[Year 12 SofDev] usability - NF requirement or constraint or both???

Sun Dec 6 23:07:03 AEDT 2015

I'm often asked by students: " I feel constrained by your requirements so does that make them constraints?"  I tell them something like "You may feel constrained, but a project can't be constrained by what it has to do". But I too find it pretty murky.

I think that since useability is "making something useable" it is a requirement. Constraints are either items you wish you had more of or laws you must follow. So security would be a requirement to meet a legal constraint.

I'll just stick to my VCE IT motto and "don't think too deep" which means I can rephrase and answer Mark's question with scope has "benefits to users", FR and NFR do not. :)

Heath Matheson
Mount Beauty

From: sofdev-bounces at edulists.com.au [mailto:sofdev-bounces at edulists.com.au] On Behalf Of Esther Andrews
Sent: Sunday, 6 December 2015 1:34 PM
To: Year 12 Software Development Teachers' Mailing List
Subject: Re: [Year 12 SofDev] usability - NF requirement or constraint or both???

I am glad I am not the only one who is confused about the overlap in these aspects.

When it comes to scope I ask the students to try to think of items that the client might WISH for (or even expect) but are NOT included, so they are like a list of Functional Requirements that will NOT be happening - probably because of constraints. It is necessary to ovoid conflict later in the project when the client says "Why didn't you do X/Y/Z ? I assumed it would be done!"

A constraint is something that will prevent you from implementing all of the things you would like to do. So I would say that usability could be a constraint if it means that there are features that will have to be left out of the Functional Requirements list because they are too complex for the special needs of the user (ie there's no possible way to implement that Feature so that it meets a NFR of usability).

As for Mark's question about "something that is not a requirement still could be in scope?"

Nope. That's too much for me on a Sunday... !

Anyone else?

Esther Andrews | Admin Systems Developer, IT and Maths Teacher
Bendigo Senior Secondary College
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From: sofdev-bounces at edulists.com.au<mailto:sofdev-bounces at edulists.com.au> <sofdev-bounces at edulists.com.au<mailto:sofdev-bounces at edulists.com.au>> on behalf of Mark <mark at vceit.com<mailto:mark at vceit.com>>
Sent: 06 December 2015 12:39
To: Year 12 Software Development Teachers' Mailing List
Subject: Re: [Year 12 SofDev] usability - NF requirement or constraint or both???

Hi Katherine.

I can see 'usability' being listed as an NFR in the sense that: 'The finished solution must be usable.'
It could also appear as a constraint on design choices for the same reason: 'The solution must be designed in a way that makes it very usable for the end-user.'

Much of a muchness. There is some natural overlap in theory concepts.

For example, I still can't work out how scope is different to defining all FR and NFR.
If you have defined ALL requirements, is the scope not also defined?
Anything that does not appear as a requirement must be - by definition - not in scope.

Otherwise, listing things that are not in scope could go on til the crack of doom.

e.g.

Solution: A toaster

In Scope:
- Scorch bread.
- Scorch muffins.
- Scorch crumpets.

Not in scope:
- Train elephants.
- Predict hurricanes.
- Solve crosswords.
- Blend mangoes.
- Pat the cat.
- Take the wife out dancing.
etc

Can anyone give an example of how something that is not a requirement still could be in scope?

Regards
Mark

On 6 December 2015 at 08:59, Young, Katherine A <young.katherine.a at edumail.vic.gov.au<mailto:young.katherine.a at edumail.vic.gov.au>> wrote:
Hi all,

I've attached a graphic organizer that will hopefully get my kids thinking more carefully during their analysis of a problem, need or opportunity. Do others use something similar? I'd love to hear your feedback.

However, in doing so I realized that usability is listed as both a non-functional requirement AND a constraint. My brain had been thinking that a social constraint such the users' level of expertise or some other "audience characteristic" would impose a non-functional requirement in relation to the usability of a solution.

Could someone please explain the difference between usability as a constraint and as a NF requirement? I know that I WILL be asked the same question :-/

Thank you!

Regards,

[cid:image001.jpg at 01D13075.E4756220]

Katherine Young
11C Mentor
Mathematics & Information Technology Teacher

Castlemaine Secondary College
Etty Street Campus
Etty Street
Castlemaine VIC 3450
T: (03) 5479 4222   |  F: (03) 5479 4230

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Mark Kelly

mark at vceit.com<mailto:mark at vceit.com>
http://vceit.com

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