Property professionals and system design

Describes aspects of the development of a PC‐based system for a local authority asset register and valuation system. The project was managed and implemented by property, not computer, people and focuses on the do‐it‐yourself approach to system development which has been made possible by the advent of the latest generation of software development tools. The system itself is briefly described: a series of relational files with a GIS “front end” interfacing to a rule‐based data capture system. Recommends the extension of the approach and highlights both the need for appropriate training and the cultural and organizational benefits and dangers which flow from such an approach.