ications? Can these components be decoupled? We will discuss integration technologies and methodologies in depth in Chapter 6. Ease of Configuration. As we discussed earlier, it is often important for an application to come equipped with a user-friendly, graphical interface through which it is configured. The interface should allow the non- programmer, such as a business analyst, to refine an application or process continuously. The application should allow the IIC to adjust pricing plans, create and support new products, modify or add new business rules, and even change the way it interacts with other applications. Scalability. An application's ability to scale is as important as its capacity to be configured. An application's scalability is a measurement of the volume, in terms of users or transactions, the application can reliably support. Unfortunately, there are no real benchmarks for scalability in the OSS market. How well an application has scaled in production is a critical consideration. This is distinctly different from scalability as measured in a lab. Laboratory and production conditions are quite different, and the laboratory cannot measure the vendor's ability to support and grow its product under fire. User Interface. Most applications today are delivered with a graphical user interface. Some are far better than others. How well an application's GUI works is critical to training, user acceptance, efficiency and a number of other key OSS goals. It is important to examine the application's user interface and make sure that it navigates simply and logically. Many The Ultimate Guide to Building and Delivering OSS/BSS applications have relied too much on using multiple screens or windows, crowding the user's screen and making work difficult to track. Effective GUIs are generally Windows, Web, or Wizard-based. They allow users to configure them with personal preferences and can help to identify and correct any mistakes a user might make while working. They should also allow users to manage and track mult