User-centric mashup applications and user-acceptance analysis : an example of iGoogle based widgets on the Google calendar platform | |
| Author | Bhattarai, Sirsha |
| Call Number | AIT Thesis no.ICT-10-08 |
| Subject(s) | MASH (Computer program) Web services |
| Note | A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Engineering in Information and Communications Technologies, School of Engineering and Technology |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Series Statement | Thesis ; no. ICT-10-08 |
| Abstract | Mashups are web applications which combine data, content and application functionality from multiple sources, to result in a single value-added application and have been gaining wide popularity over the past few years. Due to inherent programming difficulties required in integrating data and services from multiple sources, mashups have largely been a programmer’s affair. Several tools and platform exist to support user-created mashups (e.g. Yahoo! Pipes, IBM Mashup Center, Intel Mashmaker etc.), which do not require programming; however working with them is still complex, and their inability to directly impact existing activities and daily lives of end-users provide little motivation for their adoption and sustained use. The current work aims to design and implement a simple mashup platform which provides greater motivation for mashups usage, by relating every-day calendar events to useful gadgets (as services). The platform offers high level of abstraction to end-users, which eliminates the need for programming and the burden of knowing about data flows from one service to the other. The platform exhibits context-orientation and personalization features which are believed to improve user experience in the system. Strong focus on functionality integration rather than data integration is believed to create greater usefulness and motivation in using the system. The system is evaluated by 131 end-users to test for usability. Results show that users perceive the system to have high values for perceived usefulness and ease-of-use. Most users spent less than the ‘average expected time’ to complete the given scenario, indicating that it is easy to use our system. Also, the system has been used as a representative example in proposing a user-acceptance model for service mashups, the model being based on the popular Unified Theory of Use and Acceptance of Technology (UTAUT) (Venkatesh et al., 2003). Various hypotheses are proposed to show relations between the variables proposed in the model, and to model ‘behavioral intention’. Almost all proposed hypotheses have been statistically proved, by means of correlation. The model can be used as a reference for user-driven information mashups, and may be subject to further refinements. |
| Year | 2010 |
| Corresponding Series Added Entry | Asian Institute of Technology. Thesis ; no. ICT-10-08 |
| Type | Thesis |
| School | School of Engineering and Technology (SET) |
| Department | Department of Information and Communications Technologies (DICT) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Information and Communication Technology (ICT) |
| Chairperson(s) | Teerapat Sanguankotchakorn; |
| Examination Committee(s) | Erke, Tapio J.;Vatcharaporn Esichaikul; |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | Government of Finland;AIT Fellowship French Cooperation; |
| Degree | Thesis (M.Eng.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2010 |