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The Future of Statistical Software Proceedings of a Forum (1991) / Chapter Skim
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An Industry View
Pages 37-42

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From page 37...
... Such experience imparts an awareness of the formidable challenges that software providers face in serving the statistical needs of industrial users. This presentation focuses on requirements and critical success factors for statistical software intended for the non-statistician, industrial user.
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From page 38...
... This overriding need is suggested by an internal company survey that showed that, with the exception of basic statistical summaries, plots, and charts, most statistical methods were used by an engineer or scientist on a once-per-month or once-per-quarter basis. From a human factors perspective, this suggests that most industrial users cannot be expected to remember a complex set of commands, protocols, or movements in order to use the statistical software.
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From page 39...
... With configurable options, statistical software can avoid the "one-size-fits-all" fallacy, without inducing artificial barriers to learning or communications. Implications for Guidance The novice user, limited by time constraints and capacity to recall, benefits greatly by appropriate guidance.
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From page 40...
... A knowledge-based system for, say, medical diagnosis could be relatively stand alone, but effective application of statistical methods requires the integration of subject matter considerations. Any stand-alone system for statistical methods risks segregating statistics from subject matter knowledge in a dangerous way For example, in a drying process, oven temperature and product mass can be controlled.
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From page 41...
... Menu-driven software and windowed software for non-statistical applications have raised the ease-of-use expectations of statistical software users. There is a substantial fraction of potential users in industry that will not "buy in" to a statistical software solution that does not combine state-of-the-art ease of use with core capabilities, acceptable cost, and multiple hardware availability.
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Key Terms

  • larger task
  • advanced user
  • software providers
  • core capabilities
  • industrial users

  • software users
  • basic user
  • industrial user
  • skill levels
  • acceptable cost

  • configurable options
  • strong prejudices
  • residual analysis
  • user skill
  • local expert

  • increasingly global
  • uncoded response
  • undesired options
  • windowed software
  • regression analysis

  • global businesses
  • specific output
  • readable documentation
  • crucial requirement
  • upwardly compatible

  • prejudices exist
  • enhancing ease
  • statistical capabilities
  • anova options
  • methodology applied


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