Fundamentals of Information Technology

This document explains the concepts of TCP, RAD, Agile Method, Scope Creep and Real-Time Glucose Monitoring System. It discusses the advantages and disadvantages of these concepts and provides ways to deal with scope creep. It also suggests fact-finding techniques to collect requirements for a new system. The subject is Information Technology and the course code is not mentioned. The document type is an essay and the assignment type is not mentioned. The author is not mentioned and the university is not mentioned.

Running head: FUNDAMENTALS OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
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1. Explain why we need a 3-way handshake in TCP? Why not just 2-way?
Ans: In case of TCP, both the parties involved keep a track of the information sent by making
use of Sequence number. The Sequence number is the count of the number of bytes being
used for sending the information. The party at the receiving end can make use of sequence
number of the speaker at the opposite side to send an acknowledgement for the information
received. The initial value of this sequence number is not 0 rather it is a random value starting
at ISN that is Initial Sequence Number (Paasch, 2016). TCP being bi-directional in nature,
both the parties involved in communication can “speak” generating an ISN that serves as
their starting Sequence number. This implies that both the parties involved are required to
notify their partners about their starting value of ISN. When two parties have TCP
conversation then four events occur that are:
a) First party picks up an ISN and then it is SYNchronized with the second party.
b) The second party needs to ACKnowledge the ISN sent by the first party.
c) The second party picks up an ISN and SYNchronizes with the first party.
d) The first party needs to ACKnowledge the ISN.
The three-way handshake in the above case is as below:
2nd party 1st party SYN
2nd party 1st party SYN ACK
2nd party 1st party ACK
So, from the above scenario a two-way handshake will not provide both the parties to
establish an Initial Sequence Number as well as sending Acknowledgement. Two-way

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handshake will allow any one of the parties to send data at a time. TCP being a bi-directional
protocol requires that both the ends be able to send and acknowledge data in a reliable
manner.
2. What is RAD? List one advantage and disadvantage of using RAD.
Ans: Rapid Application Development (RAD) refers to type of development cycle focusing at
providing faster development with high-quality outcomes. It is a methodology that helps
firms to develop their systems faster reducing the cost of development and quality of
maintenance at the same time. RAD makes use of series techniques related to application
development abiding by a well-structured methodology. This is defined as the process which
acts as a medium for expedition of a specific application (Cheresharov, Krushkov, Stoyanov
& Popchev, 2017). Rapid Application Development is effective in providing high quality
products in less time saving over use of resources at the same time. RAD is the most
successful change in the domain of information technology. RAD makes use of the
advantages of available automated tools and other modern techniques to change the
framework of existing information systems. RAD has been effective in replacing the
traditional processes of hand-design and coding which relied upon individual skills. In the
place of these traditional processes, it has incorporated automated design and coding making
the overall process stable than before. The four main essential aspects of RAD are
methodology, people, management and tools. The phases of RAD model consist of Business
Modelling, Data Modelling, Process Modelling, Application Generation and Testing and
Turnover. One major advantage of RAD is that it is flexible as well as adaptable to changes
and helps in reducing risks involved in projects (Sasmito & Wiyono, 2017). One major
drawback of RAD is that it does not apply to smaller projects.

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3. Discuss two advantages and two disadvantages of agile method.
Agile method enables delivering working versions of software in iterations and the
software is updated as per the feedback of the users. Agile method helps in overcoming the
problems that were faced in the traditional methods. It is customer friendly and these methods
are effective in increasing the product quality as well as enabling faster development. Two
advantages of agile methods are as follows:
 Saves time and is cost effective- Agile methodology involves less documentation that
saves time. The documentation required are those which are required for designs and
development. The required test data is included in the documentation as well. Test
data aids in verification and validation of requirements focusing more on application
instead of documentation (Abrahamsson, Salo, Ronkainen & Warsta, 2017). It
iterative nature makes it cost effective. Regular feedback from the user’s end make it
possible to incorporate the changes at a faster rate.
 Provides transparency in projects- The transparency that is provided by the agile
methods yield strong results and these provide real-time updates as well.
Two disadvantages of agile methods are as follows:
 Easily misunderstood- Heavy involvement of users in the agile methods results in
frequent changes (Serrador & Pinto, 2015). Frequent feedbacks require changing
plans, releasing software often and laying stress on interactions over tools.
 Agile methods make the values visible that embarrasses the team but at the same
time adds value to the users. The staffs in organizations do not like to be
accounted for their daily tasks as this creates a pressure on them.

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4. What is scope creep in software development? Explain three ways to deal
with scope creep.
Ans: Scope creep in software development refers to the changes and continuous growth in the
scope of development of a software after initiation of the process of development. Scope
creep occurs in situations where the scope of the project or the purpose of the software being
developed is not well defined or controlled (Shirazi, Kazemipoor & Tavakkoli-Moghaddam,
2017). It affects the software development process and is harmful. Scope creep is associated
with the overall process of development of the software. Some of the causes of scope creep
are as follows:
 Poor in change control
 Improper identification of the requirements of the software to be developed
 Inefficient project manager
 Lack of communication between the persons involved in the software development
process.
 Lack of knowledge in initial product versatility.
The above-mentioned causes affect the work efficiencies of the company dealing in
software development. Scope creep serves as a risk in projects and studies suggest that
majority of the megaprojects fall victim to this. It results in cost overrun as well. Three
ways to deal with scope creep are as follows:
 Communicate and Setting Expectations Up Front- The initial step in case of
software development should be defining the statement of work that in turn will
help in setting the client expectations. The statement of work must include the full
plan of actions including timeliness, responsibilities, milestones and deliverables

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as per the requirements of the stakeholders. Defining statement of work will be
effective in preventing the scope creep.
 Maintaining the requirements along with status reports- The software
development process requires properly documented timeliness, appropriate
resources, adequate budget and related deliverables. The project requirement
document should be there for checking on the status of the ongoing work and
matching the same with the statement of work. Keeping a track on the ongoing
progress of the development process will help prevent scope creep (Albadarneh,
Albadarneh & Qusef, 2015). The workforce can be held responsible or accounted
for if there are deviations in the process and the statement of work.
 Keeping coordination in between the clients and the project- Scope creep can be
avoided by maintaining coordination in between the clients and the project. This
will help in creating misunderstandings and thus prevent scope creep in the
process of software development.
Answer to question 5
The existing methods of monitoring glucose levels are time-consuming, invasive and
painful. The non-invasive technologies related to glucose level monitoring can overcome
these limitations and thus being researched for (Northrop, 2017). AAA Medical Devices
deals in manufacturing devices that can monitor medical conditions such as glucose levels. It
has already developed a wristband that is embedded with glucose monitors. The company
wants to develop a Real-Time Glucose Monitoring (RTGM) system which will make use of
this wristband. In this case the potential users will be medical staffs and the public as well. In
medicals the technology will make the process of glucose monitoring easier and will
effectively substitute the traditional methods. The accessibility of the software from
smartphone will make it user friendly.

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Three fact-finding techniques that can be used to collect requirements of the new
system are as follows:
1) Focus group- In case of focus group, a group of people are chosen who are
knowledgeable about the matter and their opinion taken on the matter. The people
chosen for this must have sound knowledge about the technology and its future
implications on the stakeholders. Discussion can help in finding certain facts that
relate to the Real-Time Glucose Monitoring system.
2) Online surveys- To make the system user friendly, data can be collected by
conducting surveys through sources such as emails. The result of the surveys will help
understand the requirements of the system that the stakeholders want from the
technology. The survey should be conducted in medical institutes especially as the
instrument caters to the needs of medical staffs and patients.
3) Structural and semi-structural interviews- Structural interviews containing predefined
questions related to the technology can help in understanding the requirements of the
system. The questions in this case can be; age group that can be the potential users of
the technology, the percentage of medical institutions wanting to implement such
systems and many more. The unstructured questions can be random questions related
to the technology which can help provide ideas and innovations in the process of
incorporation and implementation.

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References
Abrahamsson, P., Salo, O., Ronkainen, J., & Warsta, J. (2017). Agile software development
methods: Review and analysis. arXiv preprint arXiv:1709.08439.
Albadarneh, A., Albadarneh, I., & Qusef, A. (2015, November). Risk management in Agile
software development: A comparative study. In 2015 IEEE Jordan Conference on
Applied Electrical Engineering and Computing Technologies (AEECT) (pp. 1-6).
IEEE.
Cheresharov, S., Krushkov, H., Stoyanov, S., & Popchev, I. (2017). Modules for Rapid
Application Development of Web-Based Information Systems
(RADWIS). Cybernetics and Information Technologies, 17(3), 109-127.
Northrop, R. B. (2017). Non-invasive instrumentation and measurement in medical
diagnosis. CRC press.
Paasch, C. (2016). Network support for TCP Fast Open. Presentation at NANOG, 67.
Sasmito, G. W., & Wiyono, S. (2017). Implementation of Rapid Application Development
Method on Academic Staff System of Harapan Bersama Polytechnic. Int. J. Comput.
Trends Technol, 50(1), 11-13.
Serrador, P., & Pinto, J. K. (2015). Does Agile work?—A quantitative analysis of agile
project success. International Journal of Project Management, 33(5), 1040-1051.
Shirazi, F., Kazemipoor, H., & Tavakkoli-Moghaddam, R. (2017). Fuzzy decision analysis
for project scope change management. Decision Science Letters, 6(4), 395-406.

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