Design, Engineering and Architectural Technologies - Assignment Example

The design allows for multiple users making it ideal for a simple work office with various employees. The design also allows for additional applications and is connected to an internet search engine. The architectural design also has aqua-logic interaction thereby making it useful for people not quite conversant with information technology. This architecture is preferred courtesy of its use of widely used applications. It uses windows (Microsoft) applications which are widely used by a majority.

This makes it easy for the customization of this design with respect to the various clients who might need it. The design also allows multiple data sources giving it that touch of multiple users which is important for any design. A mashup in my own definition is a web page or application that uses data from various sources to create a single service that is displayed in a single graphical interface. A good example of a mashup is a combination of addresses and photographs of the library branches of a school that can be said to create a map mashup.

A mashup basically means that the system is easy and has a faster integration. A mashup uses open application programming interfaces (API) and data sources thereby producing enriched results. These enriched results are not necessarily the original reason for the production of raw source data. Architectural principles are hugely impacted by mashups due to their unique characteristics. These characteristics include combination, aggregation, and visualization. Mashups ensure that the existing data is made more useful so that it can be used personally and professionally.

Mashups are an important tool for architectural designs as they are mostly client applications or hosted online. Increasingly, more web applications are publishing APIs that allow for the integration of data and function by software developers. This makes it important for architectural designers to ensure that they make provisions for APIs. The architecture of a mashup has three layers which include, Presentation, web services, and Data. Mashups can also be said to be two types in terms of architecture.

These are web-based and server-based. Business Intelligence (BI) is crucial to any business that wants to grow through having the competitive advantage of reaping the benefits of BI. This will involve more than just the implementation of the relevant technology. In this response, we will discuss how architectural designers need to ensure that their designs provide for this important component. When coming up with an architectural design, developers should ensure that they evaluate and apply architectural principles to ensure businesses get the most applicable value from the systems.

There are several architectural principles that must be considered. These include Maximizing benefit to the enterprise. The system once developed should provide as much benefit as possible so as to ensure that the business receives as much value as possible for their investment. Business reports should be as clear as possible and answer all questions that the management would like answered by the report. Data is an asset. This principle argues that the data collected is an asset to the organization and therefore should be treated as so.

To make the data relevant, it needs to be analyzed and reported in an easy-to-read and understand format. This is done through business intelligence.