title: Exploring usability evaluation of localised software in Malaysia

authors: Yeo, Alvin

abstract: This thesis postulates the theory that software usability evaluation should be adapted to the culture in which it is carried out. An experiment has been conducted to explore the effectiveness of usability assessment tools (UATs). These UATs are studied in the context of usability evaluation phase of the global software development life-cycle. In particular, the study investigates whether imported UATs were appropriate in the usability evaluation of a localised spreadsheet in Malaysia. The experiment reveals that there is some support for the thesis and recommends a further large-scale formal study.

text: Exploring usability evaluation of localised software in Malaysia This thesis postulates the theory that software usability evaluation should be adapted to the culture in which it is carried out. An experiment has been conducted to explore the effectiveness of usability assessment tools (UATs). These UATs are studied in the context of usability evaluation phase of the global software development life-cycle. In particular, the study investigates whether imported UATs were appropriate in the usability evaluation of a localised spreadsheet in Malaysia. The experiment reveals that there is some support for the thesis and recommends a further large-scale formal study.

year: 2002

title: Evaluating the Effectiveness of Conformance-Based Plans: Attributing Built Heritage Outcomes to Plan Implementation Under New Zealand's Resource Management Act

authors: Mason, Greg

subjects: plan effectiveness

abstract: Little is known about the effectiveness of district plans in protecting built heritage, which is a matter of national importance under New Zealand's Resource Management Act 1991 (RMAct). This is despite the fact that the RMAct directs planning agencies to evaluate the effectiveness of plan provisions. This lack of evaluation is not unique to New Zealand or merely symptomatic of heritage planning. Instead, it is a shortcoming in planning theory and practice internationally; a well recognised impediment being that planning lacks a suitable evaluation approach. This thesis aims to address this deficiency by proposing a methodology for evaluating plan effectiveness and applying it to the built heritage provisions of two district plans.

The methodology adopted has been shaped by the theory-based and realist evaluation approaches, as developed in the field of programme evaluation. Both approaches share a common ontology regarding claims of causality, which stresses 'knowledge in context'. Thus, a central endeavour of the research is not only to identify the environmental outcomes arising from plan implementation, but also to understand how and why the implementation context promoted or inhibited the achievement of plan goals. In so doing, the causal and implementation theories underpinning the plans' heritage provisions are exposed, modelled and tested.

The findings reveal that plan implementation failed to prevent the loss of built heritage values in many instances. While the plans' causal theory was largely sound, key aspects of the implementation theory were not realised during the development control process. Plan quality was a significant factor, as was the commitment and capacity of developers to comply with the plans. The institutional fixation on consent processing speed rather than environmental outcomes was a further impediment. Overall, the theory-based approach provided a useful framework for determining plan effectiveness and holds promise for evaluating plan issues other than built heritage.

text: Evaluating the Effectiveness of Conformance-Based Plans: Attributing Built Heritage Outcomes to Plan Implementation Under New Zealand's Resource Management Act Little is known about the effectiveness of district plans in protecting built heritage, which is a matter of national importance under New Zealand's Resource Management Act 1991 (RMAct). This is despite the fact that the RMAct directs planning agencies to evaluate the effectiveness of plan provisions. This lack of evaluation is not unique to New Zealand or merely symptomatic of heritage planning. Instead, it is a shortcoming in planning theory and practice internationally; a well recognised impediment being that planning lacks a suitable evaluation approach. This thesis aims to address this deficiency by proposing a methodology for evaluating plan effectiveness and applying it to the built heritage provisions of two district plans.

The methodology adopted has been shaped by the theory-based and realist evaluation approaches, as developed in the field of programme evaluation. Both approaches share a common ontology regarding claims of causality, which stresses 'knowledge in context'. Thus, a central endeavour of the research is not only to identify the environmental outcomes arising from plan implementation, but also to understand how and why the implementation context promoted or inhibited the achievement of plan goals. In so doing, the causal and implementation theories underpinning the plans' heritage provisions are exposed, modelled and tested.

The findings reveal that plan implementation failed to prevent the loss of built heritage values in many instances. While the plans' causal theory was largely sound, key aspects of the implementation theory were not realised during the development control process. Plan quality was a significant factor, as was the commitment and capacity of developers to comply with the plans. The institutional fixation on consent processing speed rather than environmental outcomes was a further impediment. Overall, the theory-based approach provided a useful framework for determining plan effectiveness and holds promise for evaluating plan issues other than built heritage.

year: 2008

title: Te Tāhū o Ranginui: Whakatūria te Whare Kōkōrangi

authors: Tuahine, Hōhepa

subjects: Whānau Mārama

abstract: I ngā rā o tuawhakarere he matatau te Māori ki ngā nekeneke o te Whānau Mārama. Ko ngā mātauranga katoa e whai take ana ki te Whānau Mārama i pupuritia e ngā iwi. I whai take tēnei mātauranga i roto i ngā mahi katoa. Ko te onoono me te hauhake huawhenua, ko te hī ika, ko te takahi haere i te whenua, ko te pakanga, ko ngā tikanga ōkawa. Ka tohu hoki i ngā peka o te tau, me ngā mahi o ia rā. Ko ngā nekeneke o te Whānau Mārama ngā kaitohu, ngā kaiārahi i ngā waka o tāukiuki. Mā te āta mātai i ngā whetū, ka whakatere i te mata whānui o Tangaroa. Otirā, ka nōhia ngā moutere o te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa. I whakaakoria motuhaketia tēnei mātauranga i roto i ngā whare wānanga e kīa rā, ko te whare kōkōrangi.
He whare kōkōrangi, ā, he tohunga kōkōrangi ō ngā iwi katoa, kāore he mātauranga i tua atu i taua whare me ōna tohunga. Engari, nō te taenga mai o te Pākehā i ngā tau whakamutunga o te rau tau tekau mā waru ka raupatuhia te whenua, ka motu ai te here ki ngā tūrangawaewae. Ka mimiti haere tēnei mātauranga. Tae rawa ake ki ngā tau o te 1900, i noho mū ngā whare kōkōrangi o te Māori me te mea nei i kapia te tatau e kore e huaki anō. Heoi, tērā ētahi kairangahau Māori e nanao atu ana kia kumea taua tatau nā e huaki anō ai te whare kōkōrangi, e hahūtia anō ai ōna mātauranga katoa, kei noho mōteatea haere ake nei. E koke ana ētahi rangahau o mohoa nei kia kohikohi i ngā mātauranga Whānau Mārama o te Māori kia whakahaumanutia, kia whakaorangia tēnei āhuatanga o te Māori.
He tuhinga tēnei ka tākoha atu ki taua kohikohinga, ā, ko tōna matū he wetewete i ngā kura huna kei ngā mātauranga Māori ā-waha. Mā te tātari whakataukī, waiata me te karakia, ka kitea mēnā kei ēnei taonga o te Māori te oranga tonutanga o te Whānau Mārama. Otirā, ka kitea mēnā e taea tēnei whare te whakatū ki te ao hurihuri nei kia huaki anō ai te tatau hei kuhutanga ake mā te Māori.

Traditionally Māori maintained extensive knowledge of the night sky, and made detailed observations of the sun, the moon, the planets, the stars and the movements of the various celestial bodies. This knowledge influenced all aspects of traditional Māori life including planting and harvesting, fishing, travel, warfare, ceremony and seasonal and daily activity. It was their understanding of the night sky that enabled the ancestors of the Māori to traverse the largest expanse of ocean in the world to settle the islands of the Pacific. Māori astronomical knowledge was taught within the whare kōkōrangi, institutions specifically established for the purpose of astronomy and its related fields.
All tribal groups had their own whare kōkōrangi under the instruction of astronomical experts, and these institutions were seen as the pinnacle of Māori learning. However with the arrival of European settlers in the late eighteenth century and the negative impacts of colonisation, Māori astronomical knowledge began to erode. By the 1900s the whare kōkōrangi were no longer in use and this crucial part of Māori society seemed to have been lost to time. Yet, rather than lamenting the loss of this knowledge base, a number of Māori researchers are beginning to explore the field with the long-term vision of re-establishing the whare kōkōrangi.
Currently there is significant research being undertaken that is searching for the remaining fragments of Māori astronomical knowledge in an attempt to re- discover and revitalise this field. This thesis is part of this new movement and in particular seeks to understand how Māori knowledge is imbedded and encoded within the Māori language. By analysing a number of traditional Māori proverbs, songs and incantations, this thesis argues that much of the record of Māori astronomy can be reconfigured and re-established. Furthermore, the whare kōkōrangi can once again be central in the knowledge base and in the lives of all Māori.

text: Te Tāhū o Ranginui: Whakatūria te Whare Kōkōrangi I ngā rā o tuawhakarere he matatau te Māori ki ngā nekeneke o te Whānau Mārama. Ko ngā mātauranga katoa e whai take ana ki te Whānau Mārama i pupuritia e ngā iwi. I whai take tēnei mātauranga i roto i ngā mahi katoa. Ko te onoono me te hauhake huawhenua, ko te hī ika, ko te takahi haere i te whenua, ko te pakanga, ko ngā tikanga ōkawa. Ka tohu hoki i ngā peka o te tau, me ngā mahi o ia rā. Ko ngā nekeneke o te Whānau Mārama ngā kaitohu, ngā kaiārahi i ngā waka o tāukiuki. Mā te āta mātai i ngā whetū, ka whakatere i te mata whānui o Tangaroa. Otirā, ka nōhia ngā moutere o te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa. I whakaakoria motuhaketia tēnei mātauranga i roto i ngā whare wānanga e kīa rā, ko te whare kōkōrangi.
He whare kōkōrangi, ā, he tohunga kōkōrangi ō ngā iwi katoa, kāore he mātauranga i tua atu i taua whare me ōna tohunga. Engari, nō te taenga mai o te Pākehā i ngā tau whakamutunga o te rau tau tekau mā waru ka raupatuhia te whenua, ka motu ai te here ki ngā tūrangawaewae. Ka mimiti haere tēnei mātauranga. Tae rawa ake ki ngā tau o te 1900, i noho mū ngā whare kōkōrangi o te Māori me te mea nei i kapia te tatau e kore e huaki anō. Heoi, tērā ētahi kairangahau Māori e nanao atu ana kia kumea taua tatau nā e huaki anō ai te whare kōkōrangi, e hahūtia anō ai ōna mātauranga katoa, kei noho mōteatea haere ake nei. E koke ana ētahi rangahau o mohoa nei kia kohikohi i ngā mātauranga Whānau Mārama o te Māori kia whakahaumanutia, kia whakaorangia tēnei āhuatanga o te Māori.
He tuhinga tēnei ka tākoha atu ki taua kohikohinga, ā, ko tōna matū he wetewete i ngā kura huna kei ngā mātauranga Māori ā-waha. Mā te tātari whakataukī, waiata me te karakia, ka kitea mēnā kei ēnei taonga o te Māori te oranga tonutanga o te Whānau Mārama. Otirā, ka kitea mēnā e taea tēnei whare te whakatū ki te ao hurihuri nei kia huaki anō ai te tatau hei kuhutanga ake mā te Māori.

Traditionally Māori maintained extensive knowledge of the night sky, and made detailed observations of the sun, the moon, the planets, the stars and the movements of the various celestial bodies. This knowledge influenced all aspects of traditional Māori life including planting and harvesting, fishing, travel, warfare, ceremony and seasonal and daily activity. It was their understanding of the night sky that enabled the ancestors of the Māori to traverse the largest expanse of ocean in the world to settle the islands of the Pacific. Māori astronomical knowledge was taught within the whare kōkōrangi, institutions specifically established for the purpose of astronomy and its related fields.
All tribal groups had their own whare kōkōrangi under the instruction of astronomical experts, and these institutions were seen as the pinnacle of Māori learning. However with the arrival of European settlers in the late eighteenth century and the negative impacts of colonisation, Māori astronomical knowledge began to erode. By the 1900s the whare kōkōrangi were no longer in use and this crucial part of Māori society seemed to have been lost to time. Yet, rather than lamenting the loss of this knowledge base, a number of Māori researchers are beginning to explore the field with the long-term vision of re-establishing the whare kōkōrangi.
Currently there is significant research being undertaken that is searching for the remaining fragments of Māori astronomical knowledge in an attempt to re- discover and revitalise this field. This thesis is part of this new movement and in particular seeks to understand how Māori knowledge is imbedded and encoded within the Māori language. By analysing a number of traditional Māori proverbs, songs and incantations, this thesis argues that much of the record of Māori astronomy can be reconfigured and re-established. Furthermore, the whare kōkōrangi can once again be central in the knowledge base and in the lives of all Māori.

year: 2015