Challenge Overview
NOTE: THIS IS AN IDEA GENERATION CONTEST
This is an idea generation contest, not a typical code contest. Submission format instructions are listed below.
Challenge Goal
The goal of this challenge is very straightforward: we need ideas from the Topcoder community on scalable, effective and efficient software that can replace an existing legacy application called the Generic Allocation Engine (GAE).
Challenge Objectives
----Research & document software that can replace the existing functionality of the GAE program.
----Provide an overview of the software, and clearly explain why it is the optimal solution for moving forward.
Final Submission Guidelines
Submission Requirements
----You should recommend your choice for the most suitable replacement software you find in your research. If you find any software that fits the general guidelines but you determine would NOT work for our project, please list it as well and explain why you don't believe it should be used.
----We suggest that you include multiple recommendations in your submission for software that you either do OR do not recommend. In both cases, please clearly explain why you made the recommendation you did. Multiple recommendations are not required - but are seen as a plus.
----To review an example of a software proposal that was well received, click here. Feel free to mimic the sections & layout.
----Information on licensing of the technology must be documented within your submission. Both open source & licenseable solutions are welcome. If your solution is open source, you must specify what type (Ex. Apache V.2). If it is a licensed solution, you must specify the annual license cost (Ex. RedHat). Links to the licences are required.
----If your submission includes a solution that requires a paid license, please include a brief summary of the annual costs along with a link.
Submission Format
----Your submission should be primarily textual (Word Document, RTF or Google Doc) with a detailed description of your solution - along with screenshots / diagrams to support these ideas.
----We strongly recommend that you review this example of a software proposal - this is a great example of an excellent submission. Feel free to mimic the sections & layout.
----We understand that not all submitters will be native English speakers and that there will be spelling/grammatical mistakes. We request that you first run your submission through a grammar/spell checker before submitting so as to fix simple mistakes.
Software Requirements
----The solution must be scalable and must work with Hadoop on AWS EC2/S3. Even though we believe Hadoop is a likely solution, given it'����s ability to scale - we are also open to other suggestions within the AWS framework.
----The solution needs to be scalable based on data.
----The solution must use empirical measurements given resource constraints.
----The solution must be capable of supporting multiple datasets of varying size and complexity.
----The solutions must have a low implementation cost
----The solution must not be overly complex or difficult to maintain.
Target Audience
Technical stakeholders.
Judging Criteria
----You will be judged on the quality of your ideas, the quality of your description of the principle(s) of the ideas, and how much benefit it can provide for the client.
----You will also be judged on how clearly you describe your idea. The winner will be selected by the client, not the Topcoder review board.
----The clients will choose the winner with the most logical and convincing reasoning as to how and why the idea will meet the objective.
Technical Background
You can download the current GAE system functional specification in the “Downloads” section of the contest details page. It will also be posted to the contest forum.
Generic Allocation Engine (GAE) Background
----The GAE is a table driven program that dynamically generates code to allocate transaction data.
----The GAE acts upon a set of input records and, based on rules and factors, it assigns attribute values, performs mathematical calculations on key figures and generates one or more output records for each input record.