SAROS Knowledge Director ™ System Overview

SAROS Knowledge Director (KD) is a web based application framework system that is a cost effective way to create interactive “smart” applications. It is designed to be a tool for “experts” to interpret their unique knowledge directly into an interactive web application without the need for specialized programming.

KD applications are accessed through a login screen that is accessed from a client website or from the www.kdapps.com site. The application screens include common navigation buttons that navigate user through the application. To access an application:

The user gains access to application through a login screen that includes on-line registration for new users and/or user id’s assigned by system administrator.
An entry screen is accessed after login that lists applications that are included with this overall KD setup. If this user is authorized to enter application they select the start application task and they go to the first application screen.

The KD framework system includes another Saros product called Information Director that is installed on the web server. It provides the ability to create macros that can be called from within KD to produce reports and/or interface with local and remote databases.

KD Main Screen Display - All content displayed on each KD screen can be edited by authorized user to tailor it as required to each company for all its users. Below is an overview of what each screen includes. KD includes a wide variety of proprietary “Screen Types” which control what is displayed for a given screen. The “routing” of the screens i.e. what happens when the “Next” button is selected is controlled by a proprietary KD facility.

Navigation buttons – In this example the buttons are “leave application”, “go to listing” (up arrow), “go to start”, “previous”(left arrow), and “next/save” (right arrow). The navigation buttons displayed depend on the application setup and where the screen is in the logical flow. Holding the cursor over each button brings up the button definition.
Screen Title – Appears here and in “go to” screen listing.
Status – Can show percent complete, number of items found in a search, or other key status indicators. Default is today’s date.
Prompt – For question “screen types” this is the question text. For information screens all the area below the title area is formated text and/or graphics (see next page).
Help – If help is included for this question this button appears. Selecting it pops up a window that can be static information or reference information from a database.
Response – depending on screen type this can be radio buttons (shown), check box, pull down, text input, editable table of responses, scenario listings, or search results. Multi-select responses can be setup to take user to different screens creating a split in the “logic branch”. Graphics can be included with each selection (see below).

Below is an example of a screen with a “slide” from an Internal Auditor training course. Information screens can also include videos, PowerPoint shows, or any graphic type supported on a local machine. All screens can also include voice over which is especially useful for guidance and training.

In the event needed functionality isn’t available from one of the existing screen types, custom screen types can readily be added to the KD framework

System requirements and cost basis – The KD system requires a Windows based server with MS SQL Server database and works best with the MS Internet Explorer browser.It is maintained by Saros on a 3^rd party 24/7 supported dedicated server. Costs include application setup, maintenance, and usage charges for the KD system. Once a KD application is setup, the application screen content can be edited using the KD screen editor accessible to the client’s administrator.