Hardware and Software Projects Troubleshooting: How Effective Requirements Writing Can Save the Day

Table of Contents
About the Author
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Part I: The Foundation of Requirements
	Chapter 1: The Importance of Requirements
		Requirements Conventions Used in the Book
		Projects Used in This Book
			FBI Records Management Project
			Radiation Dosimetry Project
		Basic Definitions
			Definitions of Requirements-Related Terms
			How Long Does It Take Requirements Engineers to …
		What Makes a Good RE?
			Personality Traits
				Patience
				Clarity of Thought
				Flexibility
				Extrovertism
				Confidence
				Negative Traits
			Good Communication Skills
				Responsiveness
				Translator
				Moderator
				Persuasiveness
			Summary
		Challenges for Writing Effective Requirements
			Insufficient Requirements
			Scope
			Requirements Creep
			Volatility
			Stove-Piped Requirements
			Requirements Do Not Reflect What Users/Stakeholders Need
			User Needs Not Satisfied
			Multiple Interpretations Cause Disagreements
			Are the Requirements Verifiable?
			Wasted Time and Resources Building the Wrong Functions
			Adversely Impacts the Schedule
			Adversely Impacts Communication with Users/Stakeholders or Development/Test Team
			Priorities Are Not Adequately Addressed
		Summary
		References
		Exercises
			Exercise 1
			Exercise 2
	Chapter 2: What Makes a Good Requirement?
		Understanding Requirements
			The Form of a Requirement
			Dealing with Negatives in Requirements
		Attributes of a Good Requirement
			Accurate
			Atomic
				Parent-Child Requirements
			Complete
				Completeness of an Individual Requirement
				Completeness of a Group of Requirements
			Concise
			Consistent
			Does Not Conflict with Other Requirements
			Does Not Duplicate Other Requirements
			Independent
				Stands on Its Own
				Implementation Independent
			Prioritized
			Realistic
			Traceable
				Traceability
				Traced to a Source
			Unambiguous
				Ambiguity in General
				Subjective Terminology
				Troublesome Parts of Speech
				Passive Voice
			Understandable by Stakeholders
			Unique
			Verifiable
				Testing
				Inspection
				Demonstration
				Simulation
				Analysis
				Wrap-Up of Verifiable
			One More Attribute: Modifiable
		Capability Within a Requirement
		Types of Errors That Can Occur with Requirements
			Dangerous or Toxic Requirements
			Extra, Superfluous Requirements
			Incomplete Requirements
			Others
		Approach for Evaluating Requirement Problems
		Summary/Review of Requirement Problems Based on Chapter 2 Tools
			Tools in Chapter 2
			Requirement Problems
				Insufficient Requirements
				Requirements Creep
				Volatility
				Stove-Piped Requirements
				Scope: Boundaries Can Be Ill-Defined
				Understanding Users Are Not Sure What They Need
				Do Not Reflect What Users/Stakeholders Need
				Misinterpretation: Causes Disagreements
				Cannot Verify the Requirements
				Wasted Time and Resources Building the Wrong Functions
				Adversely Impacts the Schedule
				Adversely Impacts Communication with Users/Stakeholders or Development/Test Team
				Priorities Are Not Adequately Addressed
		References
		Exercises
			Exercise 1
			Exercise 2
			Exercise 3
			Exercise 4
	Chapter 3: Specialized Language
		The Use of Language
		Defining Specialized Terms
		Acronyms and Abbreviations
		Summary/Review of Requirement Problems Based on Chapter 3 Tools
			Tools in Chapter 3
			Requirement Problems
		Exercises
			Exercise 1
			Exercise 2
Part II: Types of Requirements
	Chapter 4: Functional Requirements
		Understanding Types of Requirements
		Types of Functional Requirements
			Business Rules
			Transactions
				Transaction Entry
				Transaction Change
				Transaction Errors
			Administrative Functions
			Authentication
			Authorization Levels
			Audit Tracking
			External Interfaces
			Certification Requirements
			Searching and Reporting Requirements
			Compliance, Legal, or Regulatory Requirements
			Historical Data
			Archiving
			Structural
			Algorithms
			Database
			Power
			Network
			Infrastructure
			Backup and Recovery
		Summary/Review of Requirement Problems Based on Chapter 4 Tools
			Tools in Chapter 4
			Requirement Problems
		Exercises
			Exercise 1
			Exercise 2
	Chapter 5: Nonfunctional Requirements
		The Types of Nonfunctional Requirements
			Architectural
			Capacity
			Constraints
			Documentation
			Efficiency
			Effectiveness
			Fault Tolerance
			Privacy
			Quality
			Resilience
			Robustness
			Environmental
			Data Integrity
			Standards
			Performance
				Response Time Performance
				Workload Performance
				Platform Performance
				Performance Profiles
				Throughput
			Reliability, Availability, and Maintainability (RAM)
				Definitions
					Mean Time to Repair (MTTR)
					Wait Time
					Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF)
				Availability
				Maintainability
					Mean Time to Maintain (MTTM)
					Mean Time Between Maintenance (MTBM)
				Reliability
					Failure Definition
			Security
				Access Control
				Import From and Export to Outside the System
				Connections to Outside the System
				Reuse
			Scalability
			Usability
			Accessibility
			Interoperability
			Portability
			Stability
			Supportability
			Testability
			Recoverability
			Serviceability
			Manageability
		Summary/Review of Requirement Problems Based on Chapter 5 Tools
			Tools in Chapter 5
			Requirement Problems
		References
		Exercises
			Exercise 1
			Exercise 2
			Exercise 3
			Exercise 4
			Exercise 5
			Exercise 6
			Exercise 7
			Exercise 8
			Exercise 9
			Exercise 10
			Exercise 11
	Chapter 6: Lists of Items and the Order of Steps and Data Elements
		Lists of Items in Requirements
		Lists of Data Elements
			Diagnostics Request
			Diagnostics Response
			Image Request Message
			Image Response Message
		Order of Steps in Requirements
		Order of Data Elements in Requirements
		Summary/Review of Requirement Problems Based on Chapter 6 Tools
			Tools in Chapter 6
			Requirement Problems
		Exercises
			Exercise 1
			Exercise 2
	Chapter 7: Data Interfaces and Documents
		Defining Requirements Data Elements
			Defining Data Elements Within a Requirement
			Defining Data Elements Within a Database
		Interface Control Documents
		Inputs/Outputs
			Outputs
			Inputs
			Transformations
		Interface Control Document Formats
			Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Guidelines for the Data Requirements Document Checklist
			DoD
				MIL-STD 962D (Military Standard)
					Foreword
				8.4.2.2 DI-SDMP-81470 Department of Defense (DoD) Interface Standard Documents
			NASA Training Manual for Elements of Interface Definition and Control
			Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) eXpedited Life Cycle (XLC)
		Summary/Review of Requirement Problems Based on Chapter 7 Tools
			Tools in Chapter 7
			Requirement Problems
		References
		Exercises
			Exercise 1
			Exercise 2
	Chapter 8: Physical Requirements
		Physical Hardware Characteristics
			Overall Weight
			Size
			Geometric Shape
			Volume
			Density
			Center of Gravity
			Human Portable
			Safety Features
			Storage
			Packaging, Cooling, Heating, and Integration Constraints
			Power Consumption
			Material
			Surface Coefficient of Friction
			Physical Robustness
			Reliability
			Throughput
			Physical Computer Characteristics
		Throughput Characteristics
			Throughput
			Latency
		Summary/Review of Requirement Problems Based on Chapter 8 Tools
			Tools in Chapter 8
			Requirement Problems
		References
		Exercises
			Exercise 1
			Exercise 2
Part III: Cradle to Grave Requirements
	Chapter 9: How to Collect Requirements
		Elicitation
		Techniques of Elicitation
			Elicitation Basics
			Requirements Sources
				Stakeholders
				Documents
				System in Operation
			An Overview of Elicitation Techniques
			Questionnaires/Surveys
			Group Meetings
				Facilitated Session
				Focus Group
				Joint Application Development/Requirements Workshop
				Support Teams
				Brainstorming
			Interviewing
				Size of Interviews Vary
				In-Person, Telephone, Videoconference, and Online Interviews
				Segregate by User Roles
				Running an Interview
				Things That Enhance the Interview
					Listening
					Things Change Over Time
					Glossaries
					Note Taking
					Follow-Up Questions
					Missing Knowledge
					Cultural/Language Differences
			Following People Around/Observation
			Models
			Document Analysis
				Business Process
				Existing Requirements
				Existing Interface Documents
				Design Documents
				Manuals: User, Operations, Training, and Help
				Identified Problems and Changes
				Competing or Analogous Systems
			Prototyping
			Use Cases/Scenarios/User Stories
			Working in the Target Environment
			Request for Proposals (RFP)
			Reverse Engineering
			Tools
			Purpose of Elicitation
				Defining the Scope of the System
				Gaining Domain Knowledge
				Deciding on the Elicitation Techniques to Use
				Eliciting the Requirements
				Performing a Gap Analysis
				Completing the Requirements
		Problems with Elicitation
			Problems of Scope
				The Boundary of the System Is Ill-Defined
				Unnecessary Design Information May Be Given
			Problems of Understanding
				Users Have an Incomplete Understanding of Their Needs
				Users Have a Poor Understanding of Computer Capabilities and Limitations
				Analysts Have Poor Knowledge of Problem Domain
				User and Analyst Speak Different Languages
				It’s Easy to Omit “Obvious” Information
				Different Users Have Different Views
				Requirements Are Often Vague and Untestable
			Problems of Volatility: Requirements Evolve
				Requirements Evolve Over Time
		Process Improvement
		Summary/Review of Requirement Problems Based on Chapter 9 Tools
			Tools in Chapter 9
			Requirement Problems
		References
		Exercises
			Exercise 1
			Exercise 2
	Chapter 10: User Interface Requirements
		Introducing UI Requirements
		Improving the User Interface
			Government UI Improvements
			Candidate UI Topics for Requirements
			Error Conditions
			Human Factors
		Section 508 Compliance
		Summary/Review of Requirement Problems Based on Chapter 10 Tools
			Tools in Chapter 10
			Requirement Problems
		References
		Exercises
			Exercise 1
	Chapter 11: Managing Requirements
		Why Should You Manage Requirements?
		A Bit of a History Lesson
		What Types of Tools Should You Consider?
			Attributes of Effective Requirements Management Tools
			The Tools
				First Evaluation
					Rating of the Tools
					Importing
				Second Evaluation
		What Requirement Values Should You Manage?
			Requirements Fields
			Requirements Associated with Testing Fields
			Requirements Associated with Agile Fields
		Summary/Review of Requirement Problems Based on Chapter 11 Tools
			Tools in Chapter 11
			Requirement Problems
		References
		Exercises
			Exercise 1
			Exercise 2
			Exercise 3
Part IV: Alternatives to Shall Requirements
	Chapter 12: Supplementing or Replacing Standard Requirements
		User Stories and Use Cases
			User Stories
			Use Cases
			Supplementing Your Requirements
			Replacements for Requirements
		Modeling
			General Modeling
			Models for Ordinary Requirements
				Swim Lanes
				Data Flow Diagrams (DFDs)
			Specialized Modeling
			Tools That Can Aid Requirements Gathering
				Affinity Diagrams
				Storyboarding
		Other Supplements to Requirements Process
			Off-the-Shelf Solutions
			IEEE Standards
			ISO 9001:2008
			CMM/CMMI Levels of Maturity
			INCOSE
		Summary/Review of Requirement Problems Based on Chapter 12 Tools
			Tools in Chapter 12
			Requirement Problems
		References
	Chapter 13: User Stories
		Anatomy of a User Story
			Parts of a User Story
			Attributes of a User Story
				Independent
				Negotiable
				Valuable
				Estimable
				Small
				Testable
		Acceptance Criteria
		Size of Stories
		Complement vs. Supplement to Requirements
			Complement to Requirements
			Replacement for Requirements
		User Stories Traceability
		Maintain User Stories
		What Can Go Wrong with Writing User Stories?
		Summary/Review of Requirement Problems Based on Chapter 13 Tools
			Tools in Chapter 13
			Requirement Problems
		Summary
		References
		Exercises
			Exercise 1
			Exercise 2
			Exercise 3
			Exercise 4
			Exercise 5
			Exercise 6
	Chapter 14: Use Cases
		Writing Use Cases
			Use Case Sequence
			Login Use Case
			Unit Dosimetry Report Use Case
			Gap Analysis
		Advantages and Disadvantages of Use Cases
			Advantages
			Disadvantages
		Complement vs. Replacement to Requirements
			Complement to Requirements
			Replacement for Requirements
			All Three Together
		Summary/Review of Requirement Problems Based on Chapter 14 Tools
			Tools in Chapter 14
			Requirement Problems
		References
		Exercises
			Exercise 1
			Exercise 2
Part V: Focus on Requirements Problems
	Chapter 15: The Proper Way to Define Requirements Governance
		Introduction to Requirements Governance
		Problems with Not Doing Requirements Well
		Detail of Each Requirement Problem Listed Earlier
			Insufficient Requirements
			Requirements Creep
			Volatility
			Stove-Piped Requirements
			Scope
			Users Not Sure What They Need
			Requirements Do Not Reflect What Users/Stakeholders Need
			Interpretation: Causes Disagreements
			Cannot Verify the Requirements
			Wasted Time and Resources Building the Wrong Functions
			Adversely Impacts the Schedule
			Adversely Impacts Communication with Users/Stakeholders or Development/Test Team
			Priorities Are Not Adequately Addressed
			Summary
		Analysis of a Governance Item
			Requirements Governance Template
			Example 1
			Example 2
			Scoring for Each Governance Item
			Action to Take
			An Additional Requirements Process to Consider
		Summary/Review of Requirement Problems Based on Requirements Governance
			Insufficient Requirements
			Requirements Creep
			Volatility
			Stove-Piped Requirements
			Scope—Boundaries Can Be Ill-Defined
			Understanding Users Are Not Sure What They Need
			May Not Satisfy User Needs
			Misinterpretation: Causes Disagreements
			Cannot Verify the Requirements
			Wasted Time and Resources Building the Wrong Functions
			Adversely Impacts the Schedule
			Adversely Impacts Communication with Users/Stakeholders or Development/Test Team
			Priorities Are Not Adequately Addressed
		Exercises
			Exercise 1
	Chapter 16: Revisiting Requirement Problems and Their Solutions
		Recap of List of Requirements Problems
		Final Analysis of Problem Reports
			Insufficient Requirements
			Evaluation
			Conclusions
			Requirements Creep
				Evaluation
				Conclusions
			Volatility
				Evaluation
				Conclusions
			Stove-Piped Requirements
				Evaluation
				Conclusions
			Scope: Boundaries Can Be Ill-Defined
				Evaluation
				Conclusions
			Understanding Users Are Not Sure What They Need
				Evaluation
				Conclusions
			May Not Satisfy User Needs
				Evaluation
				Conclusions
			Misinterpretation: Causes Disagreements
				Evaluation
				Conclusions
			Cannot Verify the Requirements
				Evaluation
				Conclusions
			Wasted Time and Resources Building the Wrong Functions
				Evaluation
				Conclusion
			Adversely Impacts the Schedule
				Evaluation
				Conclusion
			Adversely Impacts Communication with Users/Stakeholders or Development/Test Team
				Evaluation
				Conclusion
			Priorities Are Not Adequately Addressed
				Evaluation
				Conclusion
		Summary
		Exercises
			Exercise 1
			Exercise 2
			Exercise 3
Part VI: Appendixes
	Appendix A: Acronyms and Abbreviations
	Appendix B: Requirements Documents
		DoD FRD Template
			FUNCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS DOCUMENT (FRD) FOR DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE (DOD) 
			Comments on This DoD FRD
		IEEE Document Formats
		Final Comments on Requirements Document Formats
		References
	Appendix C: Section 508 Compliance
		Our Mission
		Design & Develop: Design and Develop Accessible Products
		Summary
Glossary
Bibliography
Index