Graphical user interface design for NTCSSAM: shipboard administrative requirements

Abstract

Shipboard Naval Automated Data Processing (SNAP) is the U.S. Navy's administrative manager for surface ships. The Department of the Navy is developing a replacement system, Naval Tactical Command Support System Administrative Module (NTCSSAM), that will upgrade the software and hardware to be more consistent with the needs of the Navy in the 21st century. NTCSSAM is not being developed with modern design techniques that can reduce the amount of time required to develop a system. This thesis will improve the development of NTCSSAM and produce a prototype representing a subset of its functionality. We review and analyze QFD and the Mayhew design methodologies and select the QFD tools and Mayhew phases to improve NTCSSAM. In addition to this, a survey form is used to compile user inputs to document improvements to NTCSSAM. To improve NTCSSAM we construct a prototype that includes functionalities necessary to create an enlisted evaluation. This prototype represents a subset of the functionalities of NTCSSAM. The prototype includes the functionality to enter crew members, enter command information, and edit text for creating enlisted evaluations. The methodology and design tools improved documentation by including all design inputs on matrices making them accessible to users, programmers, and developers. It reduced the amount of time required to design and program functionalities for NTCSSAM by three weeks. The survey form produced a comprehensive list of functionalities and provided valuable user input about improving NTCSSAM. Using these methods to create a prototype for NTCSSAM improved the prototype's graphical user interface of the prototype by including user inputs.