Welcome
Project topics
How to register for a project
Writing of a project proposal
Study programme and progress reports
The final report
Bibliography: books on report writing

1. Welcome

Welcome as a project student! This year you have enrolled for two of the following 
project modules: COS498-X and COS499-Y or INF412-H and INF413-J. We really 
hope that you will find this year the culmination of your honours studies at UNISA.

To a certain extent, this year is a special year for you as student; firstly it is the 
final year of your Honours studies in Computer Science and Information systems, 
and secondly it is a useful opportunity to apply and demonstrate your newly acquired 
theoretical knowledge by means of a project. The purpose of the project is not only to 
integrate theory and practice, but also to convey and describe project results 
meaningfully in the form of a project report. It is essential that scientists and 
researchers are able to express their thoughts clearly in writing. The project report 
is a good exercise for this purpose. The UNISA library has a number of books on the 
writing of reports in which the format, style et cetera are discussed and illustrated. 
We include a number of references at the end of this tutorial letter that you may 
want to consult.

Quite important is the choice of a topic for your project. We give a number of 
possible topics in the section Project topics below.

The scope of the project can be described as follows: a project consisting of two 
modules, represents approximately 320 working hours, or 40 eight-hour working 
days. The scope of your project should reflect an equivalent effort. Section 5 
provides a proposed study programme. Remember that each project is unique 
and that this tutorial letter gives guidelines only. Further arrangements on your 
specific project should be made with the approval and collaboration of your project 
leader.

The coordinator for the project modules is Ms M.G. Miller. Once you have chosen a 
topic for your project, you must phone her before 15 April 2000 at (012)429-6753. 
Enquiries about project modules can also be made via the Internet at the following 
addresses:

inf412@osprey.unisa.ac.za for an information systems project 
cos498@osprey.unisa.ac.za for a computer science project.

We are looking forward to meeting you and wish you an interesting and diligent year 
of project study!

The UNISA project module team.

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2. Project topics

The project may be done in any of the following application areas. In some areas 
there is a limited number of project leaders available or the number of students per 
project are limited, in which case an alternative project may have to be chosen in 
agreement with the project leader.

Note also that some projects have prerequisites which should be adhered to.

2.1 Distributed Database Project

Today's business environment is supported by a fast growing computer 
industry, where the rate of change has accelerated tremendously. Therefore, 
database systems supporting core business functions are evolving towards 
distributed and integrated global systems. This project involves the analysis, 
design and implementation of a distributed database system.

The project contains a theoretical and a practical component:

The theoretical component constitutes an in-depth study of database design methodologies applied in a distributed environment. An appropriate methodology must be selected and applied to a case study in a distributed environment, that includes at least three different sites. Using this methodology the student must do a complete analysis and design on the case study, including relational design, a global schema, data distribution, allocation, and all other relevant distributed design aspects.

The practical component includes the implementation of this design in an applicable distributed database management system, for instance Oracle, Sybase or Ingres. The student can choose the DDBMS to be used. A full report must be submitted on this, including specifications of all transactions, interaction of the sites and queries.

Prerequisites: A student interested in doing the distributed database project 
must have completed the module INF418-P (Database Design). The theoretical 
knowledge acquired in this module will be practically implemented in this project.

2.2 Internet and the Worldwide Web

Some members of staff in the department are busy with a research project 
concerning the use of the Internet and the Worldwide web in distance teaching.

Those students who are interested in the development of multimedia instructional material for use on the Internet, or some other appropriate aspect of teaching via computer networks, are welcome to contact the project coordinator for further information.

2.3 Distributed Computing

Background

The main technical force operating in the software industry is the drive towards distributed computing, now in its client-server phase. The ultimate goal is 
collaborative computing based on peer-to-peer networks. Prominent supporting technologies and concepts are object-oriented software components, 
document-centric software architectures, data warehouse technology, networks, standards, integration and the trend towards end-user programming with 
exciting tools such as visual languages, client-server front-end design/coding 
tools, and object-oriented frameworks. Middleware plays a key role in 
distributed computing, eg to provide low-level client-server software 
connectivity - it permits client-server interoperability. Middleware is expected 
to become the infrastructure of all applications, since it's the software that ties together nodes in a network of distributed computers. There are currently two middleware architectural approaches that cannot be ignored by the software 
architect:

* OLE/COM (Component Object Model) from Microsoft, and * OpenDoc/DSOM 
from Component Integration Laboratories

Whereas these two are viewed as specifications for desktop component 
software, and also an implementation of the specifications, the CORBA 
(Common Object Request Broker Architecture) is intended as a specification 
and enabling mechanism to establish a distributed computing environment.

What is the aim of the project?

This project will give the student the opportunity to study the aforementioned emerging standards for distributed computing, and the concepts associated 
with the creation of a distributed computing environment. One of the available client-server development environments will be evaluated in terms of these 
standards.

What does the project involve in terms of literature study and practical work?

A study of recent articles and conference papers on Microsoft's and Component Integration Laboratories' specifications for distributed software systems, as 
well as the Object Management Group's proposal (CORBA). For the practical part, 
the student will be expected to develop a prototype client-server application 
using a client-server development environment such as the Delphi 3.0 
Client-Server Suite, environments based on Microsoft's DCOM middleware, a
nd Texas Instruments' IEF Composer. If you do not have access to such an environment, we may be able to assist you in arranging access.

Who should be interested in this project?

If you are already involved in developing distributed systems, this project 
should give you the opportunity to consolidate your knowledge and understanding 
of standards and developments in this area. If you have no prior experience in implementing client-server systems, this is an opportunity to gain knowledge and 
skills in this most important area.

2.4 Electronic Education Technologies and Strategies

This topic covers the following areas: Computer Networks, Computer Graphics, Electronic Education, Distributed Computing, Security.

The following projects are defined under the heading of the research project 
Electronic Education Technologies and Strategies. If you believe that you can contribute to this research effort which falls in the disciplines as listed above, 
you are welcome to make a proposal to the project leader for this group, 
prof. E. Cloete at E-mail address: elsabe@osprey.unisa.ac.za or telephone (012)429-6712, after you have informed the project coordinator.

If you want to participate in any of the projects below, please 
contact Prof. Cloete for detailed project  specifications will be 
defined for each project student.

Ref	Project Description	Number of participants
1	Project for Information Systems Students Develop introductory multimedia courseware on business requirements for Computer Networks in the  instruction Computer Networks for a group of university-level learners.  Topics that need to be included are: networking networking implications of voice, data, images and video in businesses, the effect of these data types on response times, centralized, decentralized and client-server networking environments, intranets.a	Depends on complexity of proposal
2	Project for Information Systems Students Develop introductory multimedia courseware on physical transmission components for Computer Networks in the  instruction of Computer Networks for a group of university-level learners.	Depends on complexity of proposal
3	Project for Information Systems Students Develop multimedia courseware for instruction of high-speed & wireless networks  in the  instruction of Computer Networks for a group of university-level learners.	Depends on complexity of proposal
4	Project for Information Systems Students Develop multimedia courseware for instruction of Network Management in the  instruction Computer Networks  for a group of university-level learners.	Depends on complexity of proposal
5	Project for Information Systems Students Develop introductory multimedia courseware for instruction Client / Server Technology. a	Depends on complexity of proposal
6	Project for Information Systems Students Develop an introductory multimedia courseware for instruction of Computers & Network Security. Issues to be discussed includes: security vulnerabilities, encryption methods as defense meganism, authentication, firewalls. a	Depends on complexity of proposal
7	Project for  Computer Science Students Design & develop an online (Internet) examination.  An examination paper is compiled uniquely for each student from a MySQL databank of multiple choice  questions (This means that although every student will have the same time and the same number of questions to complete, the questions will be selected arbitrarily from the databank).   The teacher must be able to setup the parameters for an exam. For example, the teacher select to have 20 questions, and give a maximum time of 30 minutes. When the student indicates completion or when the time has expired, the exam must be marked online. Online results must be made available to the student by showing the questions which were wrong, the student's selection as well as the correct answer. A secure environment must be ensured for online testing to avoid tampering with the transfer of questions over the network or with results. JAVA must be used	Depends on complexity of proposal
8	Project for  Information System Students Design and develop a model for assessment of the efficacy of electronic learning.  Issues to consider include:  Categories of presentation & learning. Different presentation methods captures the attention of different groups of people.   a	Depends on complexity of proposal
9	Project for  Computer Science Students Write a java animation applet demonstrating  public key encryption with digital signatures.a	1
10	Project for  Computer Science Students Develop a graphical package that will serve as a tutorial tool to teach an undergraduate group of students the principles behind geometric transformations in computer graphics. Specific details of the programming part of project are only available once a literature study on the theoretical fundamentals of writing graphical software is completed.	1
11	Project for  Computer Science Students Delivering multimedia courseware over low bandwidth (typically 64 kbps) links in an on-line environment.  Set up an Internet experiment to transport multimedia courseware that includes different aspects of multimedia technology such as video clips, sound, animation, 3D text etc, in a secure environment.  Lessons must be subject to security coding to avoid tampering or stealing during transportation. Encryption of online data such as video can have undesirable effects. Investigate. Address the problems. Test and suggest ways to improve the quality of the online courseware.  Consider the cost-effectiveness and viability in the South African environment of the suggested solutions.  Results must be presented in the form of a literature study in which the experiment is fully described with all tests, possible problems, suggestions and solutions.a	3
12	Project for  Computer Science Students Write a java animation applet demonstrating  conventional encryption.a	1
13	Project for  Computer Science Students Write a java animation applet demonstrating  common channel signaling and  in-channel signaling. a	1
14	Project for  Computer Science Students Write a java animation applet demonstrating modulation techniques for analog to digital modulation. a	1
15	Project for  Computer Science Students Write a java animation applet to demonstrate how data transmission through copper differs from data transmission through optical fiber. a	1
16	Project for  Computer Science Students Write a java animation applet demonstrating the stop-and-wait, and the sliding window flow control techniques. a	1
17	Project for  Computer Science Students Write a java animation applet demonstrating stop-and-wait ARQ. a	1
18	Project for  Computer Science Students Write a java animation applet demonstrating Frequency Division Multiplexing.a	1
19	Project for  Computer Science Students Write a java animation applet demonstrating Time Division Multiplexing.a	1
20	Project for  Computer Science Students Write a java animation applet demonstrating global communication capabilities through geosynchronous satellites.a	1
21	Project for  Computer Science Students Write a java animation applet demonstrating a TCP/IP internetworking operation.a	1
22	Project for  Computer Science Students Write a java animation applet demonstrating a basic electronic mail operation using the simple mail transfer protocol (SMTP) standard. a	1
23	Project for  Computer Science Students Write a java animation applet demonstrating message passing in the client-server environment. a	1
24	Project for  Computer Science Students Write a java animation applet demonstrating remote procedure calls in the client-server environment. a	1
25	Project for  Computer Science Students Write a java animation applet demonstrating the network management operation in an SNMP  environment. a	1

2.5 Applied Logic

This project is intended for students who have completed COS407-C and possibly COS451-G too. It usually involves the writing of a resolution-based theorem-proving program. More details are available from the project coordinator.

2.6 Knowledge Representation via Formal models

Scope of the project

In this project the student will be expected to carry out a literature survey on current knowledge representation systems in existing literature, with particular emphasis to three-dimensional structure representation. The information thus obtained, must be represented in written format, and integrated with and compared to an existing structure graph grammar-based approach.

It is furthermore recommended that prospective students attempt to implement the results of their findings by means of a program (in a programming language of their choice, however, an object-oriented approach is preferable) in order to show the applicative value of formal representational models, in particular three-dimensional models, to present three-dimensional knowledge graphically, yet precisely.

Prerequisites

Students must have a knowledge of general rewriting systems, ie they must have passed an undergraduate module in formal language theory (eg COS301-Y). The project will involve self study to obtain some knowledge of graph theory and graph rewriting systems.

2.7 User-interface design

User interface evaluation of fourth generation tools

This is a comprehensive user interface evaluation exercise. Students are required to choose at least three existing fourth generation environments to which they have access, evaluate the user interfaces thereof against certain usability properties, using specific evaluation techniques, and recommend improvements for any deficiencies that may arise.

Prerequisites

The module INF420-H is a prerequisite for this particular project.

2.8 Research Project

This project involves a research component aimed at sharpening your skills for a subsequent MSc degree. Research on a suitable topic is undertaken under the guidance of a project leader and the results are culminated in the form of a technical report.

More details are available from the project coordinator.

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3. How to register for a project

In order to register for a specific project and start working on it, you must follow steps 3.1, 3.2 and 3.3 below precisely:

3.1 Select a possible project from the list above.

3.2 Contact the project coordinator - Ms. M.G. Miller.

3.3 Contact your project leader after the coordinator supplied you with the name and telephone number of your project leader.

Keep in mind that the topic for your project must be finalized by 30 April 2000. All further communication regarding your project must be addressed to your project leader.

Your project leader will discuss details of your project specification with you. It involves the title of the project, a review of the problem area, key references and the scope and aims of the project. This project specification should be used to compile your project proposal which indicates also how you plan to tackle the project.

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4. Writing of a project proposal

The writing of a project proposal requires much care and we hope that the following will provide guidelines in this regard.

4.1 Purpose of a project proposal:

The project proposal can be considered as the plan according to which the research will be done. This proposal should, therefore, give the project leader a clear indication of the nature and scope of the proposed research. It also serves to order and guide the ideas and work programme of the researcher.

4.2 Requirements of a project proposal:

(a) A project proposal should be a precise yet simple document.
(b) A project proposal should not contain a full literature study. Only literature references that contribute to the motivation of the research should be included.
(c) The project proposal should be well-structured and clearly set out. The framework as given below, can be used as a guideline.
(d) The project proposal should focus the research attempt. If compiled with care, the actual writing of the project will be facilitated.

4.3 A proposed framework for a project proposal:

1. The problem and its context.

1.1 The Problem statement
1.2 Subproblem statements, if applicable
1.3 Delimitation of study field
1.4 Explanation of key terms and concepts used in the research
1.5 Assumptions and limitations that you anticipate

2. A short overview of the relevant literature (as a guideline for the literature study that will be done as part of the project).

3. The method or approach that you are going to follow (for example what practical work will be done, are you going to do an empirical study, are you going to undertake case studies, are you going to evaluate existing systems, et cetera).

4. Preliminary division of chapters.

5. A literature list.

5.1 References that you have already consulted 5.2 References that you think you will have to consult

6. A tentative schedule of planned dates for the reaching of certain objectives. These can be dates on which you want to complete your reading or start with the practical work.

General:

(a) The length of the proposal cannot be prescribed, but 5 - 10 typed A4 pages should be sufficient.

(b) You can evaluate your project proposal before you submit it, by asking yourself the following questions:

* Is the subject applicable and appropriate to my background and knowledge?

* Have I done a meaningful demarcation of the area of study?

* Is the problem statement clear and unambiguous?

* Is the research method clearly defined, scientifically acceptable and realistic?

* Have I looked at relevant literature and compiled a literature list?

* Have I maintained a good balance between theory and practical work if I consider my preliminary chapter division?

* Is the tentative time schedule attainable for my personal and study circumstances?

* Does the project interest me and do I want to do it?

(c) Submit two copies of the project proposal to the project leader - one for our own records and one on which to comment and return to you.

Note: It is important to submit the project proposal as soon as possible after registration. Send it directly to your project leader. Do not number and submit it as an assignment.

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5. Study programme and progress reports

Once your project leader has accepted your project proposal, you may start with your project. The table below gives our recommended dates for submission of your progress reports. These reports should be submitted regularly in the form of assignments. The aim of these reports is to convey the state of your project. (Remember that the project proposal is not a progress report.)

The exact way in which credits will be awarded, should be arranged in accordance with your project leader. Post your completed project progress reports (assignments) to the following address:

The Registrar (Academic) Assignments UNISA P.O. Box 392, PRETORIA 0003

Enquiries regarding assignments must be addressed to your project leader.

Note: Submit progress reports regularly in the form of assignments. Please write the name of your project leader on the assignment cover to facilitate administration.

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6. The final report

The final report can be compiled and submitted once you have gained at least 100 credits for your progress reports during the year and your project has been completed. The format of your final report needs to be arranged with your project leader. You may consult any of the books in our Bibliography that give hints on the form and style in which a technical report needs to be presented. The following are a few general guidelines:

• A title page containing the project title, your name and student number.
• A short introduction that places your project in perspective and gives an outline of the aim and scope of the project.
• The chapters of your report. This part should reflect the research methodology followed and set out your project work logically and systematically.
• Summary and conclusion of your project results (if possible and applicable) and a critical evaluation of project results in terms of your original project proposal's objectives.
• Appendixes of computer listings, results and diagrams if applicable. * A list of references in a format as agreed upon by your project leader.

The abovementioned are only guidelines. Your project leader will provide more details on the overall appearance and length of your final project report.

Examples of completed project reports are available in the department. Should you still be uncertain about the scope and format of your final report, and are interested in project reports of previous years, then consult with your project leader.

Note: TWO copies of your final report should be submitted for examination purposes before 15 January 2001.

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7. Bibliography: books on report writing

Booth, PF., Report Writing, Kings Ripton, Huntingdon, Elm Publications, 2nd edition, 1991.

Brusaw, CT., GJ. Aldred and WE. Oliu, The Handbook of Technical Writing, 4th. edition, St. Martin's Press, NY, 1993.

Haag, D.E., Guidelines for Writing a Dissertation or Thesis, Vanderbijlpark: Vaal Triangle Technikon, 1996.

Lannon, John M., Technical Writing, Scott Foresman, USA, 1996.

Lee, Mary, Gloria Stephenson, Max Anderson and Lynn Allan Lee, The Handbook of Technical Writing: Form and Style, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich Publishers, USA, 1990.

Moore, Nick and Martin Hesp, The Basics of Writing Reports etcetera., Clive Bingley, London, 1985.

Morris, David and Chandra Satish, Guidelines for Writing a Research Report (superseded by Haag D.E. above), American Marketing Association, Chicago, IL, 1993.

Mort, Simon, Professional Report Writing, Aldershot, Hampshire: Gower, 1992.

Riordan, D.G., Pauley, Steven E., Technical report writing today, Boston Houghton Mifflin, 6th edition, 1995.

Van Emden, J and J Easteal, Report Writing, McGraw-Hill, U.K., 1994.

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