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This article presents information related to the various functional and behavioral aspects of computer-aided software engineering (CASE). Recent CASE advertisements suggest that users are reporting productivity improvements ranging from 30 to 300 percent. Two additional factors which were considered very important during system development were also included along with the CASE product functions. They were communication among project team members and adherence to the enterprise's system development standards. Although the implementation of technological functions may vary in other CASE products, most of the competing CASE products support an equivalent function. Testing of all 17 functions required that 136 paired comparisons be made by the subjects. For the software engineer's preferences, the preferred representation of the 136 similarity rankings was in three dimensions with 88 percent of the total original pairwise ranks accounted for. A study implies that CASE product offerings need not be as robust in functionality as the one used in the study in order to positively affect productivity.

The findings of a study designed to address the pressing problems associated with the strategic planning of the computing effort in higher education are presented here. A planning methodology was developed and tested through implementation at a university. Two years after the methodology was implemented, the effectiveness of the planning methodology was assessed in terms of the improvement of the delivery of computing services to the major institutional roles of instruction, research, and administration. Two control institutions were employed to contrast the improvements at the test institution. The results of the research indicate the planning methodology significantly enhanced the delivery of computing services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article describes a generative computer-assisted instruction system (CAI). The CAI is designed to teach the material in an introductory computer science course at the University of Connecticut. It covers topics in combinational and sequential design as well as machine language programming. The system does not attempt to lecture or provide information which could more economically be presented in a text. Its main purpose is to teach techniques of problem solving by generating and solving practice problems. It monitors the student's solution by comparison with its own derived solution and gives remedial feedback when necessary. This system attempts to individualize instruction to suit each student. Consequently, an intelligent monitor is used to select the best course concept for a student at any instant of time. The depth at which each concept is presented is also adjusted dynamically to suit a student's current level of knowledge. The system has been used as an adjunct to regular classes and homework assignments. Student reaction has been favorable, as students have found the system helpful.