Unified Software Development Process

Standardized software development processes can be used to produce generic characteristics, which can then be specialized to construct tailor-made types of software development processes. The designers of UML developed a Unified Software Development Process [Jacobson 1997] that builds on UML and is complementary to it This methodology describes the key concepts, the core workflows and the overall management required for the development of generic software development processes.

The Unified Software Development Process defines a 'process framework' for different kinds of software systems, domains, and organizations. The main characteristics of this process are that it is 'use case driven' and 'architecture-centric', while at the same time defining iterative and incremental process phases. The overall Unified Software Development Process development life cycle is divided into four main phases (inception, elaboration, construction and transition) and consists of a sequence of iterations. The definition of the phases reflects the main focus of the iterations, each conducted at certain stages of product development like UML, the Unified Software Development Process is generic, which means that it can be specialized for specific types of software development projects. These specializations retain the general characteristics of the Unified Software Development Process, which are as follows

• Iterative development: software systems can be developed and delivered incrementally to be able to validate architectural assumptions and requirements early in the software analysis, and to adapt the system architecture as requirements evolve and as complications and risks are better understood.

• Use case driven: the software development project should take the desired functionality of the application or system that is to be delivered as a starting point for requirements specification, analysis, design, and construction. A use case is the specification of the behavior of a system (or part of a system), and a use case diagram is an appropriate way to visualize a use case.

• Requirements and change management: in an e-Business development project assumptions made at an early stage should be constantly checked so that they remain valid throughout the project. Furthermore, a procedure should be in place to manage requests for change or functionality extensions.

Questionnaire:

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