Course : Software Engineering and Project

Management

Unit 3
Design Engineering
 Syllabus
Design Process & quality, Design Concepts, The design Model, Pattern-
based Software Design.

Architectural Design :Design Decisions, Views, Patterns, Application

Architectures

Modeling Component level Design: component, Designing class based

components, conducting component-level design

User Interface Design : The golden rules, Interface Design steps &
Analysis, Design Evaluation

Case Study: WebApp Interface Design

Design Process & quality
 Software design encompasses the set of principles, concepts, and
practices that lead to the development of a high-quality system
or product.

What is design ?

 Design is what almost every engineer wants to do. It is the place

where creativity rules—where stakeholder requirements,
business needs, and
technical considerations all come together in the
formulation of a product or system.

 Design creates a representation or model of the software, but

unlike the requirements model (that focuses on describing
required data, function, and behavior), the design model provides
detail about software architecture, data structures, interfaces, and
components that are necessary to implement the system.
 Design Process
 Software design is an iterative process through which requirements
are translated into a ―blueprint‖ for constructing the software.

Software Quality Guidelines and Attributes

 Throughout the design process, the quality of the evolving design is
assessed with a series of technical reviews suggests three
characteristics that serve as a guide for the evaluation of a good
design:

1. The design must implement all of the explicit requirements

contained in the requirements model, and it must accommodate all
of the implicit requirements desired by stakeholders.
2. The design must be a readable, understandable guide for those who
generate code and for those who test and subsequently support the
software.
3. The design should provide a complete picture of the software,
addressing the data, functional, and behavioral domains from an
implementation perspective.
 Each of these characteristics is actually a goal of the design process.

Quality Guidelines
 In order to evaluate the quality of a design representation, you
and other members of the software team must establish
technical criteria for good design.
 Consider the following guidelines :-

1. A design should exhibit an architecture that (1) has been created

using recognizable architectural styles or patterns, (2) is composed
of components that exhibit good design characteristics, and (3) can
be implemented in an evolutionary fashion, 2 thereby facilitating
implementation and testing.
2. A design should be modular; that is, the software should be logically
partitioned into elements or subsystems.

3. A design should contain distinct representations of data,

architecture, interfaces, and components.

4. A design should lead to data structures that are appropriate for the
classes to be implemented and are drawn from recognizable data
patterns.

5. A design should lead to components that exhibit independent

functional characteristics.

6. A design should lead to interfaces that reduce the complexity of

connections between components and with the external
environment.
7. A design should be derived using a repeatable method that is driven
by information obtained during software requirements analysis.

8. A design should be represented using a notation that effectively

communicates its meaning.

Quality Attributes

 Hewlett-Packard [Gra87] developed a set of software quality

attributes that has been given the acronym FURPS—functionality,
usability, reliability, performance, and supportability.

 The FURPSquality attributes represent a target for all software

design:
Functionality is assessed by evaluating the feature set and
capabilities of the program, the generality of the functions that are
delivered, and the security of the overall system.

Usability is assessed by considering human factors, overall

aesthetics, consistency, and documentation.

Reliability is evaluated by measuring the frequency and severity of

failure, the accuracy of output results, the mean-time-to-failure
(MTTF), the ability to recover from failure, and the predictability of
the program.

Performance is measured by considering processing speed,

response time, resource consumption, throughput, and efficiency.
Supportability combines the ability to extend the program
(extensibility), adaptability, serviceability—these three attributes
represent a more common term, maintainability —and in addition,
testability, compatibility, configurability, the ease with which a system
can be installed, and the ease with which problems can be localized.
Design Process & quality
Figure 8.1 : Translating the requirements model into the design mode
Design Concepts
 1. Abstraction
 When you consider a modular solution to any problem, many levels
of abstraction can be posed.
 At the highest level of abstraction, a solution is stated in broad terms
using the language of the problem environment.
 At lower levels of abstraction, a more detailed description of the
solution is provided.
 Finally, at the lowest level of abstraction, the solution is stated in a
manner that can be directly implemented.

 Aprocedural abstraction refers to a sequence of instructions

that have a specific and limited function.
 The name of a procedural abstraction implies these functions, but
specific details are suppressed.
 An example of a procedural abstraction would be the word open for a
door.
 Open implies a long sequence of procedural steps (e.g., walk to the
door, reach out and grasp knob, turn knob and pull door, step away
from moving door, etc.).

 Adata abstraction is a named collection of data that describes a

data object. In the context of the procedural abstraction open, we
can define a data abstraction called door.
 Like any data object, the data abstraction for door would encompass
a set of attributes that describe the door (e.g., door type, swing
direction, opening mechanism, weight, dimensions).

 It follows that the procedural abstraction open would make use of

information contained in the attributes of the data abstraction door.
 2. Architecture
 Software architecture alludes (signals) to ―the overall structure of the
software and the ways in which that structure provides conceptual
integrity for a system‖.

 In its simplest form, architecture is the structure or organization of

program components (modules), the manner in which these
components interact, and the structure of data that are used by the
components.

 A set of architectural patterns enables a software engineer to

solve common design problems.

 There is a set of properties that should be specified as part of an

architectural design.
Structural properties : This aspect of the architectural design
representation defines the components of a system (e.g.,
modules, objects, filters) and the manner in which those
components are packaged and interact with one another.

 For example, objects are packaged to encapsulate both data and the
processing that manipulates the data and interact via the invocation
of methods

Extra-functional properties : The architectural design

description should address how the design architecture achieves
requirements for performance, capacity, reliability, security,
adaptability, and other system characteristics.
Families of related systems : The architectural design should
draw upon repeatable patterns that are commonly encountered in
the design of families of similar systems. In essence, the design
should have the ability to reuse architectural building blocks.

 Given the specification of these properties, the architectural

design can be represented using one or more of a number of
different models.

 Structural models represent architecture as an organized collection

of program components.

 Framework models increase the level of design abstraction by

attempting to identify repeatable architectural design frameworks
that are encountered in similar types of applications.
 Dynamic models address the behavioral aspects of the program
architecture, indicating how the structure or system configuration
may change as a function of external events.

 Process models focus on the design of the business or technical

process that the system must accommodate.

 Functional models can be used to represent the functional hierarchy

of a system.

 A number of different architectural description languages (ADLs)have

been developed to represent these models.
 3. Patterns
 ― A pattern is a named nugget of insight which conveys the essence
of a proven solution to a recurring problem within a certain context
amidst competing concerns ‖.

 A design pattern describes a design structure that solves a particular

design problem within a specific context and amid ―forces‖ that may
have an impact on the manner in which the pattern is applied and
used.

 The intent of each design pattern is to provide a description

that enables a designer to determine
(1) whether the pattern is applicable to the current work,
(2) whether the pattern can be reused (hence, saving design time),
(3) whether the pattern can serve as a guide for developing a similar,
but functionally or structurally different pattern.
 4. Separation of Concerns

 Separation of concerns is a design concept that suggests that any

complex problem can be more easily handled if it is subdivided into
pieces that can each be solved and/or optimized independently.

 A concern is a feature or behavior that is specified as part of the

requirements model for the software.

 By separating concerns into smaller, and therefore more manageable

pieces, a problem takes less effort and time to solve.

 For two problems, p1 and p2, if the perceived complexity of p1 is

greater than the perceived complexity of p2 , it follows that the effort
required to solve p1 is greater than the effort required to solve p2.
 As a general case, this result is intuitively obvious. It does take more
time to solve a difficult problem.

 It also follows that the perceived complexity of two problems when

they are combined is often greater than the sum of the perceived
complexity when each is taken separately.

 This leads to a divide-and-conquer strategy—it‘s easier to solve a

complex problem when you break it into manageable pieces. This has
important implications with regard to software modularity.
 5. Modularity
 Modularity is the most common manifestation of separation of
concerns.
 Software is divided into separately named and addressable
components, sometimes called modules, that are integrated to
satisfy problem requirements.
 Monolithic software (i.e., a large program composed of a single
module) cannot be easily grasped by a software engineer.

 The number of control paths, span of reference, number of variables,

and over-all complexity would make understanding close to
impossible.

 In almost all instances, you should break the design into many
modules, hoping to make understanding easier and, as a
consequence, reduce the cost required to build the software.
 Referring to Figure 8.2, the effort (cost) to develop an individual
software module does decrease as the total number of modules
increases.

 Given the same set of requirements, more modules means smaller

individual size.

 However, as the number of modules grows, the effort (cost)

associated with integrating the modules also grows.

 These characteristics lead to a total cost or effort curve shown in the

figure.

 There is a number, M, of modules that would result in minimum

development cost, but we do not have the necessary sophistication
to predict M with assurance.
Figure 8.2 : Modularity and software cost
 You modularize a design (and the resulting program) so that
development can be more easily planned;

 Software increments can be defined and delivered;

 Changes can be more easily accommodated; testing and debugging

can be conducted more efficiently, and

 Long-term maintenance can be conducted without serious side

effects.
 6. Information Hiding
 The principle of information hiding suggests that modules be
―characterized by design decisions that (each) hides from all others. ‖
 Modules should be specified and designed so that information
(algorithms and data) contained within a module is inaccessible to
other modules that have no need for such information.

 Hiding implies that effective modularity can be achieved by defining a

set of independent modules that communicate with one another
only that information necessary to achieve software function.

 Abstraction helps to define the procedural (or informational)

entities that make up the software.
 Hiding defines and enforces access constraints to both procedural
detail within a module and any local data structure used by the
module.
 The use of information hiding as a design criterion for modular
systems provides the greatest benefits when modifications are
required during testing & later during software maintenance.

 Because most data & procedural detail are hidden from other parts of
the software, errors introduced during modification are less likely to
prepare to other locations within the software.
 7. Functional Independence
 Functional independence is achieved by developing modules.
 You should design software so that each module addresses a specific
subset of requirements & has a simple interface when viewed from
other parts of the program structure.

 Software with effective modularity, that is, independent modules, is

easier to develop because function can be compartmentalized &
interfaces are simplified.
 Independent modules are easier to maintain (& test) because
secondary effects caused by design or code modifications are limited,
error propagation is reduced, & reusable modulesare possible.

 Independence is assessed using two qualitative criteria : cohesion&

coupling.
 Cohesion is an indication of the relative functional strength of a
module.

 Coupling is an indication of the relative interdependence among

modules.

 Cohesion is a natural extension of the information-hiding.

 Cohesive module performs a single task, requiring little interaction
with other components in other parts of a program.
 Cohesive module should do just one thing.

 Coupling is an indication of interconnection among modules in a

software structure.
 Coupling depends on the interface complexity between modules, the
point at which entry or reference is made to a module, & what data
pass across the interface.
 In software design, you should strive for the lowest possible coupling.

 Simple connectivity among modules results in software that is easier

to understand & less prone to a ―ripple effect‖, caused when errors
occur at one location & propagate throughout a system.
 8. Refinement
 Stepwise refinement is a top-down design strategy.
 A hierarchy is developed by decomposing a macroscopic statement of
function in a stepwise fashion until programming language
statements are reached.

 Refinement is actually a process of Elaboration.

 You begin with a statement of function that is defined at a high level

of abstraction.

 That is, the statement describes function or information conceptually

but provides no information.

 You then elaborate on the original statement, providing more & more
detail as each successive refinement (elaboration) occurs.
 9. Aspects

 It is important to identify a aspects so that the design can properly

accommodate them as refinement & modularization occur.
 10. Refactoring
 Refactoring is a reorganization technique that simplifies the design
(or code) of a component without changing its function or behavior.
 Refactoring is the process of changing a software system in such a
way that it does not alter the external behavior of the code (design)
yet improves its internal structure.

 When software is refactored, the existing design is examined for

redundancy, unused design elements, inefficient or unnecessary
algorithms, poorly constructed or inappropriate data structures, or
any other design iteration might yield a component that exhibits low
cohesion.

 After careful consideration, you may decide that the component

should be refactored into 3 separate components, each exhibiting
high cohesion.
 The result will be software that is easier to integrate, easier to test, &
easier to maintain.
 11. Object Oriented Design Concepts

 The OO paradigm is widely used in modern software engineering.

 OO concepts such as Classes & objects, inheritance, message &

polymorphism, among others.
 12. Design Classes
 The requirement model defines a set of analysis classes.
 Each describes some element of the problem domain, focusing on
aspects of the problem that are user visible.
 The level of abstraction of an analysis class is relatively high.
 As the design model evolves, you will define as et of design classes
that refine the analysis classes by providing design detail that will
enable classes to be implemented.

 5 different types of design classes, each representing a different layer

of the design architecture, can be developed :-

1. User Interface Classes :- Define all abstractions that are necessary

for Human Computer Interaction (HCI).
2. Business Domain Classes :- Are often refinements of the analysis
classes defined earlier. The classes identify the attributes & services
(methods) that are required to implement some element of the
business domain.
3. Process Classes :- Implement lower-level business abstractions
required to fully manage the business domain classes.

4. Persistent Classes :- Represent data stores (e.g. a database) that will

persist beyond the execution of the software.

5. System Classes :- Implement software management & control

functions that enable the system to operate & communicate within
its computing environment & with the outside world.

 4 Characteristics of a well-formed design class :-

1. Complete & sufficient :- A design class should be complete

encapsulation of all attributes & methods that can reasonably be
expected to exist for aclass.
 For example, the class Scene defined for video-editing software is
complete only if it contains all attributes & methods that can
reasonably be associated with the creation of a video scene.

 Sufficiently ensures that the design class contains only those methods
that are sufficiently to achieve the intent of the class, no more & no
less.

2. Primitiveness :- Methods associated with a design class should be

focused on accomplishing one service for the class.
 Once the service has been implemented with a method, the class
should not provide another way to accomplish the same thing.
 For example, the class VideoClip for video-editing software might
have attributes start-point and end-point to indicate the start & end
points of the clip.
 The methods, setStartPoint() & setEndPoint(), provide the only
means for establishing start & end points for the clip.
3. High Cohesion :- A cohesive design class has a small, focused set of
responsibilities & single-mindedly applies attributes & methods to
implement those responsibilities.
 For example, the class VideoClip might contain a set of methods for
editing the video clip.

4. Low Coupling :- It is necessary for design classes to collaborate with

one another.
 However, collaboration should be kept to an acceptable minimum.
 If a design model is highly coupled, the system is difficult to
implement, to test, & to maintain over time.
 In general, design classes within a subsystem should have only limited
knowledge of other classes.
Figure 8.3 : Design class for FloorPlan & composite aggregation for the
class
The Design Model
Figure 8.4 : Dimensions of the Design Model
 1. Data Design Elements
 Data design creates a model of data &/or information that is
represented at a high level of abstraction (the customer / user‘s view
of data).
 This data model is then refined into progressively more
implementation-specific representations that can be processed by
the computer-based system.
 The structure of data has always been an important part of software
design.
 At the program component level, the design of data structures & the
associated algorithms required to manipulate them is essential to the
creation of high-quality applications.
 At the application level, the translation of a data model into a
database is pivotal to achieving the business objectives of a system.
 At the business level, the collection of information stored in disparate
databases & reorganized into a ―data warehouse‖ enables data
mining.
 2. Architectural Design Elements
 The architectural design for software is the equivalent to the floor
plan of a house.
 The floor pan depicts the overall layout of the rooms; their size,
shape, & relationship to one another; & the doors & windows that
allow movement into & out of the rooms.
 The floor plan gives us an overall view of the house.
 Architectural design elements give us an overall view of the software.

 The architectural model is derived from 3 sources :-

1. Information about the application domain for the software to be
built.
2. Specific requirements model elements such as data flow diagrams or
analysis classes, their relationships & collaborations for the problem
at hand.
3. The availability of architectural styles & patterns.
 3. Interface Design Elements
 The interface design for software is analogous to a set of detailed
drawings for the doors, windows, & external utilities of a house.

 There are 3 important elements of interface design:-

1. The user interface (UI).
2. External interfaces to other systems, devices, networks, or other
producers or consumers of information.
3. Internal interfaces between various design components.

 These interface design elements allow the software to communicate

externally & enable internal communication & collaboration among
the components that populate the software architecture.

 UI design increasingly called Usability Design.

 Usability design incorporates aesthetic elements (e.g. layout, color,
graphics, metaphors, UI navigation), and technical elements (e.g. UI
patterns, reusable components).

 UI is unique subsystem within overall application architecture.

 The design of external interfaces requires definitive information

about the entity to which information is sent or received.

 In every case, this information should be collected during

requirements engineering.
 The design of external interfaces should incorporate error checking &
appropriate security features.

 The design of internal interfaces is closely aligned with component-

level design.
 For example, the SafeHome() security function makes use of acontrol
panel that allows a homeowner to control certain aspects of the
security function.

 In an advanced version of the system, control panel functions may be

implemented via a wireless PDAor mobile phone.

 The ControlPanel class (as Figure 8.5) provides the behavior

associated with a keypad, & therefore, it must implement the
operations readKeyStroke() and decodeKey().

 If these operations are to be provided to other classes (in this case,

WirelessPDA and MobilePhone), it is useful to define an interfaceas
shown in Figure 8.5.
 The interface, named KeyPad, is shown as an << interface >>
stereotype or as a small, labeled circle connected to the class with a
line.
 The interface is defined with no attributes & the set of operations
that are necessary to achieve the behavior of a keypad.

 The dashed line with an open triangle at its end (Figure 8.5) indicates
that the controlPanel class provides KeyPad operations as part of its
behavior.

 In UML, this is characterized as a Realization.

 That is, part of the behavior of ControlPanel will be implemented by
realizing KeyPad operations.
 These operations will be provided to other classes that access the
interface.
Figure 8.5 : Interface representation for Control-Panel
 4. Component-Level Design Elements

 This design is the equivalent to a set of detailed drawings (&

specifications) for each room in ahouse.

 These drawings depict writing & plumbing within each room, the
location of wall switches, faucets, sinks showers, tubs, drains,
cabinets, & closets.

Figure 8.6 : AUML Component Diagram

 The component-level design for software fully describes the internal
detail of each software component.

 Toaccomplish this, the component-level design defines data

structures for all local data objects & algorithmic detail for all
processing that occurs within a component & an interface that allows
access to all component operations (behaviors).

 A component is represented in UML diagrammatic form as shown in

Figure 8.6.
 In this Figure 8.6, a component named SensorManagament (part of
Safehome security function) is represented.

 A dashed arrow connects the component to a class named Sensor

that is assigned to it.
 The SensorManagement component performs all functions
associated with SafeHome sensors including monitoring &
configuring them.
 4. Deployment-Level Design Elements
 It indicates how software functionality & subsystems will be allocated
within the physical computing environment that will support the
software.
 For example, the elements of the SafeHome product are configured
to operate within 3 primary computing environments – a home based
PC, the SafeHome control panel, & a server housed at CPI corp.
(providing internet based access to the system).

 During design, a UML deployment diagram is developed & then

refined as Figure 8.7.
 The subsystems (functionality) housed within each computing
element are indicated.
 For example, personal computer houses subsystems that implement
security, surveillance, home management, & communication
features.
Figure 8.7 : AUML deployment diagram
 The diagram shown in Figure 8.7 is in descriptor form.

 This means that the deployment diagram shows the computing

environment but does not explicitly indicate configuration details.

 For example, the ―personal computer‖ is not further identified.

 It could be a Mac or Windows-based PC, a Sun workstation, or a

Linux-box.
Pattern Based Software
Design
 Requirements
Model

Design Begins

Extract Consider
Consider
Problem, context Design quality
Design concepts
forces attributes

Addressed by
Pattern ?
yes no

Begin Apply other

Pattern-based design methods
Design tasks And notation

Figure 8.2 :
Pattern-
based design Design model
in context
 The role of Pattern based design in all of this is as Figure 8.2

 A software designer begins with a requirements model (either

explicit or implied) that presents an abstract representation of the
system.

 The requirements model describes the problem set, establishes the

context, & identifies the system of forces that hold sway (influence).
 Design Tasks
 The following design tasks are applied when a pattern based design
philosophy is used :-

1. Examine the requirements model & develop a problem hierarchy :-

Describe each problem & sub problem by isolating the problem, the
context, & the system of forces that apply.
 Work from broad problems (high level of abstraction) to smaller sub
problems (at lower levels of abstraction).

2. Determine if a reliable pattern language has been developed for

the problem domain :- A Pattern language addresses problems
associated with a specific application domain.
 If that level of pattern language specifically could not be found, the
team would partition the SafeHome software problem into a series of
generic problem domains.
3. Beginning with a broad problem, determine whether one or more
architectural patterns is available for it :-
 If an architectural pattern is available, be certain to examine all
collaborating patterns.

4. Using the collaborations provided for the architectural pattern,

examine subsystem or component-level problems & search for
appropriate patterns to address them.
 It may be necessary to search through other pattern responsible as
well as the list of patterns that corresponds to the architectural
solution.
 If an appropriate pattern is found, adapt the design solution
proposed & build a design model element that adequately
represents.
5. Repeat steps 2 through 5 until all broad problems have been
addressed :-
 The implication is to begin with big picture & elaborate to solve
problems at increasingly more detailed levels.

6. If user interface design problems have been isolated (this is almost

always the case), search the many user interface design pattern
repositories for appropriate patterns :-
 Proceed in a manner similar to steps 3,4 & 5.

7. Regardless of its level of abstraction, if a pattern language and/or

patterns repository or individual patterns show promise , compare
the problem to be solved against the existing patterns(s)
presented:-
 Be certain to examine context & forces to ensure that the pattern
does, in fact, provide a solution that is amenable to the problem.
8. Be certain to refine the design as it is derived from patterns using
design quality criteria as a guide :-

Building Pattern Organizing Table

 As pattern-based design proceeds, you may encounter trouble in

organizing & categorizing candidate patterns from multiple pattern
languages & repositories.

 To help organize your evaluation of candidate patterns, Microsoft

suggests the creation of a Pattern-Organizing table that takes the
general form show in Figure 12.2
 Database Application Implementation Infrastructure
Data/Content
Problem Statement … PatternName (s) PatternName (s)
Problem Statement … PatternName (s) PatternName (s)
Problem Statement … PatternName (s) PatternName (s)
Architecture
Problem Statement … PatternName (s)
Problem Statement … PatternName (s) PatternName (s)
Problem Statement …

Component-level
Problem Statement … PatternName (s) PatternName (s)
Problem Statement … PatternName (s)
Problem Statement … PatternName (s) PatternName (s)
User Interface
Problem Statement … PatternName (s) PatternName (s)
Problem Statement … PatternName (s) PatternName (s)
Problem Statement … PatternName (s) PatternName (s)

Figure 12.2 :- Apattern organizingtable

 A pattern organizing table can be implemented as a spreadsheet
model using the form shown in the Figure 12.2.
 An abbreviated list of problem statements, organized by
data/content, architecture, component-level, & user interface issues,
is presented in the left-hand (shaded) column.

 Four Pattern types – database, application, implementation, &

infrastructure – are listed across the top row.
 The names of candidate patterns are noted in the cells of the table.

 Toprovide entries for the organizing table, you‘ll searchthrough

pattern languages & repositories for patterns that address a
particular problem statement.
 When one or more candidate patterns is found, it is entered in the
row corresponding to the problem statement & the column
corresponds to the pattern type.
 Common Design Mistakes

 In some cases, not enough time has been spent to understand the
underlying problem & as a consequence, you select a pattern that
looks right but is inappropriate for the solution required.

 Once the wrong pattern is selected, you refuse to see your error &
force-fit the pattern.

 In other cases, the problem has forces that are not considered by the
pattern you have chosen, resulting in poor or erroneous fit.

 Sometimes a pattern is applied too literally & the required adaptions

for your problem space are not implemented.
Architectural Design :
 Architectural design is concerned with understanding how a
system should be organized and designing the overall structure of
that system.

 The output of the architectural design process is an architectural

model that describes how the system is organized as a set of
communicating components.

 You can design software architectures at two levels of abstraction,

which called as architecture in the small and architecture in the
large:
1. Architecture in the small is concerned with the architecture of
individual programs.
 At this level, we are concerned with the way that an individual
program is decomposed into components.

2. Architecture in the large is concerned with the architecture of

complex enterprise systems that include other systems, programs,
and program components.
 These enterprise systems are distributed over different computers,
which may be owned and managed by different companies.
Figure 6.1 : The architecture of a packing robot control system
 System architectures are often modeled using simple block diagrams,
as in Figure 6.1.

 Each box in the diagram represents a component.

 Boxes within boxes indicate that the component hasbeen

decomposed to sub-components.

 Arrows mean that data and or control signals are passed from
component to component in the direction of the arrows.
 Software architecture is important because it affects the
performance, robustness, three advantages of explicitly designing
and documenting

 Software architecture: distributability, and maintainability of a

system.

1. Stakeholder communication
2. System analysis
3. Large-scale reuse
Design Decisions
 Because of the close relationship between non-functional
requirements and software architecture, the particular architectural
style and structure that you choose for a system should depend on
the non-functional system requirements:

1. Performance
 If performance is a critical requirement, the architecture should be
designed to localize critical operations within a small number of
components, with these components all deployed on the same
computer rather than distributed across the network.

2. Security
 If security is a critical requirement, a layered structure for the
architecture should be used, with the most critical assets protected in
the innermost layers, with a high level of security validation applied
to these layers.
 3. Safety
 If safety is a critical requirement, the architecture should be designed
so that safety-related operations are all located in either a single
component or in a small number of components.
 This reduces the costs and problems of safety validation and makesit
possible to provide related protection systems that can safely shut
down the system in the event of failure.

4. Availability
 If availability is a critical requirement, the architecture should be
designed to include redundant components so that it is possible to
replace and update components without stopping the system.
 5. Maintainability
 If maintainability is a critical requirement, the system architecture
should be designed using fine-grain, self-contained components that
may readily be changed. Producers of data should be separated from
consumers and shared data structures should be avoided.
Architectural views
Figure 2 : 4+1 Architectural View Model
 The views that he suggests are:

1. ALogical View, which shows the key abstractions in the system as

objects or object classes. It should be possible to relate the system
requirements to entities in this logical view.

2. AProcess View, which shows how, at run-time, the system is

composed of interacting processes. This view is useful for making
judgments about nonfunctional system characteristics such as
performance and availability.

3. ADevelopment View, which shows how the software is

decomposed for development, that is, it shows the breakdown of
the software into components that are implemented by a single
developer or development team. This view is useful for software
managers and programmers.
4. A Physical View, which shows the system hardware and how
software components are distributed across the processors in the
system. This view is useful for systems engineers planning a system
deployment.

 Conceptual view is an abstract view of the system that can be the

basis for decomposing high-level requirements into more detailed
specifications, help engineers make decisions about components that
can be reused.

 In practice, conceptual views are almost always developed during the

design process and are used to support architectural decision making.

 They are a way of communicating the essence of a system to different

stakeholders.
Architectural patterns
 The idea of patterns as a way of presenting, sharing, and reusing
knowledge about software systems.

 Architectural patterns were proposed in the 1990s under the name

‗architectural styles‘.

 Next point describes the well-known Model-View-Controller pattern.

 This pattern is the basis of interaction management in many web-

based systems.

 The stylized pattern description includes the pattern name, a brief

description (with an associated graphical model), and an example of
the type of system where the pattern is used.
 Pattern Name : MVC

 Description : Separates presentation and interaction from the system

data. The system is structured into three logical components that
interact with each other.
 The Model component manages the system data and associated
operations on that data.
 The View component defines and manages how the data is presented
to the user.
 The Controller component manages user interaction (e.g., key
presses, mouse clicks, etc.) and passes these interactions to the View
and the Model.

 Example : Figure 6.4 shows the architecture of a web-based

application system organized using the MVC pattern.
 When used : Used when there are multiple ways to view and interact
with data. Also used when the future requirements for interaction
and presentation of data are unknown.

 Advantages : Allows the data to change independently of its

representation and vice versa. Supports presentation of the same
data in different ways with changes made in one representation
shown in all of them.

 Disadvantages : Can involve additional code and code complexity

when the data model and interactions are simple.
 You should also include information about when the pattern should
be used and its advantages and disadvantages.

 Graphical models of the architecture associated with the MVC

pattern are shown in Figures 6.3 and 6.4.

 These present the architecture from different views—Figure 6.3 is a

conceptual view and Figure 6.4 shows a possible run-time
architecture when this pattern is used for interaction management in
a web-based system.
Figure 6.3 : The organization of the MVC
Figure 6.4 : Web application architecture using the MVC pattern
 1. Layered Architecture

 The notions of separation and independence are fundamental to

architectural design because they allow changes to be localized.

 The MVC pattern separates elements of a system, allowing them to

change independently.

 For example, adding a new view or changing an existing view canbe

done without any changes to the underlying data in the model.

 The layered architecture pattern is another way of achieving

separation and independence.

 This pattern is shown as below :-

 Name of Pattern : Layered Architecture Pattern

 Description : Organizes the system into layers with related

functionality associated with each layer.
 A layer provides services to the layer above it so the lowest-level
layers represent core services that are likely to be used throughout
the system. See Figure 6.6.

 Example : A layered model of a system for sharing copyright

documents held in different libraries, as shown in Figure6.7.

 When Used : Used when building new facilities on top of existing

systems; when the development is spread across several teams with
each team responsibility for a layer of functionality; when there is a
requirement for multi-level security.
 Advantages : Allows replacement of entire layers so long asthe
interface is maintained.

 Redundant facilities (e.g., authentication) can be provided in each

layer to increase the dependability of the system.

 Disadvantages : In practice, providing a clean separation between

layers is often difficult and a high-level layer may have to interact
directly with lower-level layers rather than through the layer
immediately below it.

 Performance can be a problem because of multiple levels of

interpretation of a service request as it is processed at each layer.
 This layered approach supports the incremental development of
systems.

 As a layer is developed, some of the services provided by that layer

may be made available to users.

 The architecture is also changeable and portable.

 So long as its interface is unchanged, a layer can be replacedby

another, equivalent layer.

 When layer interfaces change or new facilities are added to a layer,

only the adjacent layer is affected.

 Figure 6.6 is an example of a layered architecture with four layers.

 The lowest layer includes system support software—typically
database and operating system support.

 The next layer is the application layer that includes the components
concerned with the application functionality and utility components
that are used by other application components.

 The third layer is concerned with user interface management and

providing user authentication and authorization, with the top layer
providing user interface facilities.

 the number of layers is arbitrary. Any of the layers in Figure 6.6 could
be split into two or more layers.
Figure 6.6 : Ageneric layered architecture
 Figure 6.7 is an example of how this layered architecture pattern can
be applied to a library system called LIBSYS,which allows controlled
electronic access to copyright material from a group of university
libraries.

 This has a five-layer architecture, with the bottom layer being the
individual databases in each library.
Figure 6.7 : The architecture of the LIBSYSsystem
 2. Repository Architecture
 The layered architecture and MVC patterns are examples of patterns
where the view presented is the conceptual organization of a system.

 The Repository pattern describes how a set of interacting

components can share data.

 The majority of systems that use large amounts of data are organized
around a shared database or repository.

 This model is therefore suited to applications in which data is

generated by one component and used by another.

 Examples of this type of system include command and control

systems, management information systems, CAD systems, and
interactive development environments for software.
 Name of Pattern : The Repository Pattern

 Description : All data in a system is managed in a central repository

that is accessible to all system components. Components do not
interact directly, only through the repository.

 Example : Figure 6.9 is an example of an IDE where the components

use a repository of system design information. Each software tool
generates information which is then available for use by other tools.

 When Used : You should use this pattern when you have a system in
which large volumes of information are generated that has to be
stored for a long time.
 You may also use it in data-driven systems where the inclusion of
data in the repository triggers an action or tool.
 Advantages : Components can be independent—they do not need to
know of the existence of other components.

 Changes made by one component can be propagated to all

components.
 All data can be managed consistently (e.g., backups done at the same
time) as it is all in one place.

 Disadvantages : The repository is a single point of failure so problems

in the repository affect the whole system.

 May be inefficiencies in organizing all communication through the

repository.

 Distributing the repository across several computers may be difficult.

 Figure 6.9 is an illustration of a situation in which a repository might
be used.
 This diagram shows an IDE that includes different tools to support
model-driven development.
 The repository in this case might be a version-controlled environment
that keeps track of changes to software and allows rollback to earlier
versions.

 Organizing tools around a repository is an efficient way to share large

amounts of data.
 There is no need to transmit data explicitly from one component to
another.

 In the example shown in Figure 6.9, the repository is passive and

control is the responsibility of the components using the repository.
Figure 6.9 : Arepository architecture for an IDE
 3. Client - Server Architecture

 The repository pattern is concerned with the static structure of a

system and does not show its run-time organization.

 Client server architecture is used for run-time organization for

distributed systems.

 A system that follows the client–server pattern is organized as a set of

services and associated servers, and clients that access and use the
services.

 The major components of this model are:

1. A set of servers that offer services to other components.
 Examples of servers include print servers that offer printing services,
file servers that offer file management services, and a compile server,
which offers programming language compilation services.

2. A set of clients that call on the services offered by servers. There will
normally be several instances of a client program executing
concurrently on different computers.

3. A network that allows the clients to access theseservices. Most

client–server systems are implemented as distributed systems,
connected using Internet protocols.
 Name of Pattern : The Client–server

 Description : In a client–server architecture, the functionality of the

system is organized into services, with each service delivered from a
separate server. Clients are users of these services and access servers
to make use of them.

 Example : Figure 6.11 is an example of a film and video/DVD library

organized as a client–server system.

 When Used : Used when data in a shared database has to be

accessed from a range of locations. Because servers can be
replicated, may also be used when the load on a system is variable.
 Advantages : The principal advantage of this model is that servers
can be distributed across a network.
 General functionality (e.g., a printing service) can be available to all
clients and does not need to be implemented by all services.

 Disadvantages : Each service is a single point of failure so susceptible

to denial of service attacks or server failure.
 Performance may be unpredictable because it depends on the
network as well as the system.
 May be management problems if servers are owned by different
organizations.
Figure 6.11 : Aclient—server architecture for a film library
 4. Pipe and Filter Architecture
 This is a model of the run-time organization of a system where
functional transformations process their inputs and produce outputs.

 Data flows from one to another and is transformed as it moves

through the sequence.

 Each processing step is implemented as a transform. Input data flows

through these transforms until converted to output.

 The transformations may execute sequentially or in parallel. The data

can be processed by each transform item by item or in a single batch.
 Name of Pattern : The Pipe and filter

 Description : The processing of the data in a system is organized so

that each processing component (filter) is discrete and carries out
one type of data transformation. The data flows (as in a pipe) from
one component to another for processing.

 Example : Figure 6.13 is an example of a pipe and filter system used

for processing invoices.

 When Used : Commonly used in data processing applications (both

batch- and transaction-based) where inputs are processed in
separate stages to generate related outputs.
 Advantages : Easy to understand and supports transformation reuse.
 Workflow style matches the structure of many business processes.
 Evolution by adding transformations is straightforward.
 Can be implemented as either a sequential or concurrent system.

 Disadvantages : The format for data transfer has to be agreed upon

between communicating transformations.
 Each transformation must parse its input and unparse its output to
the agreed form.
 This increases system overhead and may mean that it is impossible to
reuse functional transformations that use incompatible data
structures.
Figure 6.13 : An example of the pipe and filter architecture
Application Architectures
 The application architecture may be re-implemented when
developing new systems but, for many business systems, application
reuse is possible without reimplementation.
 As a software designer, you can use models of application
architectures in a number of ways:

1. Asa starting point for the architectural design process :-

 If you are unfamiliar with the type of application that you are
developing, you can base your initial design on a generic application
architecture.

2. Asa design checklist :-

 If you have developed an architectural design for anapplication
system, you can compare this with the generic application
architecture.
 You can check that your design is consistent with the generic
architecture.
3. Asa way of organizing the work of the development team :-

 The application architectures identify stable structural features of the

system architectures and in many cases, it is possible to develop
these in parallel.
 You can assign work to group members to implement different
components within the architecture.

4. Asa means of assessing components for reuse :-

 If you have components you might be able to reuse, you can compare
these with the generic structures to see whether there are
comparable components in the application architecture.
5. Asa vocabulary for talking about types of applications :-

 If you are discussing a specific application or trying to compare

applications of the same types, then you can use the concepts
identified in the generic architecture to talk about the applications.
 1. Transaction ProcessingSystems

 Transaction processing (TP) systems are designed to process user

requests for information from a database, or requests to update a
database.

 Technically, a database transaction is sequence of operations that is

treated as a single unit (an atomic unit).

 All of the operations in a transaction have to be completed before the

database changes are made permanent.

 This ensures that failure of operations within the transaction does

not lead to inconsistencies in the database.
 From a user perspective, a transaction is any coherent sequence of
operations that satisfies a goal, such as ‗find the times of flights from
London to Paris‘.
 If the user transaction does not require the database to be changed
then it may not be necessary to package this as a technical database
transaction.

 An example of a transaction is a customer request to withdraw

money from a bank account using an ATM.

 This involves getting details of the customer‘s account, checkingthe

balance, modifying the balance by the amount withdrawn, and
sending commands to the ATM to deliver the cash.

 Until all of these steps have been completed, the transaction is

incomplete and the customer accounts database is not changed.
 Transaction processing systems are usually interactive systems in
which users make asynchronous requests for service.

 Figure 6.14 illustrates the conceptual architectural structure of TP

applications.

 First a user makes a request to the system through an I/O processing

component.
 The request is processed by some application specific logic.
 A transaction is created and passed to a transaction manager, which
is usually embedded in the database management system.
 After the transaction manager has ensured that the transaction is
properly completed, it signals to the application that processing has
finished.
Figure 6.14 :The Database structure of transaction processing applications
 Transaction processing systems may be organized as a ‗pipe and filter‘
architecture with system components responsible for input,
processing, and output.

 For example, consider a banking system that allows customers to

query their accounts and withdraw cash from an ATM.

 The system is composed of two cooperating software components—

the ATM software and the account processing software in the bank‘s
database server.
 The input and output components are implemented as software in
the ATM and the processing component is part of the bank‘s
database server.

 Figure 6.15 shows the architecture of this system, illustrating the

functions of the input, process, and output components.
Figure 6.15 :The software architecture of an ATM system
 2. Information systems

 All systems that involve interaction with a shared database can be

considered to be transaction-based information systems.

 An information system allows controlled access to a large base of

information, such as a library catalog, a flight timetable, or the
records of patients in ahospital.

 Increasingly, information systems are web-based systems that are

accessed through a web browser.
 Figure 6.16 a very general model of an information system.

 The system is modeled using a layered approach where the top layer
supports the user interface and the bottom layer is the system
database.

 The user communications layer handles all input and output from the
user interface, and the information retrieval layer includes
application-specific logic for accessing and updating the database.
Figure 6.16 : Layered information system architecture
 As an example of an instantiation of this layered model, Figure 6.17
shows the architecture of the MHC-PMS.

 Recall that this system maintains and manages details of patients who
are consulting specialist doctors about mental health problems.

Have added detail to each layer in the model by identifying the
components that support user communications and information
retrieval and access:

1. The top layer is responsible for implementing the user interface. In

this case, the UI has been implemented using a web browser.
2. The second layer provides the user interface functionality that is
delivered through the web browser.
 It includes components to allow users to log in to the system and
checking components that ensure that the operations they use are
allowed by their role.
 This layer includes form and menu management components that
present information to users, and data validation components that
check information consistency.

3. The third layer implements the functionality of the system and

provides components that implement system security, patient
information creation and updating, import and export of patient
data from other databases, and report generators that create
management reports.
4. Finally, the lowest layer, which is built using a commercial database
management system, provides transaction management and
persistent data storage.
 3. Language processing systems

 Language processing systems translate a natural or artificial language

into another representation of that language and, for programming
languages, may also execute the resulting code.

 In software engineering, compilers translate an artificial

programming language into machine code.

 Other language-processing systems may translate an XML data

description into commands to query a database or to an alternative
XML representation.

 Natural language processing systems may translate one natural

language to another e.g., French to Norwegian.
 A possible architecture for a language processing system for a
programming language is illustrated in Figure 6.18.

 The source language instructions define the program to be executed

and a translator converts these into instructions for an abstract
machine.

 These instructions are then interpreted by another component that

fetches the instructions for execution and executes them using (if
necessary) data from the environment.

 The output of the process is the result of interpreting the instructions

on the input data.
Figure 6.18 : The architecture of a language processing system
 Of course, for many compilers, the interpreter is a hardware unit that
processes machine instructions and the abstract machine is a real
processor.

 However, for dynamically typed languages, such as Python, the

interpreter may be a software component.

 Programming language compilers that are part of a more general

programming environment have a generic architecture (Figure 6.19)
that includes the following components:

1. A lexical analyzer, which takes input language tokens and converts

them to an internal form.

2. A symbol table, which holds information about the names of entities

(variables, class names, object names, etc.) used in the text that is
being translated.
3. A syntax analyzer, which checks the syntax of the language being
translated. It uses a defined grammar of the language and builds a
syntax tree.

4. A syntax tree, which is an internal structure representing the

program being compiled.

5. A semantic analyzer that uses information from the syntax tree and
the symbol table to check the semantic correctness of the input
language text.

6. A code generator that ‗walks‘ the syntax tree and generates abstract
machine code.
 This pipe and filter model of language compilation is effective in
batch environments where programs are compiled and executed
without user interaction; for example, in the translation of one XML
document to another.

 It is less effective when a compiler is integrated with other language

processing tools such as a structured editing system, an interactive
debugger or a program prettyprinter.

 In this situation, changes from one component need to be reflected

immediately in other components.

 It is better, therefore, to organize the system around a repository, as

shown in Figure 6.20.
Figure 6.20 : Arepository architecture for a language processing system
 This figure illustrates how a language processing system can be part
of an integrated set of programming support tools.

 In this example, the symbol table and syntax tree act as a central
information repository. Tools or tool fragments communicate through
it.

 Other information that is sometimes embedded in tools, such as the

grammar definition and the definition of the output format for the
program, have been taken out of the tools and put into the
repository.

 Therefore, a syntax-directed editor can check that the syntax of a

program is correct as it is being typed and a prettyprinter cancreate
listings of the program in a format that is easy to read.
Component level Design
 What is a Component ?

A component is a modular building block for computer software.

 A component is a modular, deployable, and replaceable part of a

system that encapsulates implementation & exposes a set of
interfaces.

 Components reside within a software architecture, they must

communicate and collaborate with other components & with entities
(e.g. other systems, devices, people) that exist outside the
boundaries of the software.
 An Object Oriented View
 A component contains a set of collaborating classes.

 Each class within a component has been fully elaborated to include

all attributes and operations that are relevant to its implementation.
 As part of design elaboration, all interfaces that enable the classes to
communicate & collaborate with other design classes must also be
defined.
 To accomplish this, you begin with the requirements model &
elaborate, analysis classes (for components that relate to the
problem domain) & infrastructure classes (for components that
provide support services for the problem domain).

 Toillustrate this process of design elaboration, consider software to

be built for a sophisticated print shop.
 The overall intent of the software is to collect the customer's
requirements at the front counter, cost a print job, & then pass the
job on to an automated production facility.

 During requirements engineering, an analysis class called PrintJob

was derived.
 The attributes & operations defined during analysis are noted at the
top of Figure 10.1.

 During architectural design, PrintJob is defined as a component

within the software architecture & is represented using shorthand
UML notation shown in middle right of the Figure 10.1.

 Note that PrintJob has 2 interfaces, computeJob, which provides job

costing capability, & initiateJob, which passes the job along to the
production facility.
 These are represented using the ―lollipop‖ symbols shown to the left
of the component box.

 Component level design begins at this point.

 The details of the component PrintJob must be elaborated to provide

sufficient information to guide implementation.
 The original analysis class is elaborated to flesh out all attributes &
operations required to implement the class as the component
PrintJob.
 Referring to the lower right portion of Figure 10.1, the elaborated
design class PrintJob contains more detailed attribute information as
well as an expanded description of operations required to implement
the component.
 The interfaces computeJob & initiateJob imply communication &
collaboration with other components (not shown here).
 For example, the operation computePageCost() (part of the
computeJob interface) might collaborate with a PricingTable
component that contains job pricing information.

 The checkPriority() operation (part of the initiateJob interface) might

collaborate with a JobQueue component to determine the types &
priorities of jobs currently awaiting production.

 This elaboration activity is applied to every component defined as

part of the architectural design.

 Once it is completed, further elaboration is applied to each attribute,

operation, & interface.

 The data structures appropriate for each attribute must be specified.

Figure 10.1 : Elaboration of a design component
 Traditional View
 In the context of traditional software engineering, a component is a
functional element of a program that incorporates processing logic,
the internal data structures that are required to implement the
processing logic, & an interface that enables the component to be
invoked & data to be passed to it.

 A traditional component, also called a Module, resides within the

software architecture & serves one of 3 important roles :-

1. A Control Component that coordinates the invocation of all other

problem domain components.
2. A Problem Domain component that implements a complete or
partial function that is required by the customer.
3. An Infrastructure component that is responsible for functions that
support the processing required in the problem domain.
 Like OO components, traditional software components are derived
from the analysis model.

 As Figure 10.2, Each box represents a software component.

 Note that the shaded boxes are equivalent in function to the
operations defined for the PrintJobclass.
 In this case, however, each operation is represented as a separate
module that is invoked as shown in Figure 10.2. Other modules are
used to control processing & are therefore control components.

 During component level design, each module in Figure 10.2 is

elaborated.

 The module interface is defined explicitly.

 That is, each data or control object that flows across the interface is
represented.

 The data structures that are used internal to the module are defined.
Figure 10.2 : Structure Chart for a Traditional System
 To illustrate this process, consider the module ComputePageCost.
The intent of this module is to compute the printing cost per page
based on specifications provided by the customer.

 Data required to perform this function are :- number of pages in the

document, total number of documents to be produced, one-or-two-
side printing, color requirements, & size requirements.

 These data are passed to ComputePageCost via the module‘s

interface.

 ComputePageCost uses these data to determine a page cost that is

based on the interface.
Figure 10.3 : Component-Level design for ComputePageCost
 Figure 10.3 represents the component-level design using a modified
UML notation.
 The ComputePageCost module accesses data by invoking the module
getJobData, which allows all relevant data to be passed to the
component, & a database interface, accessCostDB, which enables the
module to access a database that contains all printing costs.

 As design continues, the ComputePageCost module is elaborated to

provide algorithm detail & interface detail (Figure 10.3).
 Algorithm detail can be represented using the pseudocode text
shown in figure or with a UML activity diagram.

 The interfaces are represented as a collection of input & output data

objects or items.
 Design elaboration continues until sufficient detail is provided to
guide construction of the component.
 Process-Related View
 The software community has emphasized the need to build systems
that make use of existing software components or design patterns.

 In essence, a catalog of proven design or code-level components is

made available to you as design work proceeds.

 As the software architecture is developed, you chose components or

design patterns from the catalog & use them to populate the
architecture.

 Because these components have been created with reusability in

mind, a complete description of their interface, the function(s) they
perform, & the communication & collaboration they require are all
available to you.
Designing Class Based
Components
 Basic DesignPrinciples

1. The Open-Closed Principle (OCP)

 “A module *component+ should be open for extension but closed for

modification”.

 You should specify the component in a way that allows it to be

extended (within the functional domain that it addresses) without
the need to make internal (code or logic-level) modifications to the
component itself.

 Toaccomplish this, you create abstractions that serve as buffer

between the functionality that is likely to be extended & the design
class itself.
 For example, assume that assume that the SafeHome security makes
use of a Detector class that must check the status of each type of
security sensor.
 It is likely that as time passes, the number & types of security sensors
will grow.
 If internal processing logic is implemented as a sequence of if-then-
else constructs, each addressing a different sensor type, the addition
of a new sensor type will require additional internal processing logic
(still another if-then-else).
 This is a violation of OCP.

 One way to accomplish OCPfor the Detector class is as Figure 10.4.

 The sensor interface presents a consistent view of sensors to the
detector component.
 If a new type of sensor is added no change is required for the
Detector class (component). The OCPis Preserved.
Figure 10.4 : Following the OCP
2. The Liskov Substitution Principle (LSP)
 “Subclasses should be substitutable for their base classes”.

 A base class should continue to function properly if a classderived

from the base class is passed to the component instead.

 LSPdemands that any class derived from a base class must honor any
implied contract between the base class & the components that use
it.

 A ―contract‖ is a precondition that must be true before the

component uses a base class & a postcondition that should be true
after the component uses a base class.

 When you create derived classes, be sure they conform to the pre- &
postconditions.
3. Dependency Inversion Principle (DIP)

 “Depend on abstractions. Do not depend on concretions.”

 Abstractions are the place where a design can be extended without

great complication.

 The more a component depends on other concrete components

(rather than on abstractions such as an interface), the more difficult it
will be to extend.
4. The Interface Segregation Principle (ISP)

 “Many client-specific interfaces are better than one general purpose

interface”.

 There are many instances in which multiple client components use

the operations provided by a server class.

 ISPsuggests that you should create a specialized interface to serve

each major category of clients.

 Only those operations that are relevant to a particular category of

clients should be specified in the interface for that client.

 If multiple clients require the same operations, it should be specified

in each of the specialized interfaces.
 As an example, consider the FloorPlan class that is used for the
SafeHome security & surveillance functions.

 For the security functions, FloorPlan is used only during configuration

activities & uses the operations placeDevice(), showDevice(),
groupDevice() & remoteDevice() to place, show, group, & remove
sensors from the floor plan.

 The SafeHome surveillance function uses the four operations for

security, but also requires special operations to manage cameras :-
showFOV() & showDeviceID().
 Hence, the ISP
5. The Release Reuse Equivalency Principle (REP)

 “The granule (small seed) of reuse is the granule of release”.

 When classes or components are designed for reuse, there is an

implicit contract that is established between the developer of the
reusable entity & the people who will use it.

 The developer commits to establish a release control system that

supports & maintains older versions of the entity while the users
slowly upgrade to the most current version.

 Rather than addressing each class individually, it is often advisable to

group reusable classes into packages that can be managed &
controlled as newer versions evolve.
6. The Common Closure Principle (CCP)

 “Classes that change together belong together”.

 Classes should be packed cohesively, i.e. they should address the

same functional or behavioral area.

 When some characteristic of that area must change, it is likely that

only those classes within the package will require modification.

 This leads to more effective change control & release management.

7. The Common Reuse Principle (CRP)

 “Classes that aren’t reused together should not be grouped together”.

 When one or more classes within a package changes, the release

number of the package changes.

 All other classes or packages that rely on the package that has been
changed must now update to the most recent release of the package
& be tested to ensure that the new release operates without
incident.

 If classes are not grouped cohesively, it is possible that a class with no

relationship to other classes within a package ischanged.
 Component-Level Design Guidelines

 Components :- Naming conventions should be established for

components that are specified as part of the architectural model &
then refined & elaborated as part of the component-level model.
 Architectural component names should be drawn from the problem
domain & should have meaning to all stakeholders who view the
architectural model.
 For example, the class name FloorPlan is meaningful to everyone
reading it regardless of technical background.

 Interfaces :-
 Interface provide important information about communication &
collaboration.
 Dependencies & Inheritance :-

 For improved reliability, it is a good idea to model dependencies from

left to right & inheritance from bottom (derived classes) to top (base
classes).
 In addition, component interdependencies should be represented via
interfaces, rather than by representation of a component-to-
component dependency.
 Cohesion
 Cohesion implies that a component or class encapsulates only
attributes & operations that are closely related to one another & to
the class or component itself.

 Different types of cohesion :-

 Functional :- It shows primarily by operations, this level of cohesion

occurs when a component performs a targeted computation & then
return a result.

 Layer :- It shows by packages, components, & classes, this type of

cohesion occurs when a higher layer accesses the services of a lower
layer, but lower layers do not access higher layers.
 For example, the SafeHome security function requirement to male an
outgoing phone call if an alarm issensed.
 It might be possible to define a set of layered packages as shown in
Figure 10.5.
 The shaded packages contain infrastructure components.
 Access is from the control panel package downward.

 Communicational :- All operations that access the same data are

defined within one class.
 In general, such classes focus solely on the data in question, accessing
& storing it.

 Classes & components that exhibit functional, layer, &

communicational cohesion are relatively easy to implement, test, &
maintain.
 You should strive to achieve these levels of cohesion whenever
possible.
Figure 10.5 : Layer Cohesion
 Coupling
 Coupling is a qualitative measure of the degree to which classes are
connected to one another.
 As classes (& components) become more interdependent, coupling
increases.
 Objective in component-level design is to keep Coupling as low as
possible.

 Different coupling categories:-

 Content Coupling :- Occurs when one component modifies data that

is internal to another component. This violates information hiding – a
basic design concept.

 Common Coupling :- Occurs when a no. of components all make use

of a global variable.
 Control Coupling :- Occurs when operation A() invokes operation B()
& passes a control flag to B. The control flag then ―directs‖ logical
flow within B.
 The problem with this form of coupling is that an unrelated change in
B can result in the necessity to change the meaning of the control flag
that A passes. If this is overlooked, an error will result.

 Stamp Coupling :- Occurs when ClassB is declared as a type for an

argument of an operation of ClassA. Because ClassB is now a part of
the definition of ClassA, modifying the system becomes more
complex.
Conducting Component
Level Design
 Following are the component-Level Design steps for an object
oriented systems :-

1. Identify those designs classes that corresponds to the problem

domain.
 Using the requirements & architectural model, each analysis class &
architectural component should be elaborated.

2. Identify all design classes that are corresponds to infrastructure

domain.
 These classes are not described in the requirements model & are
often missing from the architecture model, but they must be
described at this point.
3. Elaborate all design classes that are not acquired as reusable
components.
 Elaboration requires that all interfaces, attributes, & operations
necessary to implement the class be described in detail.
3.a. Specify message details when classes or components collaborate.
The requirement model makes use of a collaboration diagram to show
how analysis classes collaborate with one another.
As component-level design proceeds, it is sometimes useful to show the
details of these collaborations by specifying the structure of messages
that are passed between objects within asystem.

Figure 10.6 shows a simple collaboration diagram for the printing

system. 3 objects, ProductionJob, WorkOrder, & JobQueue, collaborate
to prepare a print job for submission to the production stream.
Messages are passed between objects as shown by the arrows in the
Figure 10.6.
Figure 10.6 : Collaboration diagram with messaging
b.Identify appropriate interfaces for each component.
c.Elaborate attributes & define data types & data structures
required to implement them.

d.Describe processing flow within each operation in detail.

This may accomplished using a programming language-based pseudo
code or with a UML activity diagram.
Each software component is elaborated through a no. of iterations that
apply the stepwise refinement concept.

For example, the operation computePaperCost() can be expanded in

the following manner :-

computePaperCost (weight, size, color) : numeric

This indicates that computePapercost() requires the attributes weight,
size, & color as input & returns a value that is numeric (actually a dollar
value) as output.
Figure 10.8 : UML activity diagram for computePaperCost()
4. Describe persistent data sources (databases & files) & identify the
classes required to managethem.
 In most cases, these persistent data stores are initially specified as
part of architectural design.
 However, as design elaboration proceeds, it is often useful to provide
additional detail about the structure & organization of these
persistent data sources.

5. Develop & elaborate behavioral representations for a class or

component.
 UML state diagrams were used as part of the requirements model to
represent the externally observable behavior of the system.
 During component-level design, it is sometimes necessary to model
the behavior of a design class.
6. Elaborate deployment diagrams to provide additional
implementation detail.
 Deployment diagrams are used as part of architectural design & are
represented in descriptor form.
 Deployment diagram can be elaborated to represent the location of
key packages of components.
 However, components generally are not represented individually
within a component diagram.

7. Refactor every component-level design representation & always

consider alternatives.
User Interface Design
Figure 15.1 : The User Interface Design Process
 The design process for user interfaces is iterative and can be
represented using a spiral model Referring to Figure 15.1, the user
interface design process encompasses four distinct framework
activities [MAN97]:

1. User, task, and environment analysis and modeling

2. Interface design
3. Interface construction
4. Interface validation

1. The initial analysis activity focuses on the profile of the users who
will interact with the system. Skill level, business understanding, and
general receptiveness to the new system are recorded; and different
user categories are defined.
The information gathered as part of the analysis activity is used to
create an analysis model for the interface.

2. The goal of interface design is to define a set of interface objects and

actions (and their screen representations) that enable a user to
perform all defined tasks in a manner that meets every usability goal
defined for the system.

3. The Interface Construction (implementation activity) normally

begins with the creation of a prototype that enables usage scenarios
to be evaluated. As the iterative design process continues, a user
interface tool kit may be used to complete the construction of the
interface.
4. Validation focuses on (1) the ability of the interface to implement
every user task correctly, to accommodate all task variations, and to
achieve all general user requirements; (2) the degree to which the
interface is easy to use and easy to learn; and (3) the users‘
acceptance of the interface as a useful tool in their work.
 Types of User Interface

 It means how user can communicate with computer systems.

 Two fundamental approaches are used to interface with the

approaches are used to interface with computer system.

 Use can communicate with computer using different commands

provided by the system.

 In another approach user interact by using user friendly graphical

user interface. Graphical user interface provides the menu & icon
based facility which can be used using keyboard & mouse.
 1. Command Interpreter

 In Command Interpreter, user communicates with computer system

with the help of commands.
 In Unix/Linux system the command interpreter is known asShell.
 Shell is nothing but interface between user & OS.

 All the shells give similar facility with only minor changes.
 Selecting the particular shell totally depends on user‘s requirement.
 CI just accept the commands, call the corresponding program &
execute it.
 When we type the ‗cd‘ command, OSsearch the program for the ‗cd‘
command & get it by executed.
 Many commands are provided by OS.
 The kind of command is depends upon the OS.
 The commands are interpreted in different manner.

 In the first approach, the command interpreter itself contains the

code for the command.
 Whenever we type any command it will execute directly. The size of
command interpreter depends upon the number of command
supported by the command supported by the commandinterpreter.

 In the second approach, separate program is created for each & every
command supported by the system .
 Whenever we need to execute any command, OSsearch the program
for it, load it into memory & get it executed.

 The program for commands is stored on certain

 2. Graphical User Interface (GUI)

 Instead of directly entering commands through a command-line

interface, a GUI allows a mouse-based, window & menu based
system as an interface.
 GUI gives the desktop environment where mouse & keyboard canbe
used.
 Mouse can be moved to certain location & when we click on come
location, OScalls the corresponding program.
 Characteristics of Good User Interface
1. Clarity
2. Concision
3. Familiarity
4. Responsiveness
5. Consistency
6. Aesthetics
7. Efficiency
8. Attractive
9. Forgiveness
Benefits of Good User Interface
 Higher Revenue.
 Increased user efficiency & satisfaction.
 Reduced development costs.
 Reduced support costs.
 The Golden Rules

 Theo Mandel [MAN97] coins three ―golden rules‖:

1. Place the user in control.
2. Reduce the user‘s memory load.
3. Make the interface consistent.

 These golden rules actually form the basis for a set of user interface
design principles that guide this important software design activity.
 1. Place the User in Control

 Number of design principles that allow the user to maintain control:

1. Define interaction modes in a way that does not force a user into
unnecessary or undesired actions 
 An interaction mode is the current state of the interface. For
example, if spell check is selected in a word-processor menu, the
software moves to a spell checking mode.
 There is no reason to force the user to remain in spell checking mode
if the user desires to make a small text edit along the way.
 The user should be able to enter and exit the mode with little or no
effort.
2. Provide for flexible interaction 

 Because different users have different interaction preferences,

choices should be provided. For example, software might allow auser
to interact via keyboard commands, mouse movement, a digitizer
pen, or voice recognition commands.
 But every action is not amenable to every interaction mechanism.
 Consider, for example, the difficulty of using keyboard command (or
voice input) to draw a complex shape.

3. Allow user interaction to be interruptible and undoable 

 Even when involved in a sequence of actions, the user should beable

to interrupt the sequence to do something else (without losing the
work that had been done).
 The user should also be able to ―undo‖ anyaction.
4. Streamline interaction as skill levels advance and allow the
interaction to be customized
 Users often find that they perform the same sequence of interactions
repeatedly.
 It is worthwhile to design a ―macro‖ mechanism that enables an
advanced user to customize the interface to facilitate interaction.

5. Hide technical internals from the casual user 

 The user interface should move the user into the virtual world of the
application.
 The user should not be aware of the operating system, file
management functions, or other arcane computing technology.
 In essence, the interface should never require that the user interact
at a level that is ―inside‖ the machine (e.g., a user should never be
required to type operating system commands from within application
software).
6. Design for direct interaction with objects that appear on the screen


 The user feels a sense of control when able to manipulate the objects
that are necessary to perform a task in a manner similar to what
would occur if the object were a physical thing.
 For example, an application interface that allows a user to ―stretch‖
an object (scale it in size) is an implementation of direct
manipulation.
 2. Reduce the User’s Memory
Load
 The more a user has to remember, the more error-prone will be the
interaction with the system.

 It is for this reason that a well-designed user interface does not tax
the user‘s memory.

 Whenever possible, the system should ―remember‖ pertinent

information and assist the user with an interaction scenario that
assists recall.

 Mandel [MAN97] defines design principles that enable an interface to

reduce the user‘s memory load:
1. Reduce demand on short-term memory 

 When users are involved in complex tasks, the demand on short-term

memory can be significant.
 The interface should be designed to reduce the requirement to
remember past actions and results.
 This can be accomplished by providing visual cues that enable a user
to recognize past actions, rather than having to recall them.

2. Establish meaningful defaults 

 The initial set of defaults should make sense for the average user, but
a user should be able to specify individual preferences.
 However, a ―reset‖ option should be available, enabling the
redefinition of original default values.
3. Define shortcuts that are intuitive 
 When mnemonics are used to accomplish a system function (e.g., alt-
Pto invoke the print function), the mnemonic should be tied to the
action in a way that is easy to remember (e.g., first letter of the task
to be invoked).

4. The visual layout of the interface should be based on a real world

metaphor 
 For example, a bill payment system should use a check book and
check register metaphor to guide the user through the bill paying
process.
 This enables the user to rely on well-understood visual cues,rather
than memorizing an arcane interaction sequence.
5. Disclose information in a progressive fashion 

 Information about a task, an object, or some behavior should be

presented first at a high level of abstraction.
 More detail should be presented after the user indicates interest with
a mouse pick.
 An example, common to many word-processing applications, is the
underlining function.
 The function itself is one of a number of functions under a text style
menu. However, every underlining capability is not listed.
 The user must pick underlining, then all underlining options (e.g.,
single underline, double underline, dashed underline) are presented.
 3. Make the Interface Consistent
 Mandel [MAN97] defines a set of design principles that help make
the interface consistent:
1. Allow the user to put the current task into a meaningful context 
 Many interfaces implement complex layers of interactionswith
dozens of screen images.
 It is important to provide indicators (e.g., window titles, graphical
icons, consistent color coding) that enable the user to know the
context of the work at hand.
 In addition, the user should be able to determine where he has come
from and what alternatives exist for a transition to a new task.

2. Maintain consistency across a family of applications 

 A set of applications (or products) should all implement the same
design rules so that consistency is maintained for all interaction.
3. If past interactive models have created user expectations, do not
make changes unless there is a compelling reason to do so 

 Once a particular interactive sequence has become a de facto

standard (e.g., the use of alt-S to save a file), the user expects this in
every application he encounters.
 A change (e.g., using alt-S to invoke scaling) will cause confusion.
Interface Analysis
 1. User Analysis
 Following information is used to accomplish this user analysis :-

1. User Interviews :- The most direct approach, members of the

software team meet with end users to better understand their
needs, motivations, work culture.
 This can be accomplished with one-on-one meetings or through focus
groups.

2. Sales Input :- Sales people meet with users on a regular basis & can
gather information that will help the software team to categorize
users & better understand their requirements.
3. Marketing Input :-
4. Support Input :- Support staff talks with users on a daily basis.They
are the most likely source of information on what works & what
doesn‘t what users like & what they dislike.
 2. Task Analysis & Modeling
 The goal of task analysis is to answer the following questions :-
 What work will the user perform in specific circumstances ?
 What tasks & subtasks will be performed as the user does the work ?
 What specific problem domain objects will the user manipulate as
work is performed ?

 Toanswer these questions, you must applied certain techniques to

the user interfaces.

1. Use Cases :-

 The use case is developed to show how an end user performs some
specific work-related task.
 Use case is written in an informal style (a simple paragraph) in the
First-person.
 For example, Assume that a small software company wants to build a
computer aided design system explicitly for interior designers.
 Toget a better understanding of how they do their work, actual
interior designers are asked to describe a specific design function.
 When asked: ―How do you decide where to put furniture in a room ?‖
an interior designer writes the following informal use case:

 accents –lamps, rugs, paintings, plants, smaller pieces, & my notes on

any desires my customers has for placement.
 I then draw each item from my lists using a template that is scaled to
the floor plan.
 I label each item I draw & use pencil because I always move things.
 I consider a number of alternatives placements & decide on the one I
like best.
 Then, I draw a rendering (a 3-D picture) of the room to give my
customer a feel for what it will look like.
 This use case provides a basic description of one important work task
for computer-aided design system.
 From it, you can extract tasks, objects, & the overall flow of the
interaction.

2. Task Elaboration :-

 Task analysis can be applied in 2 ways.

 An interactive, computer based system is often used to replace a
manual or semi manual activity.
 Tounderstand the tasks that must be performed to accomplish the
goal of the activity, you must understand the tasks that people
currently perform.
 Alternatively, you can study an existing specification for a computer
based solution & derive a set of user tasks that will accommodate the
user model, the design model & system perception.
 For example, using information contained in use case, furniture
layout can be refined into following tasks:-

1. Draw a floor plan based on room dimensions.

2. Place windows & doors at appropriate locations.
3. (a) Use furniture templates to draw scaled furniture outlines on the
floor plan. (b) Use accents template to draw scaled accents on the
floor plan.
4. Move furniture outlines & accent outlines to get the best placement.
5. Label all furniture & accentoutlines.
6. Draw dimensions to show location, &
7. Draw perspective-rendering view for the customer.

 A similar approach could be used for each of the other major tasks.
Interface Design Steps
 Following are the interface design steps:-

1. Using information developed during interface analysis, define

interface objects & actions (operations).
2. Define events (user actions) that will cause the state of the user
interface to change.
3. Depict each interface state as it will actually look to the end user.
4. Indicate how the user interprets the state of the system from
information provided through the interface.

 Regardless of sequence of tasks, you should

(1) Always follow the Golden Rules.
(2) Model how the interface will be implemented.
(3) Consider the environment (ex. Display technology, OS, development
tools that will be used).
 Applying Interface Design Steps

 The definition of interface objects and the actions that are applied to
them.

 Description of a user scenario is written.

 Nouns (objects) and verbs (actions) are isolated to create a list of

objects and actions.

 Once the objects and actions have been defined and elaborated
iteratively, they are categorized by type. Target, source, and
application objects are identified.

 A source object (e.g., a report icon) is dragged and dropped onto a

target object (e.g., a printer icon).
 The implication of this action is to create a hard-copy report.

 An application object represents application-specific data that is not

directly manipulated as part of screen interaction.

 For example, a mailing list is used to store names for a mailing.

 The list itself might be sorted, merged, or purged (menu-based

actions) but it is not dragged and dropped via user interaction.

 When the designer is satisfied that all important objects and actions
have been defined (for one design iteration), screen layout is
performed.
 Like other interface design activities, screen layout is an interactive
process in which graphical design and placement of icons, definition
of descriptive screen text, specification and titling for windows, and
definition of major and minor menu items is conducted.
 If a real world metaphor is appropriate for the application, it is
specified at this time and the layout is organized in a manner that
complements the metaphor.

Scenario :-
 The homeowner wishes to gain access to the SafeHome system
installed in his house. Using software operating on a remote PC(e.g.,
a notebook computer carried by the homeowner while at work or
traveling), the homeowner determines the status of the alarm
system, arms or disarms the system, reconfigures security zones,and
views different rooms within the house via preinstalled video
cameras.
 Toaccess SafeHome from a remote location, the homeowner
provides an identifier and a password.

 These define levels of access (e.g., all users may not be able to
reconfigure the system) and provide security.

 Once validated, the user (with full access privileges) checks the status
of the system and changes status by arming or disarming SafeHome.

 The user reconfigures the system by displaying a floor plan of the

house, viewing each of the security sensors, displaying each currently
configured zone, and modifying zones as required.
 The user views the interior of the house via strategically placed video
cameras.
 The user can pan and zoom each camera to provide different views of
the interior.
Homeowner tasks :-

• accesses the SafeHome system

• enters an ID and password to allow remote access
• checks system status
• arms or disarms SafeHome system
• displays floor plan and sensor locations
• displays zones on floor plan
• changes zones on floor plan
• displays video camera locations on floor plan
• selects video camera for viewing
• views video images (4 frames per second)
• pans or zooms the video camera
 Objects (boldface) and actions (italics) are extracted from this list of
homeowner tasks.

 The majority of objects noted are application objects.

 However, video camera location (a source object) is dragged and

dropped onto video camera (a target object) to create a video image
(a window with video display).
 Design Issues
 As the design of a user interface evolves, four common design issues
almost always surface: system response time, user help facilities,
error information handling, and command labeling.

 System Response Time :-

 System response time is the primary complaint for many interactive
applications.
 In general, system response time is measured from the point at which
the user performs some control action (e.g., hits the return key or
clicks a mouse) until the software responds with desired output or
action.

 System response time has two important characteristics: length and

variability.
 If the length of system response is too long, user frustration and
stress is the inevitable result.
 However, a very brief response time can also be detrimental if the
user is being paced by the interface.
 A rapid response may force the user to rush and therefore make
mistakes.

• Variability refers to the deviation from average response time, and in

many ways, it is the most important response time characteristic.
• Low variability enables the user to establish an interaction rhythm,
even if response time is relatively long. For example, a 1-second
response to a command is preferable to a response that variesfrom
0.1 to 2.5 seconds.
• The user is always off balance, always wondering whether something
"different" has occurred behind the scenes.
 Help Facilities:-
 Two different types of help facilities are encountered: integrated and
add-on [RUB88].
 An integrated help facility is designed into the software from the
beginning.
 It is often context sensitive, enabling the user to select from those
topics that are relevant to the actions currently being performed.
 Obviously, this reduces the time required for the user to obtain help
and increases the "friendliness" of the interface.

 An add-on help facility is added to the software after the system has
been built.
 In many ways, it is really an on-line user's manual with limited query
capability.
 The user may have to search through a list of hundreds of topics to
find appropriate guidance, often making many false starts and
receiving much irrelevant information.
 Error Handling:-
 Error messages and warnings are "bad news" delivered to users of
interactive systems when something has gone awry.
 At their worst, error messages and warnings impart useless or
misleading information and serve only to increase user frustration.
 There are few computer users who have not encountered an error of
the form:
SEVERESYSTEMFAILURE-- 14A
Somewhere, an explanation for error 14A must exist.

 In general, every error message or warning produced by an

interactive system should have the following characteristics :-
 The message should describe the problem in jargon that the user can
understand.
 The message should provide constructive advice for recovering from
the error.
 The message should indicate any negative consequences of the error
(e.g., potentially corrupted data files) so that the user can check to
ensure that they have not occurred (or correct them if they have).

 The message should be accompanied by an audible or visual cue.

That is, a beep might be generated to accompany the display of the
message, or the message might flash momentarily or be displayed in
a color that is easily recognizable as the "error color.―

 The message should be "nonjudgmental." That is, the wording should

never place blame on the user.
 Menu & Command Labeling :-
 The typed command was once the most common mode of
interaction between user and system software and was commonly
used for applications of every type.
 Today, the use of window-oriented, point and pick interfaces has
reduced reliance on typed commands, but many power-users
continue to prefer a command-oriented mode of interaction.
 A number of design issues arise when typed commands are provided
as a mode of interaction:

 Will every menu option have a corresponding command?

 What form will commands take? Options include a control sequence
(e.g., alt-P), function keys, or a typed word.
 How difficult will it be to learn and remember the commands? What
can be done if a command is forgotten?
 Can commands be customized or abbreviated by the user?
Design Evaluation
 Once an operational user interface prototype has been created, it
must be evaluated to determine whether it meets the needs of the
user.

 Evaluation can span a formality spectrum that ranges from an

informal "test drive," in which a user provides impromptu feedback
to a formally designed study that uses statistical methods for the
evaluation of questionnaires completed by a population of end-users.

 The user interface evaluation cycle takes the form shown in Figure
15.3. After the design model has been completed, a first-level
prototype is created.

 The prototype is evaluated by the user, who provides the designer

with direct comments about the efficacy (effect) of the interface.
Figure 15.3 : The interface design evaluation cycle
 In addition, if formal evaluation techniques are used (e.g.,
questionnaires, rating sheets), the designer may extract information
from these data(e.g., 80 percent of all users did not like the
mechanism for saving data files).

 Design modifications are made based on user input and the next level
prototype is created.

 The evaluation cycle continues until no further modifications to the

interface design are necessary.
 If a design model of the interface has been created, a number of
evaluation criteria [MOR81] can be applied during early design
reviews 
1. The length and complexity of the written specification of the system
and its interface provide an indication of the amount of learning
required by users of the system.

2. The number of user tasks specified and the average number of

actions per task provide an indication of interaction time and the
overall efficiency of the system.

3. The number of actions, tasks, and system states indicated by the

design model imply the memory load on users of the system.

4. Interface style, help facilities, and error handling protocol provide a

general indication of the complexity of the interface and the degree
to which it will be accepted by the user.
 Once the first prototype is built, the designer can collect a variety of
qualitative and quantitative data that will assist in evaluating the
interface.

 Tocollect qualitative data, questionnaires can be distributed to users

of the prototype.

 Questions can be all (1) simple yes/no response, (2) numeric

response, (3) scaled (subjective) response, or (4) percentage
(subjective) response.
 Case Study :-
WebApp Interface Design
 Interface design principles & guidelines :-

 The user interface of a WebApp is its ―first impression‖.

 Regardless of the value of its content, the sophistication of its
processing capabilities & services, & the overall benefit of the
WebApp itself, a poorly designed interface will disappoint the
potential user & may, in fact, cause the user to go elsewhere.

 There are some design principles :-

1. Anticipation
 “AWebApp should be design sothat it anticipates the user’s next
move.”
 Ex. Consider a customer support WebApp developed by a
manufacturer of computer printers.
 A user has requested a content object that presents information
about a printer driver for a newly released OS.
 The designer of the WebApp should anticipate that the user might
request a download of the driver & should provide navigation
facilities that allow this to happen without requiring the user to
search for this capability.

2. Communication
 “The interface should communicate the status of any activity
initiated by the user.”
 The interface should also communicate user status (e.g. the user‘s
identification) & her location within the WebApp content hierarchy.

3. Consistency
 “The use of navigation controls, menus, icons, & aesthetics (e.g.
color, shape, layout) should be consistent throughout the WebApp.”
 Ex. If underlined blue text implies a navigation link, content should
never incorporate blue underlined text that does not imply a link.
 4. Controlled Autonomy
 “The interface should facilitate user movement throughout the
WebApp, but it should do soin a manner that enforces navigation
conventions that have been established for the application.”

 Ex. Navigation to secure portions of the WebApp should becontrolled

by UserID & Password, & there should be no navigation mechanism
that enables a user to circumvent (dissipate) these controls.

5. Efficiency

 “The design of the WebApp & its interface should optimize the
user’s work efficiency, not the efficiency of the developer who
designs & builds it or the client-server environment that executes
it.”
 6. Flexibility
 “The interface should be flexible enough to enable some users to
accomplish tasks directly & others to explore the WebApp in a
somewhat random fashion.”
7. Focus
 “The WebApp interface (& the content it presents) should stay
focused on the user tasks at hand.”
 The problem is that the user can rapidly become lost in many layers
of supporting information & lose sight of the original content that he
wanted in the first place.
8. Human Interface Objects
 “Avast library of reusable human interface objects has been
developed for WebApps. Use them.”
 Any interface object that can be seen, heard, touched, or otherwise
perceived by an end user can be acquired from any one of anumber
of object libraries.
 9. Learnability
 “A WebApp interface should be designed to minimize learning time,
& once learned, to minimize relearning required when the WebApp
is revisited.”
 Interface should be simple.

10. Readability
 “All information presented through the interface should readable by
young & old.”
 The interface designer should emphasize readable type styles, style
font, sizes, & color background choices that enhance contrast.