[aspectj-users] OT, a bit: help a journalist on software requirements (a

[Esther Schindler <esther@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Sorry to intrude, but I needed to find a community of friendly software 
developers... and I think this list is  a perfect example. <smile> 
Besides, this may be good discussion fodder in its own right.

I'm a contributing editor at Software Test & Performance magazine 
(stpmag.com), where I write the "best practices" column. (If you don't 
like the phrase "best practices," think of it as "avoiding stupid 
mistakes by finding out what others did wrong.") My next column is 
about best practices in software requirements, and I'd really like 
input from _developers_. I often quote QA professionals, but 
requirements is a bit earlier in the food chain!

Basically: what really dumb things have you seen done in the name of 
software requirements (both gathering and management)? How do you think 
they could have been avoided?

What processes do you recommend to ensure that the users actually get 
what they need and what they want... and in what way do you help them 
determine when the "need" and "want" are at odds with one another?

What do you do when the software requirements _do_ get out of hand? How 
do you recognize that it's happened, and is there anything you can do 
to get back on track?

Then there's the political issues. We've all been there: the user 
community does a bang-up job on defining exactly what the app should 
look like. Then Mr Vice President steps in and says, either 
egotistically or just-in-passing, "I think all the screens should be 
green," causing that requirement arbitrarily to pop to the top of the 
list. What can you _possibly_ do about that?

I'd love to hear your war stories... EVERYbody likes to share those! 
Ideally, though, I want to be able to offer the magazine's readers a 
few items on which there's consensus.

I'm happy to participate in a public discussion, though you can write 
to me privately if you prefer. If I can quote you, please let me know 
your real name, title, company, and location. (My editors like to see, 
"...says Jane Doe, a senior developer at Foo Corp. in Tucson, 
Arizona.") If that's not possible, don't be shy -- we can probably work 
something out.

Esther Schindler
for Software Test & Performance Magazine (stpmag.com)