Showing papers by "Frederico T. Fonseca published in 2008"

Teaching Object-Oriented Software Engineering through Problem-Based Learning in the Context of Game Design

Abstract: Although Object Orientation is emphasized in software engineering education, few have attempted to alleviate the initial learning curve associated with an inexperienced audience in non-computer science disciplines. The authors propose a Problem-Based Learning curriculum centered on game development to deliver basic Object-Oriented programming concepts in an interactive and engaging manner. Class activities occur within the context of the Object-Oriented Rational Unified Process. One of the most significant contributions of this paper lies in the design of class modules containing tasks intended to educate students on Object-Oriented Software Engineering in an incremental and self-actuated way.

Hermeneus: An Architecture for an Ontology-Enabled Information Retrieval

Abstract: improve IR systems regarding its retriev al and presentation of information, which make the task of finding information more effective, efficient, and interact ive. In this paper we argue that ontologies also greatly improve the e ngineering of such systems. We created a framework that uses ontology to drive the process of engineering an IR system. We develop ed a prototype that shows how a domain specialist withou t knowledge in the IR field can build an IR system with interac tive components. The resulting system provides support for users not only to find their information needs but also to ex tend their state of knowledge. This way, our approach to ontology-enabled information retrieval addresses both the engineerin g aspect described here and also the usability aspect descri bed elsewhere.