INLS 187: Information Security

Short Assignment: Software Evaluation

The purpose of the short assignment on software evaluation is to demonstrate your ability to critique the effectiveness software related to information security.

Because different students in the class have differing levels of familiarity with software installation, you should choose software at an appropriate level for you. Regardless of the difficulty of getting the software to work, the level of analysis should be approximately the same for all students.

The specific requirements are:

1. Get the software to work (or demonstrate exhaustively how it will not or cannot work). 5 points.
2. Describe the software: its source, intended functionality, target audience, cost, features, etc. This is not intended to be a reproduction of the feature list or product brochure. Instead, you should identify the most relevant, distinguishing or otherwise important features. 5 points.
3. Analyze the software's effectiveness. See how well it performs for the tasks you believe are important. Develop some criteria for testing, and carry out the tests. 5 points.
4. Provide a recommendation on whether the software should or should not be used in a particular environment. Substantiate your recommendation. 5 points.

The outcome of your work should be a Web page (linked to the Projects page for the class) with your written report on the above. Effective presentation, communication and use of language are criteria for all 4 requirements.

Your report should be about 500-1500 words, and may include screen dumps or other output from the program.