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This paper aims to discuss the progress of library management software and to trace out the characteristics and trends of software with special reference to packages that provide either web interface for some of their modules or total web‐based solutions for all management modules. The paper also seeks to compare services and facilities and technologies incorporated in library automation packages.

The paper reports on a survey of software vendors in Delhi, India, aimed at knowing about the different features of the six software packages selected for this study. Data were collected by means of a questionnaire that was circulated among the software vendors.

A variety of software is available in the software marketplace. However, only a few of them are fully web compatible and support maximum technological features.

The research focuses only on software packages which are available in Delhi.

The comparative analysis of Library Management Software Systems made in this study will be helpful for librarians who are planning to automate their libraries and will also provide help to maintain software that is most suitable to their needs.

No comprehensive survey has been carried out regarding the web interface for Library Management Software Systems in India.

Downloading and uploading offer labour‐saving advantages and are now accepted as useful options in online searching. All aspects are here considered, from recent technical advances, applications and legal attitudes. There is also a review of current software for downloading. Recent developments mean a trend to higher internal memory and storage capacity, and greater transmission speeds. Packages now offer access to more than one host, give maximum assistance to the user without being menu‐driven and incorporate the latest developments in artificial intelligence. Disadvantages are in the length of time involved in the process and the fact that the legal issue of copyright has not yet been finalised. Database producers have turned to licensing under contract law, but there is still need to rely on user ethics, and the need for a standard permissions form is highlighted.

Despite its fast growth and penetration in all sectors, it has been noted that open source software (OSS) is yet to find its optimal place in libraries, particularly libraries in the developing countries. Lack of documented information on the experiences and use of open source integrated library system (ILS) is a major drawback, and so the need for this study. The proposed study aims to help to investigate and test usability and cost effectiveness of a typical OSS for ILS. It will involve deploying the software from installation, configuration to creating customized user interfaces and structures that are specific to the requirements of the library's parent organization. The cost and performance of the OSS will then be compared with that of a typical commercial based software with the same functionalities.

A preliminary study has been conducted to collect data from libraries in the country through distribution of questionnaires to provide data for accurate analysis that will form the basis for recommendations. The target group includes library and IT personnel in the various institutions and the end-users within sample group. A case study is proposed to help establish OSS effectiveness in libraries. To test a typical OSS, parameters are to be drawn from two models – open source maturity model and business readiness rating.

A casual observation of the Kenyan situation reveals that the majority of academic, public and research libraries depend on commercial, free or locally developed systems. This scenario may be attributed to lack of knowledge (or interest) in OSS alternatives and lack of sufficient technical expertise to support them. While there are quite a number of libraries and librarians worldwide that have shown a great interest in OSS, few library administrators have actually implemented OSS. Could this be due to fear of taking on the risks that may come with reliance on open source library automation systems? Is the low uptake due to lack of sufficient technical expertise in the libraries? The research outcomes will help formulate a model and guidelines to be used by systems librarians considering the use of OSS for library processes. Factors to be considered when deciding on OSS will be outlined.

This paper is of importance to library personnel in Kenya as it establishes the effectiveness of OSS, with the aim of empowering the library staff who have for a long time relied on their IT departments and vendors for systems installation and implementation.

The study will result in a comprehensive evaluation of the economic and functional advantages of OSS as an alternative for the library in Kenya. Librarians involved in selection of software for their libraries will find this helpful when deciding on the type of software to select for their libraries. It will help to enlighten library professional about the value of OSS and how they can participate in the development of their own systems, instead of always relying on vendors.

The purpose of this paper is to define and analyze the innovation system of China's software industry in order to build its innovation capability.

From a complex adaptive systems (CAS) perspective, the authors researched the constitution and operating mechanism of China's software industry innovation system. By using methods and theories of CAS theory, the innovation problems of the software industry in China were analyzed and valuable suggestions put forth for its future development.

Innovation system is one kind of complex systems and it has the characteristics of CAS.

Quantitative analysis of the software industry innovation system should be emphasized in the next stage of research.

The paper provides a new perspective and useful advice for technology policymakers.

The paper applies CAS theory to the area of social management and provides a new approach to study industrial innovation systems.

Rather than organize as traditional firms, many of today’s companies organize as platforms that sit at the nexus of multiple exchange and production relationships. This chapter considers a most basic question of organization in platform contexts: the choice of boundaries. Herein, I investigate how classical economic theories of firm boundaries apply to platform-based organization and empirically study how executives made boundary choices in response to changing market and technical challenges in the early mobile computing industry (the predecessor to today’s smartphones). Rather than a strict or unavoidable tradeoff between “openness-versus-control,” most successful platform owners chose their boundaries in a way to simultaneously open-up to outside developers while maintaining coordination across the entire system.

Discusses problems related to software engineering task maintenance. Argues that since many scientists and practitioners have regarded maintenance as divorced from development, it is not properly embedded in project models. Relates four case studies. Looks at the range of maintenance tasks and strategies. Proposes a change of perspective that would make maintenance part of development. Advocates methods, tools and techniques as possible means of overcoming the problematic situation.

Rising operational costs and software sustainment concerns have driven the Air Force to move to newer technology to ensure that the Air Force Standard Base Supply System (SBSS) can continue to provide affordable and sustainable mission support in the years to come. This paper aims to summarize the successful software modernization effort the Air Force undertook to achieve that objective.

The paper describes the preliminary system updates that were required to isolate the SBSS software from all internal and external system and user interfaces in preparation for the subsequent successful code roll effort. Once the legacy SBSS component was fully isolated, the SBSS software modernization objective was achieved via a “code roll” conversion of the SBSS software from legacy COBOL to Java code, and movement of the integrated logistics system-supply application from a proprietary information technology (IT) platform to an open IT operating environment.

The SBSS system modernization yielded immediate and significant IT operational cost reductions and provided an important foundation for achieving Air Force logistics system consolidation and cloud computing objectives going forward.

The SBSS modernization experience should be useful in assisting similar data system software modernization efforts.

Overviews the history of prototyping. Illustrates trends which have supported the emergence of it. Comments on methods which are in line with prototyping. Suggests future areas of research and development. Explores the integration of prototyping into systems development which incorporates pre‐existing software.

Savings and Credit Cooperatives (SACCOs) in developing countries require core banking Management Information Systems (MISs) to run their business, serve their clients and provide differentiated products and services to gain competitive advantage. Considering that SACCOs in Kenya lack the necessary resources to acquire the best information systems, the purpose of this paper is to evaluate MISs currently in use in the SACCO subsector to determine how well they are serving.

Using the ISO/IEC 25010 Software Product Quality Model, the quality of MISs operated by 215 Deposit-Taking SACCOs in the Kenya was evaluated to determine their level of performance.

The results indicated that the MISs currently in use by the SACCOs serve them well in terms of functionality, efficiency, reliability, ease of use and portability. However, vendor support, technical training and implementation process are a big concern to the SACCOs.

The SACCOs in Kenya need not look for other MISs as the ones in use satisfied the condition required by the ISO/IEC 25010 Software Product Quality Model. The areas that require attention are vendor support services by entering into contracts technical training and service level agreement; and good project management in software implementation.

The research addresses itself to one of the biggest setbacks faced by a fast growing subsector in adopting ICT with limited capacity and infrastructure.

The purpose of this paper is to detail how the adoption of enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems creates major distortions in the corporate decision‐making process.

The approach is to focus on the distortion in the capital – budgeting process of corporations emanating from the rigidity of ERP software. The rigidity negatively influences decision‐making because ERP software often dictates that the firm must change its core business procedures and processes to fit the software.

Lack of flexibility limits the introduction of new products, or targeting a new customer segment by increasing costs and imposing delays in implementation.

Firms would benefit from performing detailed analysis of the impact of ERP systems on their ability to make operational decisions.

This paper focuses on the problem of decreased flexibility in making changes in the production and accounting components of the firm when purchasing and installing ERP systems that cannot accommodate minor or major changes in the corporation.