Monitoring tools for DevOps and microservices: A systematic grey literature review

Processes, challenges and recommendations of Gray Literature Review: An experience report

ContextMicroservices as a lightweight and decentralized architectural style with fine-grained services promise several beneficial characteristics for sustainable long-term software evolution. Success stories from early adopters like Netflix, Amazon, or Spotify have demonstrated that it is possible to achieve a high degree of flexibility and evolvability with these systems. However, the described advantageous characteristics offer no concrete guidance and little is known about evolvability assurance processes for microservices in industry as well as challenges in this area. Insights into the current state of practice are a very important prerequisite for relevant research in this field.ObjectiveWe therefore wanted to explore how practitioners structure the evolvability assurance processes for microservices, what tools, metrics, and patterns they use, and what challenges they perceive for the evolvability of their systems.MethodWe first conducted 17 semi-structured interviews and discussed 14 different microservice-based systems and their assurance processes with software professionals from 10 companies. Afterwards, we performed a systematic grey literature review (GLR) and used the created interview coding system to analyze 295 practitioner online resources.ResultsThe combined analysis revealed the importance of finding a sensible balance between decentralization and standardization. Guidelines like architectural principles were seen as valuable to ensure a base consistency for evolvability and specialized test automation was a prevalent theme. Source code quality was the primary target for the usage of tools and metrics for our interview participants, while testing tools and productivity metrics were the focus of our GLR resources. In both studies, practitioners did not mention architectural or service-oriented tools and metrics, even though the most crucial challenges like Service Cutting or Microservices Integration were of an architectural nature.ConclusionsPractitioners relied on guidelines, standardization, or patterns like Event-Driven Messaging to partially address some reported evolvability challenges. However, specialized techniques, tools, and metrics are needed to support industry with the continuous evaluation of service granularity and dependencies. Future microservices research in the areas of maintenance, evolution, and technical debt should take our findings and the reported industry sentiments into account.

Context: Introduction of bad smells can generate negative consequences on the quality of microservices. It is essential to gather state-of-the-art knowledge on these smells and understand the challenges they present. This will benefit researchers and practitioners in mitigating the consequences of smells in microservice-based systems. Objective: The main goal of this study is to present a comprehensive catalogue of microservice smells. Method: To document the advancements and best practices in the field of microservice smells., we performed a multivocal literature review study incorporating both academic and grey literature sources. We systematically analyzed 34 studies published from the beginning of 2014 until the end of 2023 by following standard guidelines. Results: 38 bad smells in microservices are identified and cataloged in 10 different types. Conclusion: Research gaps and open challenges are highlighted in this study. This will give directions to other researchers and practitioners towards addressing challenges posed by smells in microservices.

Open Science now: A systematic literature review for an integrated definition

Limited accessibility and bias in wildlife-wind energy knowledge: A bilingual systematic review of a globally distributed bird group

Context: In the last years, the Grey Literature (GL) had a notable increase in interest in diverse areas of knowledge. In Software Engineering (SE), with the advance of social media, the SE practitioners are heavy consumers of GL, opposite to traditional research papers, such as the Systematic Literature Review (SLR). Problem: Despite the increase of numbers of SLRs, some researchers claim the lack of connection to the practice of SE, due to the lack of evidence derived from SE practitioners. Goal: Introduce methods and techniques to support a Grey Literature Review (GLR) in SE, aiming to approximate the literature review to the practice of SE. Method: First, we will investigate how secondary studies use GL; Second, we will employ a survey with researchers of SLRs and SE practitioners; Third, we will analyze the use of GL according to the context; Fourth, we will review the GL source in SE; Finally, we will propose a guideline to help SE researchers and practitioners to conduct the GLR. Preliminary findings: We have initiated the tertiary study conducting the manual (4,875 studies) and automatic (6,279 studies) searches. We eliminated those that were not an article, and also those were not written in English, remaining 8,019 potential studies. Currently, we are applying the inclusion and exclusion criteria.

BackgroundProper monitoring of labor and childbirth prevents many pregnancy-related complications. However, monitoring is still poor in many places partly due to the usability concerns of support tools such as the partograph. In 2011, the World Health Organization (WHO) called for the development and evaluation of context-adaptable electronic health solutions to health challenges. Computerized tools have penetrated many areas of health care, but their influence in supporting health staff with childbirth seems limited.ObjectiveThe objective of this scoping review was to determine the scope and trends of research on computerized labor monitoring tools that could be used by health care providers in childbirth management.MethodsWe used key terms to search the Web for eligible peer-reviewed and gray literature. Eligibility criteria were a computerized labor monitoring tool for maternity service providers and dated 2006 to mid-2016. Retrieved papers were screened to eliminate ineligible papers, and consensus was reached on the papers included in the final analysis.ResultsWe started with about 380,000 papers, of which 14 papers qualified for the final analysis. Most tools were at the design and implementation stages of development. Three papers addressed post-implementation evaluations of two tools. No documentation on clinical outcome studies was retrieved. The parameters targeted with the tools varied, but they included fetal heart (10 of 11 tools), labor progress (8 of 11), and maternal status (7 of 11). Most tools were designed for use in personal computers in low-resource settings and could be customized for different user needs.ConclusionsResearch on computerized labor monitoring tools is inadequate. Compared with other labor parameters, there was preponderance to fetal heart monitoring and hardly any summative evaluation of the available tools. More research, including clinical outcomes evaluation of computerized childbirth monitoring tools, is needed.

Bug benchmarks are used in development and evaluation of debugging approaches, e.g. fault localization and automated repair. Quantitative performance comparison of different debugging approaches is only possible when they have been evaluated on the same dataset or benchmark. However, benchmarks are often specialized towards usage for certain debugging approaches in their contained data, metrics, and artifacts. Such benchmarks cannot be easily used on debugging approaches outside their scope as such approach may rely on specific data such as bug reports or code metrics that are not included in the dataset. Furthermore, benchmarks vary in their size w.r.t. the number of subject programs and the size of the individual subject programs. For these reasons, we have performed a systematic literature review where we have identified 73 benchmarks that can be used to evaluate debugging approaches. We compare the different benchmarks w.r.t. their size and the provided information such as bug reports, contained test cases, and other code metrics. This comparison is intended to help researchers to quickly identify all suitable benchmarks for evaluating their specific debugging approaches. Furthermore, we discuss reoccurring issues and challenges in selection, acquisition, and usage of such bug benchmarks, i.e., data availability, data quality, duplicated content, data formats, reproducibility, and extensibility.Editor’s note: Open Science material was validated by the Journal of Systems and Software Open Science Board.

To undertake a systematic review of English and Spanish literature relating to nurse faculty migration. A systematic review of both published literature, using CINAHL, EMBASE, ERIC and MEDLINE, and grey literature, using Google and Yahoo search engines, utilizing a defined search strategy with key terms, wild card strings and logical operators, was undertaken. An initial limitation of searching for material published in the last ten years was removed due to the poor yield of relevant papers. In total, 18 research-based studies were identified, retrieved and reviewed. Finally, the retrieved material was reviewed and augmented by a group of nurse faculty and migration experts, who offered comments and proposed additional grey literature. With increased globalization, the impact of mutual recognition agreements and associated modes of supply of services as well as those factors influencing clinical nurse migration was also considered. Studies on clinical nurse migration and general academic faculty provided some insights, but nursing faculty differ in a number of key ways and this needs to be considered when interpreting the results. Based on this systematic review, the paper concludes that nurse faculty migration is a neglected topic and one that warrants urgent investigation if health systems redesign and the associated scale-up of nurses are to be achieved. Particular gaps in knowledge relate to nurse faculty workforce planning, and understanding the dynamics and flows of faculty both across and within countries. It is unclear as to the extent to which our knowledge of push and pull factors relating to clinical nurse migration can be used in understanding nurse faculty migration. The current policy position of organizations such as the World Health Organization and individual governments to increase nursing numbers is incomplete without due consideration of faculty migration.

Objectives To assess the clinical and microbiological efficacy of systemic quinolones adjunctive to mechanical therapy in periodontitis patients. Materials and Methods. A systematic review of the scientific literature was carried out. The search scheme comprised the Scopus, PubMed/MEDLINE, SCIELO (Scientific Electronic Library Online), and LILACS (Literatura Latinoamericana y del Caribe en Ciencias de la Salud) databases, together with the gray literature. MeSH terms and keywords were utilized to explore publications in all idioms. Only randomized clinical trials (RCTs) that met the selection criteria were included. Results A total of 4 RCTs were selected. These RCTs found superior clinical and microbiological efficacy of adjunctive systemic moxifloxacin (MOX) and levofloxacin (LV) compared to subgingival debridement plus placebo. Improvements in PD and CAL were 2.4 ± 0.8 mm and 2.7 ± 0.9 mm for LV, and 1.5 ± 0.5 mm and 1.8 ± 0.5 mm for MOX, respectively. After six months of follow-up, adjunctive MOX reduced the presence of Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans to imperceptible levels, while LV markedly reduced this microorganism. Some adverse events were reported in the LV group and none in the MOX group. Conclusions Adjunctive MOX and LV improve probing depth and clinical attachment level compared with subgingival debridement alone in patients with periodontitis. The efficacy of these quinolones against A. actinomycetemcomitans was also superior.

The U.S. National Library of Medicine brought the intensifying interest in open science to national attention when it joined enthusiastic scientists to introduce and host an Amazon-like rating forum on PubMed—the world's largest database of indexed biomedical and life sciences literature. The result was PubMed Commons. In June 2013, the commenting forum was introduced for open discussion about published scientific literature as part of a three-pronged approach to improve research rigor, reproducibility, and transparency. In Feb. 2018, the forum was unexpectedly discontinued. This retrospective explanatory case study research asked the question, "What happened on the way to the forum?" Answers came from a variety of resources using multiple methodologies for data collection and analysis. Historical data from PubMed Commons' 7,629 comments and 1,551 commenters; key informant interviews with PubMed Commons editors; and a systematized search for published articles, gray literature; and social media content about PubMed Commons were analyzed using computer-mediated discourse analysis and a social network analysis. Results from the quantitative content analysis described a forum with little participation, and the qualitative content analysis demonstrated that active forum members were focused primarily on providing links to other information resources and discussing aspects of post-publication peer review. The social network analysis revealed a disconnected network, which was supported by a sociogram showing a community of independents with only seven small clusters. Findings pointed to 11 factors that affected the forum's adoption and use. Rogers' diffusion of innovation theory scaffolds a forum innovation agility model developed from this work to offer a better understanding of organizational processes and to aid organizations interested in introducing and managing a similar forum. PubMed Commons was a missed opportunity. No comparable alternative is available to promote open science and serve as a tool for the expected paradigm shift in the way we do scholarly communication in science.

INTRODUCTION Grey literature is ephemeral, and the level to which it is created, used, and cited by faculty, graduate students, and other researchers is not well understood. METHODS This electronic survey was distributed to a sample (57%) of the faculty across a wide variety of disciplines with the only criteria based on tenure and tenure-track faculty at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities, a large R1 institution. RESULTS Faculty across disciplines both use and create grey literature for several reasons, including its far more rapid publication process. DISCUSSION Many faculty in a wide variety of disciplines are using and creating grey literature. The survey illustrates the different types of grey literature that are being used and for what purpose. Other topics, such as how faculty are finding grey literature (via Google Scholar and professional contacts), whether they are citing it, and which types they create (e.g., conference papers, preprints, technical reports) are also discussed. CONCLUSION As a result of this survey, librarians can provide support for faculty who use and create grey literature in all disciplines and advocate for and promote grey literature to faculty. With more scholars participating in systematic reviews of grey literature, librarians will need to be more cognizant of where and how it may be discovered.

Chapter 00153 Grey Literature

As a global manufacturing sector, the leather industry has been a critical player in the international commerce market. With growing concerns about its sustainability, there tends to be an increasing number of studies in academic literature as well as grey literature (e.g. industry reports) focusing on leather supply chain management. However, there is a lack of a comprehensive review of the current research that illustrates the relationships between sustainable leather supply chain governance practices and their antecedents and consequences. This paper aims to identify the main themes of sustainable leather supply chains through a systematic literature review of 61 studies published between 1992 and 2022 identified from the Scopus and WoS databases and industry reports and propose a theoretical framework based on the thematic findings for future research. In these contexts, five themes were identified from the literature: drivers, practice, barriers, enablers and outcomes of sustainable supply chain governance in the leather industry. Ultimately, a conceptual framework identifying the themes and their linkages was developed. The article also suggests future research directions and managerial implications.

Supervision is the process of ensuring that organizational and management objectives are achieved. Supervision as a control tool in monitoring and reporting activities. Supervision starts from planning, implementing, monitoring, and evaluating to produce the right policies or decisions. Supervision can not be separated from the rules that have been set. The supervision aspect is also assessed by how obedient it is in implementing the regulations that have been set, including the aspect of accelerating regulatory changes in the event of regulatory changes that must be adjusted. The limitations of human resources in analyzing several existing regulations and conducting supervision from existing data sources directly result in the quality of monitoring results being not optimal. The limited time for supervision is considered less than optimal for supervising more complex problems. SupTech is here as an innovation to change the monitoring system to be more accurate, effective, and efficient. This paper describes the systematic literature on governance, technology oversight, and sub-regulators in government agencies. The research process by searching for articles through the database of article sources published from 2017 to 2022 by carrying out the stages of the literature study process based on the research objectives. Several stages were carried out to obtain the final study article. There is a research article as a final study related to research questions that can answer SupTech that can be applied to the field of supervision. Researchers feel the need to research more deeply about the standardization of IT governance guidelines for SupTech.