Re: Development: A Structured Problem Area?

Derek Richardson wrote:

> Is software development a structured or unstructured problem? I think
> it is clear that requirements elicitation/generation and user
> interface design are unstructured. But, if we postulate that human
> experts have resolved these two areas,

That's a *huge* leap. I've yet to see a requirements process that *ever* 
"got it right the first time" - i.e., came up with specifications so 
good that the programmers could build the app and meet all the end-users 
needs *without* the programmers having to get any additional information.

> is what is left still unstructured? If so, why?

I would think so - it's certainly chaotic and liable to surprise. For 
starters, even if we posit a fantastic initial specification, the 
unstructured nature of the outside world (with which our customers must 
interact) will drive the requirements to change in an unstructured 
manner over time.

-- 
Edmund Schweppe -- schweppe-EkmVulN54Sk@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx -- 
http://schweppe.home.tiac.net
The opinions expressed herein are at best coincidentally related to
those of any past, present or future employer.


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