Design and development of a user interface and user manual for the Software Management Flight Simulator

Abstract

The rapid growth of the software industry, and the complex projects undertaken, have made managing software development projects an increasingly difficult task. Despite the efforts of program managers, many projects are completed late and over-budget. This research effort designs a user friendly Software Management Flight Simulator based on the Dynamica Model of Software Project Management. The purpose of the flight simulator is to allow managers to approach difficult project decisions and explore the impacts and interactions of key variables. The simulation model is the product of the prototype design approach and is written in Vensim, a graphic modeling and simulation program compatible with the IBM personal micro-computer. The Windows based graphic user interlace provides an intuitive and flexible menu structure and represents the next generation of interactive gaming simulators based on the Dynamica Model.