Strengths And Weaknesses Of Waterfall

Waterfall is a linear process model that follows a sequential path from requirements analysis, design, implementation, testing and delivering the product (Royce, 2005, p30). It is characterised by being a document heavy and predictable. Because of the predictability it’s strengths are when a project has concrete requirements from the beginning that are extremely unlikely to change (Boehm, 1988). Being extremely well documented, the entire process is transparent and if one was to look through the documentation all relevant information would be available such as current progress so far and expected completion dates for the entire project. However with an emphasis on documentation, not all information recorded may be pertinent and finding the

In addition to this, Waterfall’s other weakness is when project requirements are fast changing. With all requirements analysis done at the beginning before moving onto design, Waterfall offers no guidance on how to deal with changes (Royce, 2005). A focus on manufacturing a product instead of being a flexible process that adapts to change makes Waterfall ill suited to many modern software problems.Prototype model is a process model that recognises the need for requirements to reconsidered and reviewed. High level requirements of the software are identified and defined for a quick design to

As software engineering is still a young science the debate around the most optimine practices remains volatile.As process models become better defined, it becomes easier to describe them in a computer readable language. Being able to define a problem in such a way is a key factor in creating automated processes. When an adequate process model has been proposed and defined, process technology tools can be used to evaluate the tasks as characterised by the process model. Functionality of these process technology tools can include designating tasks within stages of the model and monitoring the progress and success of them. (Royce, 2005). As the models become better defined it may even be possible to have software controlling process by utilising optimisation methods. However the difficulty in reaching this level of automation is that clear heuristics are required for what qualifies as a successful model, heuristics that are computable. With clear heuristics for success of a model, such as low time or cost, the typical workflow of a model can be evaluated against alternate workflows to determine the most time or cost effective path (Royce, 2005). Using these tools, computer optimised process models can be used to select the perfect process model for certain projects. There is the potential for process models to be tailor made for each project via