Successful Development of PC Engineering Applications
R. E. Schwager, J. O. Baldwin, M.J. Lochmann, L.E. George · 1988
Successful Development of PC Engineering Applications R.E. Schwager; R.E. Schwager Mobil E and P U.S. Inc. Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Scholar J.O. Baldwin; J.O. Baldwin Mobil E and P U.S. Inc. Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Scholar M.J. Lochmann; M.J. Lochmann SoftSearch Inc. Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Scholar L.E. George L.E. George Mobil Oil Canada Ltd. Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Scholar Paper presented at the Petroleum Computer Conference, San Jose, California, June 1988. Paper Number: SPE-17774-MS https://doi.org/10.2118/17774-MS Published: June 27 1988 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Twitter LinkedIn Get Permissions Search Site Citation Schwager, R.E., Baldwin, J.O., Lochmann, M.J., and L.E. George. "Successful Development of PC Engineering Applications." Paper presented at the Petroleum Computer Conference, San Jose, California, June 1988. doi: https://doi.org/10.2118/17774-MS Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentAll ProceedingsSociety of Petroleum Engineers (SPE)SPE Petroleum Computer Conference Search Advanced Search AbstractPersonal computers alone cannot change the effectiveness of energy professionals. This will be achieved only through the development and implementation of useful software tools. Software developers, either internal staffs or third party vendors, must establish strategies and standards which determine the design and function of the final product. The environment in which the software operates must be compatible with the philosophy of the developer, while simultaneously addressing all of the legitimate needs of the user community.IntroductionEngineering applications should be easy enough to use that training on the system is not essential for engineers to utilize them effectively. The objective should be to promote the use of advanced computer technology to its maximum potential, without requiring engineers to become computer experts. The result will be increased company value and decreased costs. This objective is usually attainable regardless of the complexity of the task. However, we must avoid the tendency to overdevelop the applications, leading to the .. one-button" solution syndrome, which is characterized by applications that over simplify the problem that they are meant to solve. This oversimplification and resulting lack of user interaction usually leads to the application's misuse, and consequently, in erroneous answers.In many instances, existing engineering applications satisfy the basic analytical needs of the engineering professional. They accept input data, calculate the results and output those results to the engineer for interpretation and analysis. Most were written before the PC was invented, utilizing input and output methods that are inadequate by current standards. These older applications usually require an extensive amount of training to use even their basic features. The more advanced capabilities are sometimes never used because they are too cumbersome and time consuming to learn. As such, these applications are not conducive to increasing productivity among the engineers using them.We therefore believe that most of these older engineering applications must either be rewritten to incorporate enhancements to the user interface, or replaced with a new generation of applications. This is the key to the substantial gains in productivity that management is seeking to justify their investments in computer technology.To investigate how this new generation of engineering applications might be developed, we will discuss several critical areas of application development methodology, analyzing how each area applies specifically to engineering applications. These areas of interest are:–Establishing a development philosophy.–User needs versus development philosophy.–The software development cycle.–Organizational approaches.–Potential problems.P. 23^ Keywords: data processing professional, upstream oil & gas, development team, developer, data processing department, vendor, requirement, application development, engineering application, successful development Subjects: Information Management and Systems This content is only available via PDF. 1988. Society of Petroleum Engineers You can access this article if you purchase or spend a download.