SE Lecture - 3

Software Engineering
Tehreem Aslam
FAST-NU
Prototyping Model
 A customer defines a set of general objectives
for software but does not identify detailed
input, processing, or output requirements
 The developer may be unsure of the

efficiency of an algorithm, the adaptability of
an operating system
Prototyping Model
 This model adds prototyping as sub-
process
 A prototype is a partially developed product
that enables customers and developers to
examine some aspect of a proposed system
and decide if it is suitable for a finished
product
Prototyping Model
 Used to explore the risky aspects of the system
o Risk of developing the “wrong” system
o User interface without functionality
o Technical risks
 Prototype may be thrown away or evolve into

product
Software Prototyping
 Software prototyping makes the requirements more real
and closes gaps in understanding of the requirements
 Prototyping puts a mock-up of a new system
 Early feedback on prototypes helps the stakeholders

arrive at a shared understanding of the system’s
requirements
Prototyping - Major Purposes
 Clarify and complete the requirements:
- Used as a requirements tool, the prototype is a preliminary
implementation of a part of the system that’s not well
understood
- User evaluation of the prototype points out problems with

the requirements, which you can correct at low cost before
you construct the actual product
 Explore design alternatives:
- A prototype lets stakeholders explore different user
interaction techniques, optimize system usability, and
evaluate potential technical approaches
- Prototypes can demonstrate requirements feasibility

through working designs
 Grow into the ultimate product:

- A prototype is a functional implementation of an initial
subset of the product, which can be elaborated into the
complete product through a sequence of small-scale
development cycles
Prototyping Model (Pros)
 Suitable for large systems for
which there is no manual
process to define the
requirements
 Much feedback from

customer
 Quality of software is
good
Prototyping Model (Cons)
 It may be impossible to tune the
prototype to meet non- functional
requirements
 Lot of time at customer
 The changes made during

prototype development will
probably have degraded the
system structure
Horizontal Prototypes
 Also called behavioral prototype or mock-up
 It doesn’t dive into all the layers of an architecture or into

system details but depicts a portion of the user interface
 This type of prototype lets you explore some specific

behaviors of the intended system, with the goal of
refining the requirements
Vertical Prototypes
 Also known as Structural Prototype
 It implements a slice of application functionality from

the user interface through the technical services
layers
 A vertical prototype works like the real system is

supposed to work because it touches on all levels of the
system implementation
Throwaway Prototypes
 Build a throwaway prototype (or exploratory prototype)
to answer questions, resolve uncertainties, and
improve requirements quality
 Throwaway prototype emphasizes quick implementation

and modification over robustness, reliability,
performance, and long- term maintainability
Throwaway Prototypes
 The throwaway prototype is most appropriate when the
team faces uncertainty, ambiguity, incompleteness, or
vagueness in the requirements
 A prototype that helps users and developers visualize

how the requirements might be implemented can reveal
gaps in the requirements
Evolutionary Prototypes
 An evolutionary prototype provides a solid
architectural foundation for building the product
incrementally as the requirements become clear over
time
 Evolutionary prototyping is a component of the spiral

software development life cycle model and of some
object-oriented software development processes
Evolutionary Prototypes
 In contrast to the quick-and-dirty nature of throwaway
prototyping, an evolutionary prototype must be built
with robust, production-quality code from the outset
 An evolutionary prototype must be designed for easy

growth and frequent enhancement, so developers must
emphasize software architecture and solid design
principles
Prototypes
Gather Use
Requirements
Refine user
requirements Begin next
increment
Develop throwaway Construct Construct vertical

horizontal evolutionary prototype
prototype prototype
Design User Verify and Design Software

Interface deliver architecture
increments
Construct and
verify product
Deliver product
Several possible ways to incorporate prototyping into the software development

process
Spiral Model (Diagram)
Planning
Communication
Start Modeling
Start
Deployment Construction
18
Cost
Progress
Spiral Model (Description)
 Follows an evolutionary approach

 Used when requirements are not well understood and risks are high
 Inner spirals focus on identifying software requirements and project risks; may
also incorporate prototyping
 Outer spirals take on a classical waterfall approach after requirements have been
defined, but permit iterative growth of the software
20
 Operates as a risk-driven model…a go/no-go decision
occurs after each complete spiral in order to react to risk
determinations
 Requires considerable expertise in risk assessment
 Serves as a realistic model for large-scale software
development

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Software Engineering

 The developer may be unsure of the

 Prototype may be thrown away or evolve into

 Prototyping puts a mock-up of a new system

 Early feedback on prototypes helps the stakeholders

- User evaluation of the prototype points out problems with

- Prototypes can demonstrate requirements feasibility

 Grow into the ultimate product:

 Much feedback from

 Lot of time at customer

 The changes made during

 It doesn’t dive into all the layers of an architecture or into

 This type of prototype lets you explore some specific

 It implements a slice of application functionality from

 A vertical prototype works like the real system is

 Throwaway prototype emphasizes quick implementation

 A prototype that helps users and developers visualize

 Evolutionary prototyping is a component of the spiral

 An evolutionary prototype must be designed for easy

Develop throwaway Construct Construct vertical

Design User Verify and Design Software

Several possible ways to incorporate prototyping into the software development

 Follows an evolutionary approach

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