PART II
SCENARIOS THROUGH THE SYSTEM LIFECYCLE: TECHNIQUES
INTRODUCTION
This part of the book consists of a set of chapters written by authors with expertise in different scenario-based techniques. Each chapter can stand alone as an introduction to a technique; but the chapters follow a common framework, explained below, and authors have where appropriate, drawn comparisons between their own and other techniques, especially those described in other chapters. Therefore, there are several ways of using this part of the book, other than simply reading it from start to end,
- find the chapters that describe the techniques you are most interested in, and study those in detail;
- read the Summaries of all the chapters to get an idea of the range of techniques;
- skim through the chapters, especially the Strengths and Weaknesses and Comparisons sections, to get an appreciation of the relative merits of the techniques.
STRUCTURE OF THE PART 2 CHAPTERS
Each chapter has the following framework:
Summary
A few paragraphs telling the message of the chapter.
Applicability
A brief factual statement of the types of project for which the described approach is suitable—for example: information systems, distributed systems, control and embedded systems, safety-critical systems.
Position in the Life Cycle
A diagram like the one below, showing the parts of the life cycle covered by the described approach.
Key Features
A short factual description of the distinguishing marks of the approach.
Strengths
A brief statement of the key benefits of the approach.
Weaknesses
The principal areas that the approach does not address.
Technique
A detailed description of the methods, techniques and conceptual tools involved in the approach.
Worked Example
A detailed stepwise illustration telling the story of how the technique works.
Comparisons
A few pages reviewing how the approach works compared to other approaches, what it doesn't do, what else needs to be evaluated, and what other techniques would be beneficial.
Keywords
A list of terms for the main concepts in the chapter.
Recommended Reading
Recommendations and gentle critiques of the readily available books that chapter authors consider the most suitable for engineers in industry to read to learn more about the topic of their chapters.
TOPICS COVERED
The techniques are organised broadly by the parts of the system development life cycle that they address, namely,
- Discovery and Validation
- Collaborative Approaches (focusing mainly on the early parts of the life cycle)
- Design and Implementation (extending more into the later parts of the life cycle)
- Testing
- Management
This classification is of course, only approximate, and each chapter gives more detailed guidance on the applicability of the techniques it describes.