SATNAC 2009 Conference Papers
Work in Progress – Poster Session
Title: Comparing Legacy System Modernization
Approaches for a Service Oriented Architecture
Authors: Meredith Barnes
(
Abstract: Legacy systems are often at the centre of
business procedures of large organisations resulting in a need to modernize
these systems as they can begin to resist change over time. The primary goal of
this paper is to describe a comparative study of two modernization approaches
applied to the same legacy system to generate data services. The two approaches
are white-box and black-box. The white-box approach requires knowledge of
legacy code and functionality whereas the black-box approach wraps the legacy
code in a software adapter layer. The analysis of the data services generated
by the modernization will be based on quality metrics for services,
effectiveness of the services generated and developer’s effort to migrate
the legacy systems to services. The contribution of this research is to provide
developers with knowledge of which approach is more suitable to modernize
legacy systems for a SOA.
Title: Design of Energy Conscious Antenna System for
WLAN Frequency Band
Authors: Mncendisi Bembe (Council for Industrial
and Scientific Research), Albert Lysko (Council for Industrial and Scientific
Research), Thulani Nyandeni (
Abstract: The electronically steerable parasitic array radiator
(ESPAR) antenna system is configured with one feed radiating element and
N-parasitic radiating elements. The radiation pattern is electronically
controlled by means of the variable devices loading the parasitic elements.
These imply the achievement of low power antenna system with low fabrication
cost. The ESPAR antenna can be designed to cover the frequency bands of the
wireless local area network (WLAN), which are 2.4GHz and 5.8GHz. The
modification can be achieved by loading the antenna elements with lumped
circuits and a matching network system. This will be done by using the genetic
algorithm optimisation technique.
Title: Design of an Ad Hoc Wireless Network for Animal
Tracking and Environmental Management
Authors: Johan Brits (
Abstract: This paper discusses the concept design
and preliminary results on the implementation of an ad hoc network for wildlife
telemetry tracking. The design problem overview is given, as well as background
on ad hoc networks. A detailed link
budget is calculated using the Radio Mobile software. The paper then continues
to describe constraints in the design of the network and evaluates MAC and
routing protocols for implementation. A design methodology is stipulated for
the mathematical modelling and simulation of these protocols.
Title: An Investigation of the Adequacy of Agent
Platforms for Rural e-Service Provisioning
Authors: Octavia
Chidyiwa (University of
Abstract: This research serves to investigate the
adequacy and suitability of agent platforms for rural e-Service provisioning.
The adoption of new and innovative forms of service provision such as the use
of Agent architecture may help improve service provision in rural areas. A
basic network monitoring application will be deployed on Jade and Aglets mobile
agent platforms as a basis for comparing these two platforms in terms of the
robustness and fault-tolerance, mobility, intelligence, and suitability for
rurality context.
Title: A VXML Based IMAP/POP Client Using JAVA
Authors: Langton
Chivese (University of
Abstract: In a world of technological advancement
people rely mostly on phones as the medium of choice for communication and also
for any services of interest for example banking services. This provided
reliable services because you are not limited by time or position, you can
access these services any time of the day and anywhere at any particular day. A
rural remote area Dwesa in the
Title: Improving the Qos of
Location Services Using Adaptive and Environment-Aware Positioning
Authors: Folasade Dahunsi (
Abstract: Location Based Services (LBS) are an
important aspect of the ubiquitous wireless world and are paving the way to
provide users with customizable services anywhere and at anytime. LBS have
varying accuracy requirements and not all location methods can provide the
required LBS accuracy at a particular geographical location due to error sources.
The sources of errors include geographical sources, wireless environment
sources, measurement bias, geometric sources, etc. This paper presents work in
progress on the development of an adaptive and environment-aware positioning
based on the dynamically varying factors that affects the location method. The
developed location method will allow mobile network operators to compare
different location methods to ensure the provision of guaranteed quality of
service to the mobile user and optimized usage of infrastructure.
Authors: Alrich Els (
Abstract: Modern managers increasingly base their
business decisions on the evaluation and interpretation of data. To assist with
the decision making process, many mathematical models can be applied. In this
study, two specific models viz. Linear Response Surface Analysis (LRSA) and
Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) will be investigated and compared with specific
reference to the telecommunications industry. The final objective is to provide
a framework that can be used to guide decision makers in selecting the
appropriate model under certain circumstances.
Title: The Application of Sampling to Web Crawler
Design
Authors: Mandlenkosi Gwetu (
Abstract: The growth of the World Wide Web (WWW) has
seen it evolve into a rich information resource. It is constantly traversed with
the aid of crawlers so as to harvest web content. When collecting data,
crawlers have the potential of causing service denial to web servers. This
paper proposes the application of sampling as a selection strategy in the
design of web crawlers. This has the benefit of alleviating the problems of
bandwidth costs to web servers whilst retaining the quality of the data that is
mined by crawlers. The initial results of this study are promising and are
presented in this paper.
Title: An Investigation and
Development of an e-Health Component for the Dwesa-Cwebe Rural Area
Authors: Bulumko Hlungulu (University of
Abstract: Rural communities are
limited from accessing health information available on internet or the South
African Department of Health website. This is due to poor infrastructures (i.e.
lack of clinics or Internet) and that gives them problems in accessing
information about health. The availability of Information and Communication
Technologies (ICTs) in a rural community can provide the community with a
number of benefitial solutions to their problems. This paper gives a
description of an on-going e-Health component development process for
Dwesa-Cwebe rural community using Free and Open Sources Software. This Rural
community is situated in the Province of Eastern Cape of South Africa.
Authors: Dumani Kunjuzwa (University of
Abstract: It is evident that Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is
widely used in rural communities. Today we easily get connected and communicate
with the rest of the world through communication technologies such as the
Internet and telephones. An Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system is one of
the tools which are used by small and large organizations for communication
purposes. This system helps clients of the organization to acquire information without
physically visiting the organization. The goal of this research is to develop a
framework with IVR components which will allow one to develop an IVR system.
Title: The Construction of a High Power Fiber Laser
Authors: Josias Le Roux (University
Abstract: The paper presents work in progress for research
on high power fiber lasers (HPFL). A fiber laser is a laser in which the active
gain medium or the laser medium is an optical fiber usually doped with
rare-earth elements such as erbium,ytterbium, and neodymium. The functionality
of a basic laser, enabling high output power and the difficulties in achieving
them are covered in the paper. Concepts such as stimulated emission and
coherent light are briefly discussed and the aims of the research are also
defined. In the past, fiber lasers have been unable to meet high output power
requirements for industrial and military applications, but due to the growth in
technology through the years, a number of methodologies have been developed to
achieve output powers of 1kW and more. It is possible to achieve an output
power of 1kW or more with a fiber laser by changing some of the fiber laser
components and determining the correct methodology to be used.
Title: Design and
Implementation of Dynamic Source Routing with Bandwidth Awareness
Authors: Johan Magnus (
Abstract: An ad-hoc network is a wireless network
without fixed infrastructure. The nodes are free to move around and this makes
it a challenge for routing protocols to manage the data transfer on networks.
The nodes can be various devices ranging from laptops to cell phones that use
the IEEE 802.11 standard protocol to communicate with each other. In this paper
we investigate the need that exists for efficient routing protocols for
wireless networks, more specifically ad-hoc networks. Most of the current
reactive routing protocols use hop count to determine the shortest path from
source to destination. We proposed to implement bandwidth as an additional
metric in the DSR protocol.
Title: Energy and Spectrum Efficiency in Rural Areas
Based on Cognitive Radio Technology
Authors: Moshe Masonta (
Abstract: The rapid growth and development observed in wireless communications has
resulted in the overcrowding of the radio spectrum used as a communication
medium in wireless networks. In many countries, governmental agencies regulate
the use of the radio spectrum by assigning a portion of the spectrum in the
form of a renewable license to any company or person who wishes to use the
wireless medium for communication purposes; this is in order to allow efficient
utilization of this scarce resource. The need to close the digital divide means
that cost effective communication technologies should be deployed in rural
areas for wireless broadband connectivity. Cognitive Radio (CR) is seen as a
technology that will bring a new communication paradigm to address spectrum
scarcity in the most energy efficient manner. In this paper we present the
proposed work to be carried out as part of a doctoral thesis to address the
spectrum scarcity and transmission power in energy constrained rural areas.
Title: Mobility Management in the Evolved Packet Core
Authors: Francis
Masuabi (
Abstract: A key aspect facet of the System Architecture
Evolution is the specification of the Evolved Packet Core which supports
multiple access networks. While the user roams from one network to another, a
seamless handover is required to provide superior quality of service. One of
the crucial goals of the EPC is to provide seamless mobility across multiple
radio access technology as the mobile terminal traverses networks. And with an
increased demand in real time applications, means of handling large volumes of
traffic are needed thus making route optimization important. This Work in
Progress paper proposes an elementary hybrid client-network based mobility
protocol to make FMC ascertain together with a route optimization solution to
realize local breakout.
Title: A Film Rating System For
Television Developed Using A Widget-Based Approach
Authors: Paco Mendes (
Abstract: A widget is a packaged, interactive
client-side application, authored using Web standards and capable of accessing
local and remote data services. Widgets have become an alternative approach for
developing interactive television (ITV) applications that make use of Web based services. A film rating system is being
developed using a widget-based approach. A custom platform API and supporting
Web service is being implemented to emulate a distributed ITV application. The
goals of this research are to evaluate widget approaches to distributed
software development and to model the relationship between the key sub-systems
of a widget-based ITV application.
Title: Building a Delivery
Platform for Literacy Research and Literacy Development
Authors: Bwini Mudimba (
Abstract: Our FundaWethu software program is a Computer Aided Instruction (CAI)
system designed to deliver reading lessons to Grade R-3 (foundation phase)
children who are learning to read in a multilingual context. Starting from a
premise that the system should be ı"edutainment" based, the system
allows literacy researchers or teachers to construct rich multimedia reading
lessons, with words, animated pictures, and prerecorded syllables, words or
sentences. The objective is to make the lesson authoring easy enough for use by
non computer specialists, but expressive enough to enable a wide range of
beginners reading exercises to be constructed in a number of different
languages. This
paper therefore outlines the process of
Title: Developing a Video on
Demand Service Using Mobicents JSLEE
Authors: Ray Musvibe (
Abstract: This paper describes the
development of a Video on Demand service using Mobicents JSLEE , an open source
Service Delivery Platform. A discussion is given on the component architecture
of Mobicents JSLEE and how the programmatic components interact. An evaluation
of available open source IMS clients with video support for the envisioned
service is also given.
Title: A Deaf-to-hearing Communication Aid on a Mobile
Phone
Authors: Muyowa Mutemwa (University of the
Abstract: This paper seeks
to discuss work in progress to implement a preliminary mock-up of a
Deafto-hearing communication aid on a mobile phone. The goal is to ease
communication between a Deaf and hearing users with interpreted communication
between sign language and English on a mobile platform. The mock-up is meant to
help a Deaf person convey medical conditions to a doctor face-to-face in the
office. The user interface has pre-recorded sign language videos for the Deaf
user, and English text for the doctor. This paper introduces the background of
the project and briefly discusses related technology. Results from a
preliminary trial of the PC-based mock-up with actual Deaf users are reported
and discussed. Finally mapped out is a way to implement the communication aid
system on a mobile device in a context free manner, allowing the plug and play
of more communication scenarios.
Title: Evaluation of
Transport Layer Protocols for Wireless Multi-hop Networks
Authors: Sakhile Ncanana
(
Abstract: Transport Layer protocols (TLP), protocols
responsible for connection establishment and ensuring that all data are
transmitted from source to target destination safely. TLPs provide QoS in
various ways, but we are unable to identify the optimal protocol, since TLPs
have not been compared in a consistent manner in previous works. We have
designed the framework based on the literature, which we followed to analyse,
categories and select the representatives TLPs samples to be compare and in
order recommend the design features for and ideal TLPs that should be followed
when designing the TLP for WMNs.
Title: An Investigation of Location-Based Services in
the Mobicents Framework
Authors: Shange-Ishiwa Ndakunda (
Abstract: This paper
describes a study of the issues surrounding location-based services (LBSs) and
the lack of sufficient LBS development facilities in the Mobicents JAIN-SLEE
service delivery platform. A discussion of important location-based services
standards highlights a protocol-independent model that includes a Location
Generator (LG), a Location Server (LS) and a Location Receiver(LR). This paper
proposes the use of the Mobicents service delivery platform as a Location Server for LGs and LRs developed with a
location-based services toolkit tailored for the Mobicents environment.
Title: Deployment and Extension of a Converged
WiMAX/WiFi Network for Dwesa Community Area South Africa
Authors: Nkanyiso Ndlovu (University
of
Abstract: As demand for new, reliable, flexible and
relatively inexpensive internet access in marginalized rural areas in
developing countries increases, there is a need to amalgamate broadband
technologies such as WiMAX and WiFi so as to extend the coverage area.
Consequently, this will enable provision of high-speed mobile data and
telecommunications services. This paper describes how WiMAX and WiFi can be
merged together, with VSAT technology offering backhaul internet connectivity
to provide ever present broadband access. We also look at their respective
network applications and how there are going to be used to help support ICT4D
activities in these marginalized areas.
Title: Cost Sharing and Revenue Management System:
Siyakhula Living Lab (SLL) Case Study
Authors: Sikhumbuzo Ngwenya
(University of
Abstract: The services provided by the use of dynamic
Information and Communication Technology tools have influenced the lives of
people in various ways. These include better communication platforms such as
the Internet where services like e-learning, ecommerce and e-banking amongst
others are done. The majority of the rural communities remain digitally
marginalized. The advent of wireless technologies such as VSAT, WiMAX and WiFi
has brought hope for the extension of digital life to the marginalized
communities. A lot of financial resources are being channelled towards the
setting up of satellite ICT4D projects as they set a favourable starting point
for the provision of other developmental initiatives. The capital ensured by
the sponsors in the developmental stages of ICT4D projects intensifies the move
by many to embrace the projects. However, when these projects have been
completed the ownership is transferred to the targeted users. The shortage of
resources in these areas has lead to projects failure. This paper describes the
conceptual design of a cost sharing and revenue management system for the
Siyakhula Living Lab to help manage and generate revenue for its
sustainability.
Title: Virtual Classrooms: The Future of Education
Authors: Michael
Nyarko (
Abstract: With the advancement in technology and the
internet, the way that teaching and learning occurs is expected to follow suit.
Title: Network Simulation for Professional Audio
Networks
Authors: Fred Otten (
Abstract: Audio Engineers are required to carefully
plan networks based on set requirements before deploying them. They need to
take into consideration the bandwidth available, the latency of audio and
control data and make sure the correct number of audio channels can be
transmitted. Network simulation can be used to determine the relevant bandwidth
and latencies in any given scenario. It can also be used to determine optimal
layouts and routes. This paper investigates the current state of network
simulation for professional audio networks and presents the design of an
architecture which can be used to simulate professional audio networks. It
concludes that an analytical approach should be used and presents an object
model which can be used to represent a professional audio network.
Title: Passive Traffic Inspection for Automated
Firewall Rule Set Generation
Authors: Georg-Christian Pranschke (
Abstract: The introduction of network filters and chokes such as
firewalls in existing operational network is often problematic, due to considerations
that need to be made to minimise the interruption of existent legitimate
traffic. This often necessitates the time consuming manual analysis of network
traffic over a period of time in order to generate and vet the rule bases to
minimise disruption of legitimate flows. To improve upon this, a system
facilitating network traffic analysis and firewall rule set generation is
proposed. The system shall be capable to deal with the ever increasing traffic
volumes and help to provide and maintain high uptimes. A high level overview of
the design of the components is presented. Additions to the system are scoring
metrics which may assist the administrator to optimise the rule sets for the
most efficient matching of flows, based on traffic volume, frequency or packet
count. A third party package - Firewall
Builder - is used to target the resultant
rule sets to a number of different firewall and network Filtering platforms.
Authors: Grethe Rademan (
Abstract: Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) poses a
number of design challenges. Most WSN do not follow the same methodology even
though the purpose is uniform. Mobile Ad Hoc Networks (MANETs) are networks
that are typified by being infrastructure-less and self-organizing. Using MANET
protocols in WSN has become more common, but many changes need to be made to
accommodate the low-power, low-cost and reliability needs of WSN. Re-examining
the data link layer and the network layer of such networks render the best
improvement on WSN needs, thus simulating and analyzing enhanced Medium Access
Control (MAC) and routing strategies and adapting them to be consistent with
realistic predictions and comparing strategies for the best end result.
Title: Developing a Toolkit for Video-oriented
Services in the NGN Environment
Authors: Zelalem Shibeshi (
Abstract: The development of
broadband and other communication network infrastructures together with the
demand for converged services has led to the introduction of Next Generation
Networks (NGN). Various efforts have been put forward to develop a standardized
infrastructure to implement an NGN. One infrastructure that can be used to
deliver a converged service is IMS (IP Multimedia Subsystem). On the other
hand, the demand for video-oriented services from users is ever increasing and
puts great pressure on Telco companies. While the infrastructure to provide
these services has made considerable progress, service development has been
unable to meet the demand so far. As a result, developing a toolkit to help developers
create video-oriented services easily and timeously is of paramount importance.
This paper discusses the progress in developing such a toolkit.
Title: JavaME Interface for osCommerce eCommerce
Portal
Authors: Zvabvira Shumba
(University of
Abstract: OsCommerce is one of the fastest growing ecommerce platforms. It’s
gone as far as in rural areas. One of the infrastructural in rural areas like
in Dwesa where this research is centered is lack of access to the Internet. In
Dwesa, there is an ICT for Development intervention being undertaken, called Siyakhula
Living Lab. So far only two e-commerce shops have been deployed and future plan
is to migrate them osCommerce. With the proliferation of cell phones, which
have features such as cameras and the ability to run java applications, there
is a need to develop applications which make use of these features and support
the users in some of the activities which need internet. This research looks at
how mobile phones can be used to help the shop-owners to manage their shops
using cell phones at home or even on the move.
Title: Design challenges for Quality of Service aware
communication protocol for sensor grid
Authors: Sihle
Sibiya (Council for
Industrial and Scientific Research)
Abstract: The emerging computing paradigm called sensor grid extends the grid
computing paradigm to the sharing of sensor resources and data from wireless
sensor networks in a grid network. Sensor grid promise to transform the way we
interact with the physical world. However before this vision comes to reality a
number of challenges have to be addressed. Quality of Service management is
among those issues. This work explore grid network, wireless sensor network,
sensor grid network communication challenges to design a Quality of Service
(QoS) aware sensor grid communication protocol. This paper further outlines
those issues and challenges that need to be address in designing a QoS-aware
communication protocol for sensor grid.
Title: Thin Client
Cluster Server Computing: 21st Century Enablers for Schools
Authors: Ingrid Siebörger
(
Abstract: Worldwide computers are being used in
schools for, amongst other things, developing the knowledge and skills required
for citizens to be able to operate within the 21st Century
Information Age. In addition, the use of cluster computers are becoming more
commonly used as a result of the increasing ease with which supercomputer
systems can be built using commodity-off-the-shelf hardware often using free
software, such as Linux and Unix operating systems and third party
applications. This work explores whether cluster thin client computer servers
can provide robust and cost effective ICT infrastructure models for use in
previously disadvantaged schools in
Title: Towards a Multimodal Interface for In-Car
Communication Systems
Authors: Patrick Tchankue
(
Abstract: The number of cars provided with an in-car
communication system has considerably increased during the past few years.
Using a mobile phone whilst driving is a safety-critical task and can cause
usability issues. Speech modality has been incorporated in order to allocate
hands and eyes solely to the driving task speech. This paper discusses an
investigation into in-car communication systems and multimodal interfaces in
order to design an in-car communication system which improves the driving
experience and meets usability goals. This multimodal interface will make use
of speech and manual control as input and output modalities.
Title: Benchmarking and Optimising Software for
Improved Multiprocessor Performance
Authors: Waide Tristram (
Abstract: Parallel computers have become widely
available with the introduction of multicore processors, however software will
need to be optimised to make use of the additional processors. A number of
tools can aid the process of optimising code for parallel execution, such as
parallel debuggers, profilers and parallel libraries. This paper describes an
approach to evaluating the effectiveness of a selection of tools and
optimisations. Additionally, an automated benchmark tool is described along
with several modifications that assist in the benchmarking of optimisations.
The benchmark tool has been tested and the preliminary results show an
impressive increase in performance when using OpenMP.
Title: Design of a Generic, Portable Channel Sounder
with GPS Capability
Authors: Stefanus van der Merwe
(
Abstract: This work-in-progress paper briefly
describes the design of a generic, low power, portable, real time processing
channel sounder which can be used in the SHF (Super High Frequency), UHF (Ultra
High Frequency), VHF (Very High Frequency), and HF (High Frequency) bands of
communication.
Title: Comparing the Implementations of Network Coding
on Different OSI Layers
Authors: Jacobus van Wyk (
Abstract: Network coding is a method that can improve the
throughput of a network by combining multiple messages into one message of the
same length as the original messages. Network coding can be implemented in
various layers of the OSI protocol stack, but the different implementations
have not been compared with one another. In this paper we propose an evaluation
of selected implementations of network coding in the different layers of the
OSI stack. This evaluation will be based on the throughput of a wireless ad hoc
network in a simulation using OPNET.
Title: Towards Antiphishing with Intrusion Detection
Authors: Vivek
Vishe (
Abstract: Phishing
is a technique where an attacker gains an identity of a web user by misleading
a web user to fraudulent websites. Phishing techniques combine social
engineering with technology. Financial loss due to phishing has been increasing
every year. There are many tools available for antiphishing; however attackers
find innovative ways to bypass existing tools. In
this paper we propose a unique architecture containing a basic model which
addresses most of the existing phishing problems. An Intrusion Detection System
(IDS) is set in place to prevent any damage from phishing sites. This
architecture learns about new attacks from the IDS and modifies itself
accordingly.
Title: Spammer Detection Using Honeypots and Digital
Forensics
Authors: Ickin
Vural (
Abstract: At
present it is very difficult to trace the identity of spammers who use identity
concealment techniques. It is difficult to determine the identity of the
spammer by just analysing the electronic trail. This paper proposes the design
and implementation of a spammer detection system that uses honeypot techniques
to detect abnormal behaviour on a network so as to identify potential spammers.