Prototyping: An Approach to Evolutionary System Development

ISBN-13: 9783642768224 / Angielski / Miękka / 2011 / 205 str.

Reinhard Budde; Karlheinz Kautz; Karin Kuhlenkamp

Opis

Prototyping is an approach used in evolutionary system development. In this book, the authors show which forms of prototyping can be employed to tackle which problems. They take a look at the tools used in everyday software development with a view to determining their suitability for prototyping, and attempt to elucidate prototyping as a methodological concept. Part I of the book looks at prototyping as an approach for constructing and evaluating models. Traditional approaches and phase-oriented life cycle plans are discussed. Prototyping overcomes fundamental problems associated with life cycle plans. The authors present their own concept of evolutionary system development. Part II shows to what extent technical support of evolutionary system development is possible. Various tools for supporting prototyping are discussed and prospective trends are indicated. Criteria are listed to help the reader choose between the various development environments currently available or likely to become available in the near future. Case studies are used to illustrate how prototype construction can be integrated in software projects.

Spis treści

I Software Development and Prototyping.- 1 What is Prototyping?.- 1.1 Prototyping as an Approach to System Development.- 1.2 The Term “Prototype”.- 1.3 Rapid Prototyping.- 1.4 Summary.- 2 Basic Elements of System Development.- 2.1 Informal Nets as a Means of Representation.- 2.2 Construction and Evaluation.- 2.3 Software Development Concepts.- 2.4 Examples of Software Development Concepts.- 3 Traditional Life Cycle Plans.- 3.1 Life Cycle Models and Life Cycle Plans.- 3.2 Life Cycle Plans in Current Practice.- 3.3 The Origin of Life Cycle Plans.- 3.4 Problems Associated with Traditional Life Cycle Plans.- 3.5 Where Do Life Cycle Plans Work?.- 4 Prototyping.- 4.1 Different Aspects of Prototyping.- 4.1.1 The Prototype in the Software Development Process.- 4.2 Goals of Prototyping.- 4.3 Horizontal and Vertical Prototyping.- 4.4 The Relationship between Prototype and Application System.- 4.5 Examples of Prototyping.- 4.5.1 An Order Processing System.- 4.5.2 An Office System for Planning Departments.- 4.5.3 Software Tools for Graphic Workers.- 4.5.4 Assessment of the Three Examples.- 5 Evolutionary System Development.- 5.1 Evolutionary System Development.- 5.2 Evolutionary System Development in Practice.- 5.2.1 The ?-ß Test Procedure.- 5.2.2 Versioning.- 5.3 Problems Connected with System Development.- 5.3.1 Other Ways of Tackling the Problem.- 5.3.2 Evolutionary System Development is Necessary.- 5.3.3 Evolutionary System Development is Possible.- 5.3.4 Restoring Instead of Demolishing.- 6 Evolutionary Process Models.- 6.1 Technical Implementation of Software Versions.- 6.1.1 Object-Oriented Design.- 6.1.2 The Client-Supplier Model.- 6.1.3 The Separation of Interaction and Functionality.- 6.1.4 The Model-View-Controller Paradigm.- 6.2 Our Assessment.- II Technical Support of Prototyping.- 7 The Tool Landscape.- 7.1 Screen Generators.- 7.2 Database-Oriented Development Systems.- 7.3 Very High Level Languages.- 7.4 Programming Environments.- 7.5 Tools and Prototype Development.- 8 Screen Generators.- 8.1 Screen Generators and Prototyping.- 8.2 Tool Components of Screen Generators.- 8.2.1 Requirements and Characteristics of Screen Generators.- 8.2.2 Tool Components for Building Simple Prototypes.- 8.2.3 Tool Components for Building Complex Prototypes.- 8.2.4 Prototypes and Target Systems.- 8.3 Our Assessment.- 9 Database-Oriented Development Systems.- 9.1 Concept and Features.- 9.1.1 The Conceptual World of Database Systems.- 9.1.2 The Levels of Description in Database Systems.- 9.1.3 The Modelling Concepts of Database Systems.- 9.1.4 Language Constructs of Database Systems.- 9.1.5 Data Integrity in Database Systems.- 9.1.6 Developing Database Applications.- 9.2 Components of Database-Oriented Development Systems.- 9.2.1 Example of a Conceptual Schema.- 9.2.2 Integration of the System Components.- 9.2.3 Components for Constructing Vertical Prototypes.- 9.2.4 Components for Constructing Simple Prototypes.- 9.2.5 Screen Design With Screen Generators.- 9.2.6 Dialog Design With Menu Generators.- 9.2.7 Components for Constructing Complex Prototypes.- 9.2.8 Language Constructs for Flow of Control.- 9.2.9 Language Constructs for Formulating Procedures and Transactions.- 9.3 Our Assessment.- 9.3.1 Use and Handling.- 9.3.2 Programming in the Small and in the Large.- 9.3.3 Suitability for Further Use and Target Systems.- 9.3.4 Development Strategies and Approaches.- 9.3.5 Outlook.- 10 Very High Level Languages.- 10.1 Concept and Features.- 10.2 Benefits and Limitations.- 10.3 The Main Groups.- 10.3.1 Logical Languages.- 10.3.2 Functional Languages.- 10.3.3 Algebraic Languages.- 10.3.4 Miscellaneous Languages.- 10.4 Are Object-Oriented Languages VHLLs?.- 10.5 Application Areas.- 10.5.1 Extended Compilation.- 10.5.2 Metaprogramming.- 10.5.3 Program Synthesis.- 10.5.4 Derivation.- 10.5.5 Summary.- 10.6 Selecting a Very High Level Language.- 11 Programming Environments.- 11.1 Prototyping and Programming Environments.- 11.2 Languages in a Programming Environment.- 11.3 The Requirements For These Languages.- 11.4 Building Prototypes.- 11.5 An Example of a Programming Environment.- 11.6 Took in a Programming Environment.- 11.7 Our Assessment.- 12 Prototyping in Practice.- 12.1 Prototyping and Conventional Development Models.- 12.1.1 Specification of Requirements.- 12.1.2 Requirements Analysis and Project Acquisition.- 12.1.3 Our Assessment.- 12.2 Prototyping and “Surface-Down” Development.- 12.2.1 Our Assessment.- 12.3 Prototyping and Evolutionary Strategies.- 12.3.1 Our Assessment.- 12.4 Prototyping and User Development.- 12.4.1 Our Assessment.- 12.5 Prototyping and Documentation.- 12.5.1 Our Assessment.- 13 The Groups Involved in Prototyping.- 13.1 The Developers.- 13.1.1 Opposition from the Developers.- 13.1.2 New Forms of Project Work.- 13.1.3 New Technical Environment.- 13.1.4 The Users.- 13.2 Management.- 13.2.1 The Break with Conventional Methods.- 13.2.2 New Forms of Project Organization.- 13.2.3 New Technical Infrastructure.- 13.2.4 New Contracts.- 13.2.5 New Forms of Personnel Management.- 14 Summary.- References.