requirements modeling
Articles
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Finish on Time by Managing Scale When deciding how a user's task is to be supported in our software, we often look at possible design solutions and select one that's best for the product and the user. As the project deadline approaches, however, we might choose to dismiss some features outright. In this column, Jeff Patton suggests we try keeping more features by adjusting their scale. |
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Information Gathering If your customer interview questions focus too narrowly on a problem that must be solved, you run the risk of missing information that could be critical to a successful outcome. In this column, Naomi Karten says playing detective improves your ability to gather information. To improve the odds of success, it's important to ask questions from multiple perspectives—and to pay attention not only to the customers' response, but to how they say it as well. |
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RequireMINTS Ponder for a moment the impact of mints on your life. They provided an extra degree of confidence during some of life's most important moments from job interviews to first dates. Some people may even have a spouse and kids because a mint helped out in a crucial moment. In this column, Dion Johnson points out that the requirements improvement techniques called RequireMINTs can similarly impact the life of your software projects because like mints, they are small, refreshing, and effective. |
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What Is a Customer? When we communicate, the words sound familiar so we think we understand each other. But understanding fizzles when we attribute different meanings to the words we use. In this column, Naomi Karten illustrates how differences in the way departments and companies define their terms can cause confusion, flawed conclusions, and faulty decisions. Naomi asks us to question the meanings of terms before starting a project to ensure that we understand what's called for. |
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Taking the Mystery out of Requirements Ambiguity, false assumptions, theories, and red herrings. These basic elements of a good mystery story are also encountered in software requirements gathering. And just as the detective has his bag of tricks for solving the mystery, you can learn a few things about uncovering elusive requirements in this column from Becky Winant. |
Becky Winant
November 1, 2002 |
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Modeling Practice and Requirements Models are useful in different settings in different ways. Models can test facts, ideas and understanding, simulate operation, and aid coordination between systems and people. In this column, Becky Winant lists six model patterns she has seen in practice in software development organizations, talking about where each is appropriate, and the strengths and weaknesses of each. |
Becky Winant
July 8, 2002 |
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A Systematic Approach for More Effective Communication of Functional Requirements and Specifications The communication of functional requirements and specifications is the most difficult, critical, and error-prone task in IT projects. Research has shown that projects that proceed to the construction and coding phase with missing or wrong functional requirements and specifications are almost certain to fail. To avoid missing or misunderstanding the requirements for a solution, and to avoid the development of systems to incorrect specifications, we need a systematic approach to capturing, organizing, and validating the functional requirements and specifications. In this article, Bill Walton offers such an approach. |
Bill Walton
May 10, 2002 |
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Charting a Course for Requirements Most of us wouldn't think of launching on a critical journey without some forethought about destination, route, and risk. Why would software projects launch with anything less? In this column, Becky Winant explains how and why to create a project charter. |
Becky Winant
May 1, 2002 |
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