LEARNING DIARY ON PROGRAM/SOFT WARE VISUALIZATION:

Introduction:
The program/software visualization was presented by Rachael Myinga & Venance Luhemeja the students of Tumaini University at Iringa Region the content was presented was good and attractive even to find other materials to learn more about that. Therefore I will start defining each term independently and then defining them as a whole. By starting with program is a set of execution instructions that solves a problem or a difficult. Visualization is the making visible or to make things observable to the mind or imagination. By combining the two terms now we have the term program/software engineering which consists of producing animated views of program to be executed.

Concept of program/software visualization:
There basically two types as;
Visualization of a single component.
(Source code and quality defects during software development and maintenance activities).
Visualization of the whole (sub) system.
(investigate the architecture or to apply or visual analytics techniques for defect discovery)
This program/software visualization was aiming to achieve the goals of systematic creation of visual representations. Also it binds data to representations that can be recognized e.g. visual, auditory and tactile and specification of user explanations.

Importance of program/software visualization.
The program/software help in improving performance and Support visible more comprehensible and converting data into a graphic or graphic representation.Helps programmers to understand program behavior & code better for example when black screen you can see all the code and give the output of the code applied.

Problems;
The program/software visualization is accompanied by some sort of problems including limited screen space where it very difficult to observe how the codes are
executed. Also the problem of unfavorable condition or circumstances which does not favor the codes to run in that particular computer is still a problem. One more thing is the aspect of behavior to be visualized must be identified. Handle real-world problems.(uses of programs in small client/lab/ with few line of codes)Security upon program / soft ware. Network Latency. Designing and specifying all these are some challenges on the program/software visualization.

Conclusion;
Programs are not only files, but indeed technical publications. In order to transfer programs into publications, some principles need to be adopted, so that the codes can be
properly and nicely mapped into visible language constructs, and everybody they can understand well and apply for their benefit.

LEARNING DIARY ON USABILITY ENGINEERING AND HUMAN COMPUTER INTERACTION

Introduction:
This Topic was presented by Mr. Innocent Kihaka and Mr. Side S. Side. Actually to my opinions I can say it was the best presentation among the best presentations which have already presented 27/04/2009 the topic was good and well understood.
Before going deeper to this topic let us have a look on some important terminologies which used in this topic which might confuse sometimes if not used well.Usability; This usability means that something can be very easy to use but not necessary to be usefully. It is normally user friendly.Usefulness; Usefulness means that something is very useful but it is very difficult to use i.e. not user friendly.
THE MEARNING OF USABILITY ENGINEERING AND HUMAN COMPUTER INTERACTION.
Usability engineering (UE):
Is the technique of developing a system which is interactive, usable or meets the needs of users.
Human computer interaction (HCI):
Is the disciplines which deal with the study of interaction between users
Why this UE and HCI?Many years ago people were struggling on how to improve the efficient of the machine. The research made at that time showed that in order the efficient of the machine the computer users were diverse and there was a need of human interactive system. Over some years the ICT has developed into discipline/field in its own right.By so doing they were intending to increase the productivity as its work force is more productive. Also decreases training and supportive costs as well as increasing the customer satisfaction and decreases technophobia. However they succeed to some extent since they reduces disastrous and fatal errors in the system which are dangerous to human life.

HOW UE AND HCI CAN BE ACHIEVED
Approaches of designing products
Product-centred design
User-centred design
PRODUCT-CENTRED DESIGN
Is the production process which does not take an account of the user’s needs.
Assumptions of the product centered design
-The result of a good design is having a product working.
-The product’s specifications are derived from the customer.
- There’s no further contact until delivery.
USER-CENTRED DESIGN
Is the design practice which is rooted in the idea that user must take center -stage in the design of any computer system.
precisely to make human being a focal point that technology should serve rather than the other way round
Assumptions of the user centered-approach:
-The result of a good design is a satisfied user.
-The process of design is a collaboration between designers and users.
-User and designer are in constant communication during the entire process
Criteria of user-centred approach
Efficiency-refers to how supportive the product is in carrying out a certain task.
Memorability - refer to how easy it is to remember how the system is used once it has been learned.
Learnability-refer to how easy it is to learn to use the product.
Safety-Protecting the user from dangerous and undesirable situations.
Entertaining-if a product was for entertainments then it has to reach that goal.
Motivating- the product made should encourage the user to continue working with it
Visibility-links in the interface has to be clearly visible.
Affordance- the price of the product should relate to the income of the society.
Feedback- the interface has to respond on whatever is done and give right suggestions.
Colour- Product should take an account of colour psychology.
CHALLENGES: Hard to get requirements from users who have no technique expertise.
Due to technological advancements, the societies’ needs varies with time.
Large amount of fund is need in the development of new product.
Difficult to build a system which can suit all types of users and their needs.
FUTURE :
Computes are too cumbersome and unwieldy tools. We need a small and specific appliances for specific jobs.
Decreasing costs but increaced efficiency of products.
Increasing innovation in input techniques (i.e., voice, gesture, pen).

LEARNING DIARY ON EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY.

LEARNING DIARY ON EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY.


INTRODUCTION:
On 24th April, 2009. The topic discussed was Educational Technology; it is a good topic which is based on studying by helping with technology which is the debating issues in the World about the technology for example the use of computers and other peripheral for studying. The following is the fully explanation of the topic,the topic was presented by Mr. Bahart Sanga and Austin Godfrey the research field presented was good and understood well.

Educational technology (also called learning technology) is the study and ethical practice of facilitating learning and improving performance by creating, using and managing appropriate technological processes and resources. Education technology
It includes the system used in the process of developing human capability.


The Characteristics of educational technology;
It involves input, out put and process aspects of education; in this case when we are talking about the input we mean that you should have supposed materials to help and facilitate learning for example computers and peripherals that can help and faster to do work effectively. Process, it generate situation for presenting the subject -matter systematically. Input, it involves the skill of teaching and awareness of teaching and training methods. Out put, it includes mainly the terminal behaviour of the activities or it clarifies the objectives achieved through the content.

It is an application of scientific knowlege to education and training; it includes the organization of learning and conditions for realizing goals of education; it facilitates learning by control of environment, media and methods.

Major objectives of educational technology
To analyze the characteristics of the learner.
To organize the content in logical or psychological sequence
To evaluate the learner's performance in terms of achieving educational objectives.

Problems facing Educational Technology.
High cost to invest and to run these devices, and good condition area for learning most of
many areas it is not good and proper administration of these devices. Other people they failed to have the devices that helping in studies for example to buy computers and other tools facilitating in learning due to the finational problems that is a big problem facing the society, not only that even the devices still high in cost that failed people to buy.

Also we don’t have enough professional teachers and competent to help the society to use the tools of learning by using technology we have.

{Some of the Societies}
(Learned societies concerned with education technology include)‏

Association for Education Communication and Technology.(AECT). Is an academic and professional association.
Headquarters is in Bloomington, Indiana.
Move from Washington DC in 1996
Association for Leaning Technology (ALT).
Association for Leaning Technology(ALT).Is a united kingdom professional body
It brings together people with the interest in the use of learning technology.
ALT was founded in 1993.
Registered (charity number 1063519)‏
The aims of these organisation to…
Contribute to the development of policy.
Spread good practice in the use of learning technology.
Represent and support its members and provide devices for them.

Future.
In order to have a good skills in education we are supposed even to learn more about this changes of technology forexample the use of computers that will help us to develop in academic matters, therefore to have a good technology realised that all academic matters will be run faster and easy in simplification when working or applied.

LEARNING DIARY ON IMAGE COMPRESSION.

Am very interested on the topic of Image compression which was presented by Mr. Justine L. Ngimba and Ms Zuena Mgova on 20/04/2009 the topic was good and well understood.On top of that have learned a lot of things on Image compression and comes to realized that is good and well presentation from my colleges.

THE MEARNING OF IMAGE COMPRESSION.
Image compression is minimizing the size in bytes of a graphics file without degrading the quality of the image to an unacceptable level. The reduction in file size allows more images to be stored in a given amount of disk or memory space. It also reduces the time required for images to be sent over the Internet or downloaded from Web pages.
There are several different ways in which image files can be compressed. For Internet use, the two most common compressed graphic image formats are the JPEG format and the GIF format. The JPEG method is more often used for photographs, while the GIF method is commonly used for line art and other images in which geometric shapes are relatively simple. In other hand Image compression is the action of reducing the size of image by increasing its compactness, in image compression Data compression is the technique that is used to reduce larger data files into smaller file size.

Types of image compression.

Image compression can be lossy or lossless. Lossless compression is sometimes preferred for artificial images such as technical drawings, icons or comics. This is because lossy compression methods, especially when used at low bit rates, introduce compression artifacts. Lossless compression methods may also be preferred for high value content, such as medical imagery or image scans made for archival purposes. Lossy methods are especially suitable for natural images such as photos in applications where minor (sometimes imperceptible) loss of fidelity is acceptable to achieve a substantial reduction in bit rate.
My be let asked together why image compression? therefore what have learned from my fellow that we compress in order to make transfer of image through network faster, to saves space in storage devices, It saves time for image downloaded these are some of points that why we compress the image.

Image format.
The format of image includes:-
TIFF (Tagged Image File Format)
JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group)
GIF (Graphical Interchange Format)
PNG (Portable network graphics)
BMP (Bitmap)

ADVANTAGES OF IMAGE COMPRESSION.

Reduce the data storage requirements
Reduce the time for images downloaded
E-mail attachment
Web pages
Photo sharing websites

DISADVANTAGES OF IMAGE COMPRESSION.

Reduce reliability of image records
Reduction of information or bits
Time consuming.
disruption of data properties

NOTE.THIS IS VERY IMPONTANT TO KNOW IN IMAGE COMPRESSION.
In compressing an image, start from the original image since compression from compressed image leads to poor image quality.
Do not save to the new format if you think you need to still proceed in compressing and image

LEARNING DIARY ON DATA MINING:

LEARNING DIARY ON DATA MINING.

Am very interested on the topic of Data Mining which was presented by Mr Joshua Sendu and Remy Kaaro on 17/04/2009 the topic was good and well understood.
On top of that have learned a lot of things on Data Mining and comes to realized that is good and well presentation from my colleges.

THE MEARNING OF DATA MINING.

Data mining. Is the process of extracting hidden patterns from large amount of data.
Generally, data mining (sometimes called data or knowledge discovery) is the process of analyzing data from different perspectives and summarizing it into useful information - information that can be used to increase revenue, cuts costs, or both. Data mining software is one of a number of analytical tools for analyzing data. It allows users to analyze data from many different dimensions or angles, categorize it, and summarize the relationships identified. Technically, data mining is the process of finding correlations or patterns among dozens of fields in large relational databases.

BACKGROUND.

Humans have been "manually" extracting information from data for centuries, but the increasing volume of data in modern times has called for more automatic approaches in order to simplify the collection of information from data by doing so their increasing power of computer technology has aided for easier data collection, processing, management and storage. However, the captured data needs to be converted into information and knowledge to become useful easier for collection the information. Data mining is the process of using computing power to apply methodologies, including new techniques for knowledge discovery, to data.

There are three stages of data mining, which are;

Data Exploration This stage usually starts with data preparations which involve cleaning data and data transformation. Data exploration is a methodology in which manual techniques are utilized to find one's way through a data set and bring important aspects of that data into focus for further analysis. Though such a methodology can be applied to data sets of any size or type, its manual nature makes it more reasonable for smaller data sets, especially those in which the data has been carefully gathered and constructed.

Model building and validation:

This stage involves considering various models and choosing the best one based on their predictive performance can be good for use.

Deployment: This is the final stage which involves using the model selected as best in the previous stage and applying it to new data in order to generate predictions or estimates of the expected outcomes

There are several advantages of the data mining then he following are some of them, banking here the bank can find the good information and then they can analyses for a good manner then advertise to the people then they can learn very well, another advantages like Marking, for the researchers, Law enforcement.
In other hand regardless there are some advantages, data mining also have some disadvantages then the following are as follows security in case of this it need a very highly security to protect the data if the technology used to store may be to collect the information is not good or properly it leads to lost the information quickly,Misuse of information; if the information not used properly it can be easier for other people to know the secret information that not need to be known by the other people, Privacy issues; there are some issues which people do not want them to be known as public issues that is why are kept in hidden.

Conclusion: Data mining is a good topic and people should understand well for there benefit for example to hide the information not each to be public ally. Therefore the topic was good.

AUTOMATIC ESSAY ASSESSMENT.

LEARNING DIARY ON
AUTOMATIC ESSAY ASSESSMENT.


The research field was conducted by Mr. Nyambalafu and Miss Rose Mchaka on 6th April 2009. The topic was good and understood well but for the first time it was very difficult to me to understand the meaning of Automatic Essay Assessment, now am feel okey on that.
The meaning of Automatic Essay Assessment.
Refers to the use of an electronic machine to make essay evaluation, where by an electronic machine can determine for example the grade of the students, even the machine can avoid the plagiarism, the machine is able to show if the sentences has plagiarism, analyze learning outcome (make evaluation).


The following are the Advantages or importance of Automatic essay assessment.
These are categoriesed into two parts.
To the teacher:
It saves time in marking process.
It saves time in making evaluation.
It helps to make a final grader.
It helps a teacher to be consistency.
To the students.
It challenges students to think critically.
It provides real feedback to the students.
It looks the qualities of the students work and not comparisons with others.
It supports students to reflect learning process.

Therefore to have an electronic machine of doing such activities it is a good plan because it helps in simplification of work but the problems comes It is very cost full for making program because it need a lot of money to buy the program, It reduce thinking capacity of the teacher for example in steady of doing harder machine help to simplify each and everything,It needs high qualified people on setup


Futures.
To have a machine which can assess each and everything.
To give back the whole essay with all corrections.
To have a machine which can assess hardcopy
essay.

SPEAKER RECOGNITION.

LEARNING DIARY ON
SPEAKER RECOGNITION:

This topic was prepared by the students of Tumaini University College.Mr. Benjamin Mkwese and Ruben Minael first year students of Bachelor of Science in Information and communication Technology.
The research field was good and understood well: for the first time it was very difficult to select this topic because of fear and to thing where i can get the material for presentation therefore at the end of preparation come to conclude that it is good well topic.

INTRODUCTION:

As human beings, we are able to recognize someone just by hearing him or her talk. Usually, a few seconds of speech are sufficient to identify a familiar voice. The idea to teach computers how to recognize humans by the sound of their voices is quite evident, as there are several fruitful applications of this task.

SPEAKER RECOGNITION:

Speaker recognition. Is the process of automatically recognizing who is speaking on the basis of individual information included in speech signals.

SPEAKER RECOGNITION HAS BEEN CATEGORISED INTO TWO CLASSES:

It can be divided into Speaker Identification and Speaker Verification. Speaker identification determines which registered speaker provides a given utterance from amongst a set of known speakers. Speaker verification accepts or rejects the identity claim of a speaker - is the speaker the person they say they are?
Speaker recognition technology makes it possible to a the speaker's voice to control access to restricted services, for example, phone access to banking, database services, shopping or voice mail, and access to secure equipment.

HOW THE SYSTEM WORKS:
Another thing has learned to this topic it is about how the system works.
The voice input to the microphone produce an analogue speech signal. An analogue to digital converter (ADC) converts this speech signal into binary words that are compatible with digital computer. The converted binary version is then stored in the system and compared with previously stored binary representations of words and phrases.
The current input speech is compared one at a time with the previously stored speech pattern after searching by the computer. When a match occurs, recognition is achieved. The spoken word is binary form is written on a video screen or passed along to a natural language understanding processor for additional analysis.
During training, the computer displays a word and the user reads it aloud. The computer digitizes the user’s voice and stores it. The speaker has to read aloud about 1000 words. Based on these samples, the computer can predict how the user utters some words that are likely to the pronounced differently by different people.
It is noted that even if the same speaker talks the same texts. there are always slight variation in amplitude or loudness of the signal,pitch,frequency difference, time gap etc. Due to this reasons there is never a perfect match between the templates and binary input word.

APPLICATION:
One of many application of speaker recognition is in military operations. Voice control of weapons is an example with reliable speech recognition equipment; pilots can give commands and information to the computers by simply speaking into their microphones they don’t have to use their hands for this purpose.

CONCLUTION:

The topic was good and well understood therefore to have this is a good top and better to register to the system inoder to secure the materials you have may be in the machine such as computer.