The W-Process for Software Product Evaluation: A Method for Goal-Oriented Implementation of the ISO 14598 Standard

The importance of software product evaluations will grow with the awareness of the need for better software quality. The process to conduct such evaluations is crucial to get evaluation results that can be applied and meet customers' expectations. This paper reviews a well-known evaluation process: the ISO 14598 standard. The review focuses on the difficulties in selecting and evaluating the appropriate evaluation techniques. The review shows that the standard has problems in applying evaluation processes in practice due to insufficient attention to goal definition and to relationships between activities being implicit. Also, the standard ignores the trade-off between goals and resources and pays insufficient attention to feedback. To address these deficiencies, the W-process is proposed. It extends the standard through an improved process structure and additional guidelines.     

A microcosm of design control in post‐war Britain: A case study of office development in central Bristol 1940–90

The city centre of Bristol provides a microcosm of post‐war British experience with design control. Four eras of control are identified: the immediate post‐war redevelopment using the principles of segregation and open planning; the modernist era dominated by free‐flow road systems and tower blocks on pedestrian decks; the conservation era with its emphasis upon contextual design; and the contemporary era where the emphasis is switching from buildings to spaces in a climate where design control is under retreat. It is argued that since 1975 design control has become more participative, more skilled and more responsive to the locality, but that such an approach has only been defended from central government antipathy by the extended use of conservation designations.

The lessons of Bristol's experience are that local authorities need to give priority to design quality and skills in their planning and estates functions, and to retain full control over design in sensitive areas. They need to harness public participation into design control, to respond carefully to the historic context and continuity in a city, and to focus particularly upon developing a lively, diverse and attractive public realm. Ultimately, however, the realities of the speculative development process pose significant limits on the extent to which design control can achieve architectural or environmental quality.     

How reliable are the consumers? Comparison of sensory profiles from consumers and experts

This study compares expert and consumer sensory profiles for the same 12 perfumes in different ways: the discriminatory ability and reproducibility are analyzed through ANOVA and the panelists’ consensus through the correlation coefficients. Next, the two product spaces are first analyzed separately for each panel, and then compared through multiple factor analysis. Finally, the two panels are compared using the confidence ellipses methodology. These analyses show that the two panels give similar results with respect to the important criteria for panels (discrimination, consensus, reproducibility). The comparison of the two products spaces shows high similarity. From the confidence ellipses, it can be concluded that no significant differences exist for a given product between the two panels. Hence, in this particular case, the use of consumers appears to be a good alternative to the classical sensory profile provided by a trained panel.     

控制城市形态的可持续发展原则

21世纪城市规划设计的原则是以可持续的城市为主题.可持续性包括了经济、社会和环境的内容,而可持续发展的主要问题是大运量公共交通的通达性.国际比较研完表明,城市形态与交通模式之间的关系是造成城市发展偏离的主要因素之一.人们已经意识到可持续发展的城市必须综合考虑密度,区位和交通体系的密切关系,形成一种适宜的城市形态完全依靠它们之间的相互关系.我们必须注意到,新城市主义出现的原因是为了解决北美传统的城市蔓延和郊区化问题,使城市发展具有可持续性.新城市主义有两个重要内容.一是梯度方法,二是城市规范指标.     

Interpreting generalized procrustes analysis ‘analysis of variance’ tables

Two different methods for generalized Procrustes analysis are introduced. One of the methods is used to illustrate the interpretation of the results of a conventional and of a free choice profiling experiment. The different sources of variance are partitioned over the products and judges. A relative measure corresponding to the percentage ‘variance accounted for’ is proposed as an alternative to the variance measures usually reported with GPA analyses. This relative measure is easy to interpret, graphical display of the measures helps in interpreting the ‘analysis of variance’ tables.     

Urban Design as Public Policy: Evaluating the Design Dimension of Vancouver's Planning System

This paper examines Vancouver's system of urban design as public policy utilizing 12 principles derived from critiques of design review in the USA. These principles include community vision; the relationship of design, planning and zoning; substantive design principles; and due process in review. Vancouver's city-wide plan, neighbourhood visions and sub-area development plans provide the vision, while its cooperative planning, development levies and discretionary zoning system and guidelines support the pursuit of quality urban design. Its practices are based on generic and contextual design principles, while its processes are transparent, participative, backed by peer review, predictable and effective.     

控制城市形态的可持续发展原则

21世纪城市规划设计的原则是以可持续的城市为主题.可持续性包括了经济、社会和环境的内容,而可持续发展的主要问题是大运量公共交通的通达性.国际比较研究表明,城市形态与交通模式之间的关系是造成城市发展偏离的主要因素之一.人们已经意识到可持续发展的城市必须综合考虑密度、区位和交通体系的密切关系,形成一种适宜的城市形态完全依靠它们之间的相互关系.我们必须注意到,新城市主义出现的原因是为了解决北美传统的城市蔓延和郊区化问题,使城市发展具有可持续性.新城市主义有两个重要内容.一是梯度方法,二是城市规范指标.     

Design review in Wales: the role of the Design Commission for Wales

ABSTRACT

The Design Commission for Wales was established by the Welsh Government in 2002 to champion high standards of design and sustainability in Wales, and to promote social inclusion. It introduced its Design Review Service in 2003 to promote good design in the full range of development proposals, and has a large multi-disciplinary team of professionals who give their services for free, and who provide advice to designers, developers and local authority planners on how to improve the design quality of their planning applications. Monthly reviews are non-confrontational and collaborative, and focused upon providing constructive design advice. The Commission works closely with the Welsh Government’s Planning Directorate to formulate design advice on the full range of planning and design matters. It has developed a network of young designers and programmes of events to facilitate design awareness and capability, and to ensure the future of design review.