Hackers Inc. will design and implement the Unreal Estate Catalogue System (UECS) for internal use by UnReal Estate Inc. in their Calgary area offices. This document includes the functional specifications and management plan that Hackers Inc. will use to complete the UECS system.
UnReal Estate Inc.'s listings are 100% paper-based. Common activities such as updating and searching are very time-consuming. Keeping all of the listings up to date is difficult because the listings are distributed throughout UnReal Estate Inc.'s Calgary area offices. Accessibility is also poor because the paper-based listings may be located in different offices throughout the Calgary area. In addition, the number of listings have increased to the point that maintaining the current system has become too cumbersome.
UECS will replace the current system with a computerized database that catalogs properties for sale and properties for rent in the Calgary area. UECS is intended to be used by administrators and realtors who are employees of UnReal Estate. UECS will be used by UnReal Estate Inc. employees to search for suitable properties for a client.
The key features of UECS are:
Currently, realtors must manually search for listings that meet buyer needs. This is effective only if they happen to know the name of the agent and the property they are looking for. If a customer wants a particular feature in a home, such as 3 bathrooms, then the realtor would have to manually search all listings that he or she has access to. This process is ideally suited for a computer.
UECS can find all of the listings with three bathrooms in a matter of seconds. Then the system could narrow that listing down dependent on any other factor that might be important to the buyer all in a matter of seconds.
Computers are able to communicate with one another over what is called a network. This provides the availability of all of the data on the system to any particular user at any time. For example, suppose a realtor places a listing on a computer in North Calgary at 12:30 p.m. A realtor in the south branch could access that information as soon as it's saved to the system.
Since listings are stored on a centralized database, realtors have access to all available listings and not just the listings they might have in the local branch.
Realtors will be able to interact with UECS through a graphical user interface. This should minimize the training required for each employee since they will not have to memorize long complicated commands. For example, when performing a search, they will be able to choose their criteria by "pointing and clicking" on a form with a mouse.
A graphical interface can aid the realtor by allowing him or her to use UECS as a presentation tool for buyers. UECS will display the listings that meet the search criteria with pictures and any additional details. Realtors can use this information to refine the list of homes to show to buyers.
These and other benefits will enhance the work environment at UnReal Estate Inc. and provide a helpful user friendly system for it's employees.
Security of the database is a high priority. Only the realtor that places a listing into the system and the administrator will be able to edit that listing, and only the administrator will be able to permanently delete a listing. Security will be implemented through passwords which are required when a request to alter data is made.
The elimination of paper-based methods will free up time that would be normally spent on searching and filing. This will give realtors more time to show houses, talk to clients, research more listings and so on. Improved access for realtors to all company listings should enhance sales and increase profitability.
For performance reasons, UECS must be used on an IBM-compatible PC that meets these minimum requirements:
The following are optional but highly recommended: