A Procedural Approach to Evaluating Software Development Methodologies: The Foundation

Abstract

A procedure for evaluating software development methodologies is developed. Beginning with the issue of what constitutes a methodology, development of the evaluation procedure relies on the establishment of linkages among objectives, principles, and attributes intrinsic to software development methodologies. The evaluation of software development methodologies reflects an assessment structured by the needs, process, and product sequence for system development. Linkages are defined from recognized software engineering sources, providing a foundation for both objective and subjective "analysis" of a given methodology. Application of the evaluation procedure to two software development methodologies currently used by the United States Navy reveals the inherent power of the procedural approach.