Clients and users Stakeholders

1.5 How this book is arranged 13 from your course who are not involved with the project but can nevertheless provide useful feedback. Chapter 6 discusses the issues surrounding software evaluation and testing in more detail. It also describes those involved with the evaluation and raises some issues you will need to consider when using others in this capacity. •

1.5 How this book is arranged

1.5.1 Overview

This book is split into five main sections that approximate chronologically to your pro- ject’s progress. Section 1 includes this chapter and covers some preliminary background material on the types of projects you might pursue and the nature of research. Section 2 covers the skills necessary to set your project’s foundation. It covers topics such as choosing a project, planning how to undertake the project, and literature searching and reviewing. Section 3 looks at how to manage your project as it is progressing. This section also includes ways of developing software systems if this is relevant to your own project. Section 4 covers completing and submitting your project – writing reports, giving presentations, viva voce examinations, etc. Section 5 looks into the future – for example, taking your project further after it is completed. Figure 1.5 depicts how this book is arranged. While sections are designed to be read in or- der as your project progresses, the chapters within each section can be read in the order that suits your needs. Note that Chapter 3 Choosing a project and writing a proposal should be read before Chapter 4 Project planning and risk management while Chapter 5 Literature searching and literature reviews can be read before, after, or even between both of these. Note It is advisable to read Section 10.2 in Chapter 10 before you proceed any further with your project. It describes what examiners will ultimately be looking for and evaluating within your project. Knowing what you need to aim for now is useful as it will guide you in the way you undertake your project and provide a focus for your effort. In addition, for those in need of instant help, Section 10.7 provides the top ten tips for successful projects based on other sections within the book. Figure 1.5 How this book is arranged 14 Chapter 1 n Introduction

1.5.2 Taught degree projects versus research degrees

The mortarboard and certificate symbol left highlights areas in the book where differences between taught degree BSc, BEng, etc. and research degree PhD, DPhil, MPhil, etc. projects are discussed. MScs may strad- dle the boundary between the two depending on how they are taught and assessed – for example, some require a significant research component potentially leading to publishable work, while others may accept less research- oriented software development projects. Not all sections in this book are relevant to PhD students, although they may provide some useful background reading. Similarly, some sections may go into more depth than a particular taught degree project requires but, for other taught degree projects research- based projects, for example, the text may be highly relevant. Use these symbolised sections to decide which portions of the book are suitable reading for your own project. •

1.6 Summary

n The field of computing ranges from ‘hard’ theoretical computer science, through practical software implementation, to ‘softer’ areas of information systems concerned with the use and the effect of IT. n Computing projects tend to fall into one of the following five categories: research- based, developments, evaluation, industry -based or problem solving. n This book covers projects that are undertaken as part of taught degrees bachelor’s and master’s degrees such as BScs and MScs and research degrees from MPhils to PhDs. n Your project will have a number of stakeholders, the most important of which is you. Others include your supervisors, clients, users, examiners, software testers and evaluators. n This book is arranged chronologically into the following five sections: Background, Foundations, Conducting, Presenting, and The Future. •

1.7 Action points

n Consider where your own course and project lie on the computing scale shown in Figure 1.2. n Classify your own project into one of the categories identified in Section 1.2.2. n Identify the stakeholders in your project. Do you know them all yet? What is your relationship with them? n Read Section 10.2 in Chapter 10 to see what your project must achieve in order to satisfy the examiners. Think about what you will need to do to meet these criteria.