Knowledge Worker Platform Analysis

Many Army personnel can be classified as knowledge workers-people who produce not tangible products, but some form of processed or enhanced information. Most Army knowledge workers depend on computer processing to complete their tasks efficiently. However, those tasks are often complicated by the many computer platforms and software packages used to contain and convey needed information. The U.S. Army Construction Engineering Research Laboratories USACERL has been conducting ongoing research into the problems of information access and management for knowledge workers, with the ultimate goal of developing a comprehensive performance support environment for knowledge workers. The Knowledge Worker System KWS is a prototype scheduling program designed to help knowledge workers organize and coordinate their work by storing task scheduling information in a centralized data base. KWS tracks scheduled events, provides a list of completed events, and outlines the steps necessary to complete forthcoming tasks. This study examined the feasibility of converting KWS to an open systems technology to make the program compatible with a number of different platforms. Current marketability of language tools, graphical user interface GUI tools, and operating systems were investigated for compliance with government and open systems standards. Strategic plans were devised for KWS conversion. Knowledge Worker SystemKWS, Task scheduling information, Open systems technology, AdaComputer Program Language