4.2.1       The Basic Waterfall Development Model

Figure 4‑1 Waterfall Development Model [Royce 1969]

Highlights of the waterfall development model:

§         Initial development model for software systems development

§         All requirements are known up-front

§         Form follows function philosophy: “What to do? “[Function] before “How to do it?” [Form]

§         Still used for certain types of systems:

§         systems with low complexity, and systems that cannot evolve

§         Relationships between the early phases of the project to the end results are not illustrated

§         Stakeholder involvement is not recognized beyond the initial requirements

§         Control gates not always obvious