Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association

Transcription

1 Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association Website Network Expert Database Design ISQS 4349 Information Systems Design Final Project Report Spring Semester 2011 Prepared by Team 5 Kyle Jones Lorenzo Valdez Jessica Ward 0

2 1

3 Table of Contents Executive Summary 2 Introduction... 3 Purpose of Report 3 Background Information 3 System Analysis Updates 3 System Design Approach 4 Input and Output Requirements & User Interface Requirements 4 Story Board Diagram 4 Description & Design of Screenshots 5 Suggested feature added to Hope Page 5 Suggested Home Page of Expert Database 5 Results of a Basic Search 6 Advanced Search Option 6 Advanced Search Option Page 7 Details Option Page 7 View Testimonials Page 8 Saved Searches Page 8 Database & Physical File Design 9 Relational Model 10 Table Descriptions 11 Sequence Diagram 12 Activity Diagram 13 System Internal Design & Logic Specifications for Human Computer Interaction 14 Overview 14 Constructing the System: Validation & Quality Control Approaches 14 Use Case Diagram 15 Implementation Plan 16 Overview 16 How We Plan to Do It 16 Testing the System 16 Documentation 16 Training Users 16 Appendix.. 18 Value Chain Impact 18 Expansion of Database Feature 19 2

4 Executive Summary The Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association (TCDLA) approached our analysis and design team earlier this year to create an extension for their existing website that would allow members to access a variety of data effectively and efficiently. This report will discuss in detail our steps to analyze, design, and finally implement the TCDLA website network expert database design. Included is background information on the TCDLA and introduction of the problems the association had with their existing site. Also included is a brief overview of our analysis of the existing system, and what is proposed for systems design. Concerning the actual design steps of our report, detailed in full is the user interface output and input design with detailed screenshots of the working system. The backend database is covered extensively with the inclusion of entity relationship diagrams, relational models, record keys, and integrity constraints. Our proposed system internal design and logic specifications for human-computer interaction are detailed, along with validation and quality control approaches. Finally, our implementation plan comprises the final portion of the report. This section details testing the system, documentation, user training information, and maintaining the system after implementation is complete. 3

5 Introduction Purpose of Report This project will be an extension to the TCDLA website. This will allow members of the association to have access and search experts by field or past case testimonials within the database infrastructure. This will be offered as an additional feature allowing for greater resources to TCDLA s members. The interface be user friendly, but if the need for help is desired, written instructions as wells as instructional videos will be provided for assistance. Background Information TCDLA started more than 40 years ago as a small non-profit association, and has grown into a state-of the-art organization while providing assistance, support, and continuing education to its members. It is considered the largest state association for criminal defense attorneys in the nation. TCDLA also provides a statewide forum for criminal defense lawyers and is only voice in the legislature interested in basic fairness in criminal defense cases. Systems Analysis Updates System Summary: This Project will be an extension to the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association (TCDLA) Website. It will add a network expert database to the website. The members will be able to search for experts in various fields and compile an address book of those persons previously used and search for new experts by field or past case testimonials. This will be an additional feature to members of the TCDLA Project Summary Project Name: TCDLA Website Network Expert Database Design Responsible User: Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association, a Non-Profit Organization Responsible Analyst(s): Kyle Jones, Lorenzo Valdez, and Jessica Ward Scope: To create a database of experts this can be referenced for members of Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association allowing them research and networking resources. All members will be able to do searches for experts, see testimonials in different legal cases, save past searches or create an address book of contacts. Start Date: August 28 th, 2010 Project Completion Date: May 3 rd, 2011 Completion Date for Structured Specification: December 8 th, 2010 Project Budget Amount: Total Project Cost: $74, Yearly Recurring Costs: $105,

6 System Design Approach Input and Output Requirements & User Interface Requirements Story Board Diagram The purpose of the storyboard diagram is to illustrate the major events of the web interface in chronological order. The first step for the user would be to go to the website. Homepage Login Screen Advanced Search Basic Search Saved Searches Results of Advanced Search Results of Basic Search Address Book Details Save Details Save Details Delete View Testimonials Save View Testimonials Save View Testimonials Delete Address Book Save Save 5

7 Description and Design of Screenshots Suggested Feature Added to Home Page In order to add this expert database search, the only change needed to the homepage is the addition of an Expert Search Engine button. If a member is currently logged in, pressing this button will take the user to the following slide. If the member is not currently logged in or is a first time user, by pressing this button it will take the user to a page asking for them to sign in or create a new account. Suggested Home Page of Expert Database This page could be considered the home page of the expert database section. The current page is also what is shown when a member hits the search button. The user would simply type any criteria into the search box and press the search button. Certain criteria not fitting the index or diction of the database will result in an error message and then prompt for a re-entry of the criteria within the search box in order to proceed to the following slide. 6

8 Results of a Basic Search This page shows the results of the basic search. The user then has the option to click on either the details button to view the credentials or contact information about the expert or save the expert into their saved searches for further analysis. The basic search option brings up all the experts in the system who have the matching criteria the user is in pursuit of. If a member wants to add more criteria to their search, the advanced search option is also available for their liking. Advanced Search Option This option allows the member to select more criteria for picking their expert. In the example below, the member is looking for an expert in the Forensics field, who specializes in DNA, possesses a Doctorate, and is also within the Dallas area. Another example would also be years of experience, even though it is not available in the below search. The member then chooses to click Search button and the results should appear as the criterion is scanned through the database. 7

9 Advanced Search Option Page This screen further demonstrates the results the advanced search option on the left column which was demonstrated in the previous section. The member/user searched on the criteria on the top half of the screen and the results display on the bottom half of the screen after they clicked on search. From this page they have the option to select details to view details on the experts/professionals or to save them to their address book. Details Option Page The next screen shows the resulting page if the member/user selects the details button on the above page for Doe, J. or Dr. John Doe. This page provides details of each expert/professional. It shows their name, specialty field, area of expertise, location, year s experience, education, work experience, contact information and it also gives the member/user an option of view testimonials from other member/users and/or saving the expert/professional to their address book. 8

10 View Testimonials Page This next slide shows the result if the member/user were to click on the view testimonials option on the previous slide. From this slide, it shows the case, the date and the member/user is able to view a transcript of that case. In the case of this slide, Dr. John Doe is an expert and the results show all the cases he was brought in as an expert. This page also gives them the option to save the resulting person to their address book. Saved Searches Page In addition, the member/user is able to select saved searches from the left of their screen at any time they are using this feature and view and make changes to their address book. The next slide is an example of the screen the member/user would see if they selected saved searches. They are able to select details from this screen or delete the expert/professional from their list of saved searches. 9

11 Database & Physical File Design Database Tables The following page will show the database tables including normalization, entity relationship diagrams, record keys and integrity constraints. 10

12 PK lawyerid firstname middlename lastname LAWYER PK lawyerid biography lawschoolinfo contactaddress1 contactaddress2 contactcity contactstate GENERAL INFO PK notablecaseid casename caseinfo NOTABLE CASES PK clientreviewid FK lawyerid FK userid CLIENT REVIEWS PK collegueid FK lawyerid firstname middlename lastname COLLEGUES PK userid userfirstname userlastname useraddress1 useraddress2 usercity USER INFO

13 Table Descriptions 1) Notable Cases a. Includes information on cases a lawyer would like emphasize to a user using the public system. b. Many-to-Many relationship in that many lawyers can have multiple notable cases, and many cases could have had multiple lawyers assigned to the case. 2) Client Reviews a. Client Reviews is a user-populated table that allows users to write reviews and experiences with a particular lawyer. b. Includes a unique identifier in ClientReviewID. Contains the Lawyer and User unique keys as foreign keys to allow for user and lawyer links between tables. c. Finally, table contains the user review contents, and an automatically generated date written. 3) Colleagues a. Colleagues allows for lawyers to input information on lawyers at the same firm, or recommended lawyers pertaining to a specific criminal defense. b. Has it s own unique identifier, as well as the LawyerID as a foreign key. 4) User Info a. User info is a non-lawyer user s public profile. The info in this table will be generated by a user newly subscribed to the website. b. It will contain and automatic unique identifier and the user will generate personal info such as name and contact info. 12

14 Sequence Diagram Article Preview Click on Search() Results Click on an Article Title() Info and Summar y Page Member Click Save Search() Click on Add to Cart() Dashboard Click Home Member Cart Purchas e Article Click on an Buy() Paymen t Info Click on an Purchase() 13

15 Activity Diagram Member Add needed Articles to Cart Purchase Needs expert in legal case and information Looks through articles and expert Search Results Go through Checkout with payment options Login to TCDLA website Searches on TCDLA for expert Article saved to Profile 14

16 System Internal Design & Logic Specifications for Human Computer Interaction Overview The purpose of this deliverable is to create and design the specifications for the humancomputer interaction of our system, along with the validation and quality control approaches. Data validation is the process of ensuring that a program operates on clean, correct, and useful data. Quality control is the process of reviewing the quality of all factors in production. Both of these processes will help the accuracy of our system because it will help check for correctness, meaningfulness, and the security of data that is input into our system. Constructing the System: Validation & Quality Control Approaches We are using MySQL to create our database. After creating our database, we will be using Microsoft s Visual Studio, C#, ASP, HTML, and Visual Basic. Visual studio is the program that we used to develop our graphical user interface. The other four were used as our programming languages. We will be utilizing the programming languages to help communicate our database into the web-interface. When we started designing our system, we began by creating the web server and creating a database. Next, we created the web interface for our system making pages and input forms. We then added to the database the tables: Lawyer, General Info, Notable Cases, Client Reviews, Colleagues, and User Info. We used the data sequence diagram on page 13 to enter the information into the database. We then linked those tables to the input forms on our webinterface. We populated those tables with data to demonstrate the functionality. 15

17 Expert User: Member Submit Search Published Admin The diagram above is an example use-case diagram for our system. The validation of our system occurs when a user enters in their username and password. Depending on whether the logon information is entered in correctly, the web interface will authenticate the user by taking them to the User Member Home page or the Expert Home page. The quality control of this situation happens if a user enters in the wrong information because it will give an error saying that the username or password is wrong. If a user enters in the wrong password more than three times, the system will lock the user out for up to 30 minutes or until the system administrator can unlock the account. 16

18 Implementation Plan Overview This plan is intended to provide information on how we plan to document, test, maintain, audit, and train users. Sound implementation planning is a key element in ensuring the successful delivery of our system. An implementation plan is a management tool for a specific testing measure designed to assist us in managing and monitoring our implementation effectively. It is important for the implementation plan to show the user our objectives, tasks, time allocation, and progress for implementing our system. How We Plan to Do It Testing the System The testing of the system is vital to its success. The test plan is usually written while the system is being developed and contains details of every single thing that will need to be tested. The designers who created the system will conduct the first phase of testing. In addition, this phase of testing will be done before the system is delivered to the end users. The second phase of testing is conducted after the system has been delivered to the customer. If the system fails during either phase of testing, the systems analyst will go back and do some further research, analysis, and design to fix each problem. Documentation After creating the system, we will be using two types of documentation. These types include: user documentation and technical documentation. The user documentation is used to help the users understand the system. When writing the user documentation, we will assume that the users are non-technical people, who want to learn and understand how the system works. The user documentation will include a list of the minimum hardware and software requirements, how to use the features of the system, inputs and outputs, screenshots, and a troubleshooting guide. The technical documentation is intended to help the maintainers of the system to keep the system up and running and fix problems. The technical documentation will include details of the hardware and software required for the system, details of the data structures, details of validation checks, details on how the data is processed, and flowcharts describing how the system works. Training Users Companies of all sizes spend a significant amount of their IT budgets on software. New systems can enhance security and run more sophisticated applications, and those new applications can 17

19 automate tasks previously done manually or provide easier and faster accomplishment of tasks previously performed using older software, thus enhancing productivity. But you won't see the bottom-line benefits of these upgrades unless the end-users of the software can successfully make the transition. That's why it's important to plan an end-user training strategy before you roll out new software, and make sure the plan is scalable so it can grow with your company. We plan to train our users in a hands-on, classroom style instructor led training. In this training session, an instructor will show the database/web administrator how the database works and how to perform common tasks. By allowing the administrator to perform the tasks themselves in a classroom/lab setting, they will feel more comfortable with the system after completing the training session. As for training individual members how to use their dashboards and the system, we will have a help tab with a detailed instruction manual for how to navigate each area of the website. We plan release all maintenance responsibilities to the website/database administrator hired by TCDLA. We will train this employee to maintain our system through installing and issuing updates, backing up our data, and updating our web interface. Anytime an error occurs in which the administrator cannot fix, we will work alongside them until the problem is solved. The success of our system depends greatly on the happiness of our end users, so we strive to develop and upkeep the system that they enjoy using. 18

20 Appendix Value Chain Impact The Value Chain in the Appendix is an adaptation of a generic model that illustrates the primary inputs, processes, and outputs that support the value proposition of TCDLA. Its main location based in Austin, Texas, provides as an excellent focal point to distribute incoming and outgoing information throughout the entire state. The main advantage being located in the capital is that all legislative literature, portfolios, and documents are archived within the capital building and its associated edifices. This allows TCDLA a major resource of information to be processed through its database. This information then can be linked and shared through its other locations as well as their website. Thus, letting members gain access to important information pertaining to their unique purposes. And in addition any information can be saved for later review. All information is processed through the collaboration with the employees and experts before becoming accessible to anyone on the network. That is primarily why any processes and activities of this nature will be the focus of the management system. Management (General, Human Resource, Infrastructure, Technology.) Inputs Management, Members, Experts, Documents and Contact Info. Network of Processes (Management Activities, Member Activities, Saved Processes, Expert Database Processes.) Outputs Services, Resources, Gained Info. and Better Understanding Resources (Information, Capital, Facilities.) Satisfied Customers Synchronized Information Sharing, Distribution, Feedback Loops and Question Forums. 19

21 The Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association (TCDLA) is a legal non-profit educational association with the purpose of furthering lawyer education as the law evolves. The main tool of the TCDLA is a yearly publication of legal cases. The variety of non-profit associations have expanded their resources like online education courses to attract members. The purpose of this proposal is to expand the TCDLA resources to members. With a graduate student evaluation of the TCDLA suggested a complement resource of an educational article database should be offered to members. Specific features and function of the system include the ability to: Create and maintain a new page to the existing website Create a network expert database to the website Allow members to search for experts in various fields and compile and address book of those persons previously used by members Allow members to search for new experts by field or past case testimonials. Provide experts an avenue to showcase their expertise to members. Bridge the current member login to the new resource. Connect experts and TCDLA members in a way that will meet the needs of both the experts and the members Determine the revenue, costs and profit/loss margins of membership The TCDLA expert database system creates a connection between TCDLA members and experts across the entire value chain of TCDLA. This system provides and effective and efficient means of ensuring that members are gaining access to the quality and meaningful information that TCDLA offers. Expansion of Database Feature We expect significant future growth for this database with time. Also as a non-profit organization we hold cost in high consideration wanting to have low cost and high functionality. So a high amount of member collaboration will be useful like in other high functioning low cost systems like Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/wiki), Flicker ( YouTube ( and Linux. By allowing users to contribute index terms, ideas, and report problems. So that through collaboration this legal database can be grown through member help. Thus keeping the administrator workload is reduced as well as the number of administrators necessary for operations of this system. It is expected that the users will require help getting acquainted with the new system so written instructions will be provided online as well as instructional videos. We expect just as the legal education this database will need updating and the adding new material every year. However, with this expansion old material will not be disposed but archived. So, our database will need to accommodate yearly expansion and member access while maintaining a low cost. 20

22 21