1.2.3 Software Development

Question 1

Describe the waterfall cycle

Answer 1

• Traditional programming methodology where a series of stages are completed in sequence from start to finish
• Any chnage requires programmers to revisit all levels

Question 2

What are the advantages of the waterfall cycle?

Answer 2

• Straightforward to manage
• Clearly documented

Question 3

What are the disadvantages of the waterfall cycle?

Answer 3

• Lack of flexibility
• No risk analysis
• Limited user involvement

Question 4

What are the uses of the waterfall cycle?

Answer 4

Static, low-risk projects which need little user input, such
as a piece of general-purpose software.

Question 5

Describe agile methodologies

Answer 5

• collection of methodologies which aim to improve the flexibility of software development
• Adapt to changes in user requirements faster.
• Problem is broken down into sections which are developed in parallel.
• Working prototype delivered early on and built upon in an iterative manner

Question 6

What are the advatages of agile methodologies?

Answer 6

• Produces high quality code
• Flexible to changing requirements
• Regular user input

Question 7

What are the disadvatages of agile methodologies?

Answer 7

• Poor documentation
• Requires consistent interaction between user and programmer

Question 8

What are the uses of agile methodologies?

Answer 8

Small to medium projects with unclear initial requirements.

Question 9

Describe extreme programming

Answer 9

• Agile model
• Pair programming
• Representative end user
• Model built on system requirements specified by end user

Question 10

What are the advantages of extreme programming?

Answer 10

• Produces high quality code
• Constant user involvement means high usability

Question 11

What are the disadvatages of extreme programming?

Answer 11

• High cost of two people working on one project
• Teamwork is essential
• End-user may not be able to be present

Question 12

What are the uses of extreme programming?

Answer 12

Small to medium projects with unclear initial requirements requiring excellent usability.

Question 13

Describe the spiral methodology

Answer 13

The spiral model is built on four key stages
with the focus of effectively managing
risk-heavy projects:
- Analysing system requirements
- Pinpointing and mitigating risks
- Development, testing and
implementation
- Evaluating to inform the next iteration

Question 14

What are the advatages of the spiral methodology?

Answer 14

• Thorough risk-analysis and mitigation
• Caters to changing user needs
• Produces prototypes throughout

Question 15

What are the disadvatages of the spiral methodology?

Answer 15

• Expensive to hire risk assessors
• Lack of focus on code efficiency
• High costs due to constant prototyping

Question 16

What are the uses of the spiral methodology?

Answer 16

Large, risk-intensive projects with a high budget.

Question 17

Describe rapid application development

Answer 17

• Iterative methodology
• Uses partially functioning prototypes which are built upon
• User feedback on prototype is used to improve next prototype
• Repeats until prototype matches end-user requirements
• This prototype becomes the final product

Question 18

What are the advantages of RAD

Answer 18

• Caters to changing user requirements
• Highly usable finished product
• Focus on core features, reducing development time

Question 19

What are the disadvantages of RAD?

Answer 19

• Poorer quality documentation
• Fast pace may reduce code quality

Question 20

What are the uses of RAD?

Answer 20

Small to medium, low-budget projects with short time-frames.