S/w Project Scope and Feasibility

Software Scope and Feasibility

• Software scope describes four things –
 

• The function and features that are to be delivered to end-users.


• The data which can be input and output.


• The content of the software that is presented to user.


• Performance, constraints, reliability and interfaces that bounds the System.


• There are two ways by which the scope can be defined.

1.     A scope can be defined using the narrative description of the software obtained after communication with all stakeholders.

2.     Scope can be defined as a set of use case developed by the end users.

• In the scope description, various function are described.  These functions are evaluated and refined to provide more details before the estimation of the project.


• For performance consideration, processing and response time requirements are analyzed.


• The constraints identify the limitations placed on the software by external hardware or any other existing system.


• After identifying the scope following questions must be asked –


• Can we build the software to meet this scope ?


• Is this software project feasible ?

That means after identifying the scope of the project its feasibility must be ensured.

§        Following are the four dimensions of software feasibility.  To ensure the feasibility of the software project the set of questions based on these dimension has to be answered.  Those are as given below –

Technology 

·        Is a project technically feasible ?

·        Is it within the state of art ?

·        Are the defects to be reduced to level that satisfies the applications need ?

Finance

• Is it financially feasible ?
• Is the development cost completed at a cost of software organization, its client, or market affordable ?
• Are the defects to e reduced to a level that satisfies the application’s need ?

Time

• Will the project’s time to market beat the competition ?

Resource

• Does the organization have the resources needed to succeed ?


• Putnam and Meyers suggests that scoping is not enough.  Once scope is understood, and feasibility have been identified the next task is estimation of the Resources required to accomplish the software development effort.