b) Merits, Drawbacks and uses of programming methodologies

What are the merits of the waterfall methodology?

Straightforward to manage and clearly documented.

What are the drawbacks of the waterfall methodology?

Lack of flexibility, no risk analysis and limited user involvement.

When is the waterfall methodology used?

For static, low-risk projects which need little user input, such as a piece of general purpose software.

What are the advantages of the agile methodology?

Produces high quality code, flexible to changing requirements and regular user inputs.

What are the disadvantages of the agile methodology?

Poor documentation, requires consistent interaction between user and programmer.

When is the agile methodology used?

Small to medium projects with unclear initial requirements.

What are the advantages to the extreme programming methodology?

Produces high quality code, constant user involvement means high usabiility.

What are the disadvantages to the extreme programming methodology?

High cost of two people working on one project, teamwork is essential and end user may not be able to be present.

When is the extreme programming methodology used?

Small to medium projects with unclear initial requirements requiring excellent usability.

What are the advantages to the spiral methodology?

Thorough risk analysis and mitigation, caters to changing user needs, and produces prototypes throughout.

What are the disadvantages of the spiral methodology?

Expensive to hire risk assessors, lack of focus on efficiency, and high costs due to constant prototyping.

When is the spiral methodology used?

Large, risk-intensive projects with a high budget.

What are the advantages of the Rapid Application Development methodology?

Caters to changing user requirements, highly usable finished product and focus on core features, reducing development time.

What are the disadvantages of the Rapid Application Development methodology?

Poorer quality documentation, or fast pace may reduce code quality.

When is the Rapid Application Development methodology used?

On small to medium, low budget projects with short time frames.