Usability Prediction of Live Auction Using Multistage Fuzzy System

Transcription

1 Vol., No.1 (2017), pp Usability Prediction of Live Auction Using Multistage Fuzzy System Deepak Gupta 1 and Anil K Ahlawat 2 1 Maharaja Agrasen Institute of Technology, Delhi, India 2 Krishna Institute of Engineering and Technology, Ghaziabad, India myself.deepakgupta@gmail.com, a_anil2000@yahoo.com Abstract In the recent decade, usability prediction has become a relevant research field. It is also helpful in enhancing the software quality. This paper is an extension of the work done by the same authors. In this research, the total usability has been predicted for a web application using the multistage fuzzy system. The grouping of usability factors has been implemented in the research; so as to reduce the total fuzzy rules called multistage fuzzy system. In this work, initially a dataset for 'Live Auction' web application is created and made it publicly available, then the total usability is predicted for the same using multistage fuzzy system. The ranking of players has been implemented using sowia-moora method in the created dataset. Keywords: usability prediction, fuzzy system, sowia-moora, live auction, dataset 1. Introduction During the last decade, the need of the quality software systems is exponentially increased. Software usability prediction has been recognized as an essential factor in improving the software product quality, and the latest literature shows that the proper usability evaluation increases the success ratio of a software system. According to ISO [2], usability is defined as the extent to which a product can be used by specified users to achieve specified goals with efficiency, effectiveness, and satisfaction in a specified context of use. Many studies have shown in the literature, the advantages of integrating usability prediction in the software development process. Thus, the usability prediction has become a significant and relevant research area for research practitioners. Usable software systems are much more successful as they are more accurate, safe, efficient, and effective. However, there is a lack of commonly used standard dataset of usability. Several international usability standard and models have been proposed in the literature, but none of them defined the usability dataset for usability prediction. In lucid language, software usability can be defined as human-made objects with ease of use, learnability, and remembrance. The human object can be a web application, a software tool, book, software application, or anything with which human interacts efficiently. In this work, we initially create a standard dataset for the Live Auction web portal and then predicts its usability using the multistage fuzzy system. This paper is an extension of the [9] of same authors, [9] proposes the multistage fuzzy system for determining the usability of website or software product, if values of seven factors are known. In the following section, a multistage fuzzy expert system has been studied, which takes seven inputs and computes the usability of the application under test. In Section 3, Live Auction portal has been developed using Java and the ranking of players has been implemented using efficient sowia-moora method by considering some parameters. In Section 4 &, the live auction dataset has been created and employed to compute the ISSN: IJAIASD Copyright c 2017 SERSC

2 Vol., No.1 (2017) usability value of live auction portal respectively using the multistage fuzzy expert system; followed by conclusion and references. 2. Multistage Fuzzy System According to [9], the usability can be easily determined for a software product using the multistage fuzzy system. The fuzzy system accepts the seven inputs or usability factors and generates the total usability of the software product. The multistage fuzzy system consists of seven (7) factors representing a specific facet of usability; these factors are decomposed into a total of twenty-three (23) attributes, which are further divided into 42 characteristics. The factors, attributes, and characteristics are combined together in a non-redundant and hierarchical manner. The 7 factors include Efficiency, Satisfaction, Effectiveness, Memorability, Productivity, Security, and Universality. Based on these factors, the 23 attributes are quantifiable, which consist of either a fuzzy rule or countable data. The multistage fuzzy system consists of the membership function of each input (7 factors) and output (usability). For each member function, linguistic values are defined ranging 0-9, and certain fuzzy rules are defined, and on the basis of these values and rules, the fuzzy logic controller generates the desired output. The fuzzy system considers all the usability factors together to generates the fuzzy rules, define the linguistics for each input and output parameter, and define fuzzy interface system. The fuzzy system can easily compute the usability. Here, there are seven input parameters; thus generating 3 7 number of fuzzy rules and furthermore, the usability expert finds it difficult to consider all formulates fuzzy rules with proper emphasis; since the input parameter has three linguistic values (Low, Medium, and High). Thus, to minimize the total fuzzy rules, the seven factors have been decomposed into two subcategories, thus the fuzzy system developed is known as multistage fuzzy system. The two sub-categories are as follow: Software related group consists of Effectiveness, Security, Universality, and Productivity. End user related group consists of Efficiency, Memorability, and Satisfaction. Total six Fuzzy Interface System (FIS) namely sub-us-1, sub-us-2, soft-us, sub-us-3, end-user, and US have been developed using Fuzzy Logic toolbox available in Matlab. Consequently, input/output variables, their membership functions, and fuzzy control rules have also been created for each FIS. The input/output of each FIS can be seen from [9]. Figure1 presents the fully functional multistage fuzzy expert system. 3. Live Auction Web Application The auction is a process of bidding war for an item, valuable or service between interested auctioneers/parties. In the present scenario, it would be undesirable to ask an individual to leave his/her comfort zone and be available at a common location for bidding. It would also not be apt to ask individuals to involve in the process of the auction by physical gestures when same can be achieved by the click of a mouse. Thus, Live Auction takes this plight of bidding individuals into consideration and makes the process automated. This not only allows the individuals to easily get involved in the process of the auction but also makes the process visually more informative and attractive. The server controlled by auction administrator displays all the information needed by the administrator for proper conduction of the process. The client, used by individuals engaging in bidding war, enables them to be well informed about the player that is up for the auction, including all the stats available to the player, and helps them make a much more. 12 Copyright c 2017 SERSC

3 Vol., No.1 (2017) Figure 1. Multistage Fuzzy System for Usability Prediction The live auction web application has been designed and created using java, and NetBeans and the ranking of players have been implemented using sowia-moora approach. SOWIA-MOORA [7] is a multiple criteria mathematical performance evaluation model consisting of SOWIA (subjective and objective weight integrated approach) and MOORA (multiple objective optimizations on the basis of ratio analysis) methods. The input of MOORA method is the output of the SOWIA method. SOWIA method helps to predict the relative significance of criteria i.e. perception and understanding of various usability experts in the form of subjective and objective weights. The ranking of players has been implemented using some parameters and use MOORA method as it is stable and consuming less computational time. The input of sowia-moora approach is the IPL_Records consisting of a number of matches, runs, strike rate, average, the fifties, hundreds and the output is the rank of each player. The input and output snapshot can be seen in Figures 2 and 3 respectively. Thus, the live auction application has been designed successfully. Copyright c 2017 SERSC 13

4 Vol., No.1 (2017) Figure 2. Input of Sowia-Moora Approach Figure 3. Output of Sowia-Moora Approach 4. Evaluating Dataset The group of related discrete records called dataset. It can be retrieved either individually or in combination or managed as a whole entity. In this session, we will discuss the methodology of the dataset creation on the basis of the seven usability factors i.e. Efficiency, Satisfaction, Effectiveness, Memorability, Productivity, Security, and Universality and their 23 attributes []. The attributes of these three factors are given in Table Copyright c 2017 SERSC

5 Vol., No.1 (2017) Table 1. Attributes Associated with the Usability Factors Usability Factors Efficiency Effectiveness Satisfaction Memorability Security Universality Productivity Attributes Resource, time, user effort, economic cost. Task accomplishment, operability, extensibility, reusability, scalability. Likeability, convenience, aesthetics. Learnability, Memorability of structures, Comprehensibility, Consistency in structures Safety, Error tolerance Approachability, Utility, Faithfulness, Cultural universality Useful user task output Aim & Objective: The aim & objectives of the research study is to investigate the usability factors/attributes used in the usability evaluation of Live Auction web application. The aim & objectives of this research study are: To ask usability experts, faculties, and students; to give the answers to the questions given to them related to live auction web application. To use the answers given by usability experts, faculties, and students; compute the values of usability attributes (weights). To use the weights of usability attributes and probability theory, compute the total weights of usability factors. Usability factors are used as an input to the multistage fuzzy system and compute the final usability value. Participants/Sample: The participants in this research study were usability experts, faculties, and students who are enrolled in technical courses related to two branches (Computer Science Engineering, and Information Technology) at some technical universities in India. The total number of participants in the research study/survey were 9; males participants were 399, while the females participants were 197 (as presented in Table 2). 189 participants left the survey without completing it while remaining 407 participants has completed the survey. The participants have to carry out the procedure on live auction web application. Table 2. Tabular Information of the Research Participants for Research Study Branches CSE IT Total Sex Male Female Computer < one year 1 23 Experience Between one to three years Internet Experience Frequently Use of > three years < one year Between one to three years > three years Daily Weekly Copyright c 2017 SERSC 1

6 Vol., No.1 (2017) Internet Monthly By Semester Yearly Procedure: The data were gathered using one survey in a university in India where all the participants including usability experts, faculties, and students had access to the Internet. The session began with the welcome message to all the research study participants and explain them the aim & objectives of the research study; the live auction web application that would be evaluated; the number of surveys that needed to be filled in; and participants right to withdraw from the session at any time. The participants were then asked to fill in the pretest questionnaire in order to obtain the participants background information and experience in the field of software usability. Then, the participants were asked to provide their perceptions of the usability attributes (weights) using the survey. Figure 4. Likert 7-point Scale On the basis of the survey conducted and the response collected by various experts and users, all the 23 attributes are assigned a value on the Likert 7-point scale as seen in Table 3. Table 3. Values of Each Attribute for the Live Auction [] Factors Attributes Explanation Live Auction Efficiency Resource It is a resource-related usability attributes for successful completion of the tasks by the users. Time It is the capability of the software product in term of time invested for activities which includes time spent on errors, response time by the system, and memory Load. Economic cost it includes all the expenses required for software product. Effectiveness User Effort Task accomplishment Operability It involves requirements which identifies capabilities, characteristics, attributes or qualities of a system. It is the background foundation for what will be implemented. It is the capability of a software product for computing the desired outputs with respect to the user s physical and mental efforts. It is related to the user, who can perform/execute the given tasks with successful accomplishment of the specified goals. 7 1 Copyright c 2017 SERSC

7 Vol., No.1 (2017) Extensibility It is related to the task completion with accuracy, help user to perform required functionalities with accuracy. Reusability It is the adaptation of software product with respect to changing needs of the user. Scalability It is the usability measure, such that a software product can be reused in another application. Satisfaction Likeability It is the ability of software product to continue to function well when the software s volume and size is changed. Convenience It is a measure of a software system to maintain the attention of all kinds of user. Aesthetics It is a measure of a software product that builds a strong attitude of the user towards its design. Memorability Learnability It is related to the learnability of the Memorability of structures Comprehensibility Consistency in structures software system in a minimal time. It is related to remembrance of software system which helps the user for proper structuring of the functionalities. It is related to the clarity of elements/structure/functioning of a software system. It is related to uniformity in the software system. Security Safety It is related to the avoidance of risks from the software system. Error tolerance It is a measure with which software system can withstand in occurring error environment. Universality Approachability It is a measure of a software system which can be defined by usage of large numbers of users regardless of any physical and psychic features. Utility it is a measure of a software system which helps the users when they don t remember about the usage of the system Faithfulness It is a measure of the faithfulness of software product that is delivered to its user. Cultural It is a measure of a software universality product with which user can use the system but from different viewpoint Productivity Useful user task output due to their cultural backgrounds. It is related to the generation useful/desired output Copyright c 2017 SERSC 17

8 Vol., No.1 (2017). Usability Prediction of LIVE Auction Using Multistage Fuzzy System The intuition of chance and probability develops at very early ages [4]. The probability of an event tells that how likely the event will happen. Using the probability theory, the values of the three usability factors can be mapped on the scale of 0-9 as shown in Table 4. The Factor value can be computed by finding the probability using the following equation: Factor value = ( attributes value in a factor * Max value ) / ( total number of attributes * Max value-of- Likert-scale) Where Factor value is the value generated for each factor for live auction web application. Max value-of-likert-scale is the maximum value of the scale i.e. 7. Max value is the maximum value of the scale i.e. 9. Table 4. Values of Each Attribute for the Live Auction Web Application with Final Usability Using Multistage Fuzzy System [9] Factors effectiven ess Live Auction.42 Universality.10 Security.78 Productivit y 9 Efficiency.42 Memora bility Satisfacti on Softus-1 Softus-2 Softus-3 Softus Enduser. us.4998 The final usability value of the created dataset for live auction web application comes out to be Conclusion In this research study, initially we have discussed the implementation of the usability model using multistage fuzzy logic, then developed a web application for live auction using JavaBeans, sowia-moora method has been employed for ranking of players as per some parameters. The research study also includes methodology for created a dataset for Live Auction web application which consists of aim & objectives, sample participants, procedure, and a multistage fuzzy logic toolbox. The live auction dataset has been created successfully in the detailed research study. We have successfully predicted the usability of the live auction web application using the multistage fuzzy system, and it comes out to be Copyright c 2017 SERSC

9 Vol., No.1 (2017) References [1] Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. IEEE standard glossary of software engineering terminology, IEEE std Los Alamitos, CA: Author, 1990 [2] International Organization for Standardization. ISO :1998, Ergonomic requirements for office work with visual display terminals (VDTs), Part 11: Guidance on usability. Geneva, Switzerland: Author, 1998 [3] International Organization for Standardization/International Electrotechnical Commission. ISO/IEC 912-1:2001, Software engineering, product quality, Part 1: Quality model. Geneva, Switzerland: Author, 2001 [4] Piaget, J. and Inhelder B. The Origin of the Idea of Chance in Children, W. W. Norton & Comp., N.Y [] Gulati, A., CRITICAL ANALYSIS ON USABILITY EVALUATION TECHNIQUES. International Journal of Engineering Science and Technology (IJEST), Vol. 4 No.03 March [] Gupta, D., Ahlawat, A., Sagar, K. A Critical Analysis of a hierarchical based usability model, Contemporary Computing and Informatics (IC3I), 2014 International Conference on, Nov. 2014, Mysore, IEEE, /IC3I [7] Das, M.C., Sarkar, B & Ray, S (2012): On the performance of Indian technical institutions: a combined SOWIA-MOORA approach, Operational Research Society of India 2012, OPSEARCH, DOI /s z. [8] Gupta, D., Ahlawat, A. Taxonomy of GUM and Usability Prediction using GUM Multistage Fuzzy Expert System, International Arab Journal of Information Technology (201), SCIE, Elsevier, SCOPUS. [Accepted] [in-press] [9] Gupta, D., Ahlawat, A. Usability Determination using Multistage Fuzzy System, Procedia Computer Science, ELSEVIER, December 201, DOI: /j.procs [10] Abran A., Khelifi A., & Suryn W., Usability meanings and interpretations in ISO standards. Software Quality Journal, 11, , [11] Bevan N. & Macleod M., Usability measurement in context. Behaviour and Information Technology, 13, , 1994 [12] ISO 912: Information Technology-Software Product Evaluation-Quality Characteristics and Guidelines for their Use. Geneva, [13] Molich R. and Nielsen J., Improving a human-computer dialogue: What designers know about traditional interface design, [14] Nielsen J. and Loranger H., Prioritizing web usability. Berkeley, CA: New Riders Press, 200. [1] Nielsen J., Usability engineering. London: Academic Press, [1] Wharton C., Rieman J., Lewis C. and Polson P., The cognitive walkthrough method: A practitioner s guide. In Nielsen, J., and Mack, R. (Eds.), Usability inspection methods. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons, Inc, Authors Deepak Gupta, is an eminent Assistant Professor (CSE) at Maharaja Agrasen Institute of Technology, Delhi. He had completed his B.Tech. from GGSIPU, Delhi and M.E. from DCE, DU, Delhi. He is pursuing his Ph.D. from Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam Technical University, Lucknow. He is an author of more than 1 text books and had published more than 20 research papers in Reputed International Journals and Conferences. Anil K Ahlawat, obtained his Ph.D. from GGSIPU, New Delhi. He is working in KIET as Dean(A) and Professor in Computer Science & Engineering Department. He has published more than 0 Research Papers in International/National Journals/Conferences. Out of these, 13 is SCI indexed. He is in the editorial and reviewer board of several International Journals. He has delivered many lectures as keynote speakers and guest lecturer in International/National Conferences, Seminars, FDPs and Workshops. Copyright c 2017 SERSC 19

10 Vol., No.1 (2017) 20 Copyright c 2017 SERSC