SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT. The Korvex Corporation is a company concerned with developing CD-ROM software applications that it sells to major computer manufacturers to include as “packaged items” when consumers purchase systems with CD-ROM drives. The company is currently evaluating the feasibility of developing six new applications. Specific information concerning each of these applications is summarized in the following table.
Korvex has a staff of 60 programmers and has allocated $3.5 million for development of new applications.
a. Formulate and solve a binary integer linear programming model for the situation faced by the Korvex Corporation.
b. Assume also that the following additional conditions hold:
• It is anticipated that those interested in application 4 will also be interested in application 5, and vice versa. Thus, if either application 4 or application 5 is developed, the other must also be developed.
• The underlying concepts of application 2 make sense only if application 1 is included in the package. Thus, application 2 will be developed only it application 1 is developed.
• Applications 3 and 6 have similar themes; thus, if application 3 is developed, application 6 will not be developed, and vice versa.
• To ensure quality products, Korvex does not wish to expand its product line too rapidly. Accordingly, it wishes to develop at most three of the potential application products at this time.
Incorporate these constraints into the model developed for part (a), and determine the optimal choice of applications Korvex should develop.