Cognition Cockpit FAQ
From CockpitWiki
Cognition Cockpit FAQ
Is Cockpit a Requirements Management Tool?
Yes, Cockpit is a tool for requirements management but it is unlike any other available tool. Cockpit is built with Web 2.0 technology and is 100% web based. There is zero client installation. Cockpit treats requirements as multidimsional dynamic objects which means you can assign numeric targets to requirements and track the statistical likelihood of satisfaction. Requirements connect to risks, costs, voices, and test and are not simply text entries. Older requirements management tools treat requirements as simple text entries and do not have automatic analysis of requirements. Cockpit also includes product development process templates to help you guide users through the steps of your process. Users will want to use Cockpit because it helps them with their daily work, automatically generates document deliverables, and is easy enough to use so they don't need to be a requirements management expert.
What is the typical training time for Cockpit?
User training is one day. Lead users and administrators can take an additional two day class to learn advanced topics such as user management, creation of process templates, and best practices in writing and structuring requirements.
Is there Web based training for Cockpit?
Yes, all Cockpit training is available either in person or via live web sessions. In person training is charged at a daily rate for the Cognition instructor plus travel expenses. Web training is chaged in 4 hour time blocks
Is Cockpit configurable for a Design For Six Sigma (DFSS) product development process?
Yes, Cockpit come standard with dozens of process templates including many specifically designed for a DFSS environment. This includes templates and functions for VOC management, critical parameter management, requirements management, risk/FMEA management, V&V / test management, and cost management. Cockpit includes full QFD / House Of Quality, scorecards, and the ability to write (equations) or link to multiple transfer functions for statistical analysis of requirements and parameters. This is, of course, all available out of the box at no additional cost to you.
Can Cockpit communicate with our PLM/PDM system, data warehouses, or other enterprise applications?
Yes, Cockpit has an API with the ability to connect to any third-party system, which can then be used to push and pull data to and from Cockpit. You use the Cockpit API and integrate it yourself, or you can have our Expert Implementation Tteam integrate it for your business, for a fee.
What database does Cockpit use?
Cockpit is built on ObjectStore from Progress Software, the same database that is us by Amazon.com and many other large applications.
How many people can work in a Cockpit project at the same time?
Cockpit is designed for multiple concurrent users working from many locations. Users can work in the same project at any time. Cockpit controls item locking, checkpointing, and permissions so you can configure who can change what information and when they can change it. You are only limited by the number of concurrent user licenses you own.
What add-ons or links are available with Cockpit?
Cockpit comes ready to go out of the box integrated for two way real time communication with MS Office tools such as Word, Excel, and Power Point, as well as Crystal Ball, @Risk, Matlab, and Enventive. Cockpit also allows you to embed Visio and other OLE applications and connects via hyperlinks to many common PLM/PDM applications. There is no additional charge for any of these links; they all come standard with Cockpit.
Are there different types of licenses to use Cockpit?
Cockpit is a 100% Web 2.0 application which means all users access Cockpit through their Internet Explorer browser. There is no client license installation. You simply install a Cockpit web server license at your organization, send out bookmarks by email, and users log in and use Cockpit. You can configure users with different access rights on projects and on individual items within each project.
Is Cockpit available as a subscription based license or as a perpetual license?
You can implement Cockpit as either permanent/perpetual licenses with annual maintenance or as subscription/annual use licenses. Your choice.
Is Cockpit available in a hosted environment?
Yes, Cockpit is available as a hosted, on demand, application through Cognition web servers.
What are the file types of images and formats of images that can be used in Cockpit?
Any format that can be displayed in your browser; no restrictions.
Can we import Excel graphs, jpg pictures, png, or bitmap or other formats?
Yes, you can import or attach any of these formats in a Cockpit project.
What is the size of a typical document that is exported from the system? Is it a normal size?
There is no limit on the size of a document to export or import.
What versions of MS Office does Cockpit support?
MS Office 2000, 2003, 2007
How do we deal with our old documents and legacy requirements?
Import them into Cockpit or simply add them as attachments to a Cockpit project.
What browsers does Cockpit support?
Internet Explorer 6,7,8 and Firefox 2,3 with the IE Tab Add On
How does Cockpit track changes (who changed something and what changed?)
Yes, full change and issue tracking, best to see it live (what do you mean by suspect links?)
Does Cockpit support suspect links?
Yes.
Where is the database stored? Is this something we can access from anywhere or do we need to be on our corporate network?
Database stored on your server or we can host it for you. You control who has access to the web server.
When a document is exported to another document (ie. a document in Cockpit is exported to MS Word) is the file size the same or similar to what you would expect if the document was created directly in word?
Files sizes are the same (or very close to the same) size as when created native in Word.
How fast can the system export a document? Is the speed related proportionally, linearly, exponentially to the size of the document?
Importing from Word is linear based on document size (a 100 page document might take about two minutes.) Exporting a document is also linear, tends to be much faster than import speed (a 100 page document takes less than one minute.)
What can I embed in a Cockpit document?
Show Notebook and Attachments. No embedded actual office document inside a Cockpit document yet. (Keep in mind that Cockpit documents are themselves totally embedded. EX; all Reqs are embedded in a doc so if the Req changes it will update everywhere in all Cockpit documents where used.)
In terms of versioning does Cockpit capture changes by who, what, when? Does Cockpit show specific differences between versions?
Show at project level, docs, and Rs.
When changes have been made in cockpit, how can you show the items linked to that change that might have changed?
Show trace page to show possible impacts of proposed changes.
Is it possible to generate of a list of changes to specs, values, etc., that have occurred in the system?
Project level History differences (you can click each change to zoom to it and see details.)
I currently use Doors, Requisite Pro, or some other requirements management software. Is there an easy way to transfer or import all of my information into Cockpit?
Absolutely. Cockpit comes standard with multiple import methods so you can import all of your information from another requirements management tool directly into Cockpit without loss of fidelity.This is a fundamental part of Cockpit since so many users of requirements management tools based on older technology want to move to the new Web 2.0 technology that is Cockpit without losing years of requirements management information and documents.
What exactly are "process templates" and what can they do for me in Cockpit?
Process templates are an important part of Cockpit. They allow you to hand feed users just the bite sized chunks of instructions and guidance they need to follow your product development process steps. Cockpit comes standard with dozens of process templates for you to use and you can create you own on the fly to match your particular process steps and deliverables.
Does Cockpit support custom / user defined attributes?
Yes, you can create any number and type of attributes to associate with any requirement or group of requirements. This is a very simple task in Cockpit and you can do it yourself without any assitance needed from Cognition Corporation.
Can Cockpit produce scorecard reports for my projects?
Cockpit comes standard out of the box with multiple scorecard types for individual requirements, groups of requirements, and at the total project level. Each scorecard is user configurable to include whatever information you need for a particular report.
What are the recommendations/requirements for server computers running Cockpit?
The computer you select to be your Cockpit web server must have the following:
Cockpit Web Server (not IIS)
>1GB RAM
>1GB disk space
<1.5GHz processor
Virtual Machines are supported
What are the recommendations/requirements for user computers who log into Cockpit?
Cockpit is 100% Web 2.0 based which means users do not install Cockpit on their computers.They log into Cockpit via Internet Explorer. Here are the requirements for a user computer:
-Internet Explorer 6, 7, 8
-(or) Firefox 2,3 running the IE Tab Add On
-10 Mbps network to the server
User computers fast enough to run MS Word are more than adequate for running Cockpit inside IE.
During a Cockpit software update, what is the duration of system/database/tool downtime required for update?
Installation of a new version of Cockpit involves only the server machine, never the user machines.
New version installs take between 10 to 15 minutes and users can continue working during some periods of that time, although most organizations will just put a message on the login page saying that “the system will be back in 15 minutes.”
User machines do not require any updates or installation. Internet Explorer is all they need.
Please note that “patches” (small fixes or small enhancements) take only minutes and require no down-time (like a Website, new server files simply replace older files.)
What is the compatibility of older Cockpit client software versions with a) newer client software versions, and b) new server software versions?
Because there is only a server component, this issue does not exist. When Cockpit is upgraded, there are no lower-level versions to contend with.
Of course, you could have a “test” server running that could be used to test a newer release, but that would not conflict with your production server.
How do you import projects into the Cockpit?
First you save the Cogzip file on to your disk. DO NOT unzip this file.
Importing a project:
1) Run the command "Main menu/Import Project"
2) Browse to the cogzip file on disk
3) Click finish
