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Group workshops differ from other meetings in that there is direct and substantive interaction among <br />the participants in seeking a common understanding an d consensus on a particular CRDSS design <br />and/or policy issue. Sessions for brainstorming and CRDSS design specification are directed to <br />providing information to the CRDSS developers. An important activity is expected to be the <br />development of problem-centered scenarios of feasible applications of the CRDSS. These scenarios <br />will cover a range of possible outcomes and will be fully understandable to the users. Scenarios are <br />a useful mechanism for eliciting users' preferences and opinions of the problems which the CRDSS <br />is to address, and ways to present information to answer the problems. <br />Written documentation provides a means for informing interested people of how the project is <br />progressing and what issues are being raised. As the project progresses, the CRDSS pro ject team <br />will come to know a growing number of agency officials, state legislators, individuals, groups, etc. <br />who need to know the project status. The CRDSS project newsletter is prepared by the State <br />management staff with selected inputs from the project development team. The newsletter mailing <br />list provides a view of the user community, and can provide a point-of-contact for other information <br />distribution and feedback. <br />The CRDSS Briefing Room prototype is to provide a user interaction enhancement to supplement the <br />other user involvement mechanisms. The Briefing Room is to be equipped with a prototype CRDSS <br />workstation installed with the current working version of the software (perhaps networked to the <br />CRDSS developer's site), related documentation, poster boards, and meeting space. It is intended <br />that the developers provide and maintain demonstration versions of the CRDSS to sup port Briefing <br />Room uses. The convenience of the Briefing Room will facilitate CRDSS demonstrations and <br />conduct of the nominal group workshops to obtain feedback on the prototype. The Briefing Room <br />will also double as a work and training area for DNR staff as part of the process of developing <br />agency ownership and capabilities. Tutorial materials and working sessions can be developed to <br />demonstrate procedures and capabilities. A suggestion box (paper and/or electronic) will be <br />provided. <br />Other user involvement enhancements include field office demos of the CRDSS, distant learning <br />techniques and technologies, and on-site training of DNR staff. The aims of the field office demos <br />are to expose the CRDSS to a wider group of users, to solicit their feedback, initiate training, and <br />demonstrate that the system can be used at their site to accomplish the water management functions <br />intended. Distant learning techniques include development of a computer-based tutorial having <br />modules for the CRDSS project description, scenario demonstrations, and related background <br />information. The tutorial software is public domain, works on a PC as well as a workstation, and is <br />readily applied to this task. Another way to achieve substantive involvement of the DNR staff is to <br />employ them in the CRDSS development. These individuals are expected to become the cadre who <br />would implement a "fan-out" transfer of the CRDSS to their agencies and other users. <br />Monitoring and background research activities include literature reviews, user surveys, and <br />preparation of documentation on user opinions of the CRDSS and its functionality for the water <br />management/planning functions intended. It is also possible that CRDSS usage patterns be tracked. <br />That is, log files would be established on the CRDSS workstation which record the type and number <br />of CRDSS accesses. These can provide insights into how the system is being used. <br />2 <br />A275 05.10.94 1.05-27 Johnson <br />