information (Tshwane Principles), the Revised .
