BCS 2433

Software Engineering

Who is this course for?

An introductory survey of Software engineering

techniques for students who have not previously had

an exposure to this subject

Juniors, seniors, beginning graduate students

Credit: 3 kredits (be sure youre registered for the

correct subject!)

Basic Info
Textbook: Ian Sommerville. Software Engineering (10th

ed). Addison-Wesley, 2015.

Class webpage:

https://sites.google.com/site/ztfarihatatiuc/

Basic Info
Course Overview: This course gives an overview of

Software Engineering in the development of computer

software. Topics include software process, requirements
engineering, software architecture, and software testing.
Assessment:

Quizzes : 10% (2)

Assignments : 30% (2)
Tests : 20% (2)
Final Exam : 40%

Academic integrity policy

Feel free to discuss assignments with each other, but

reports must be done individually

Feel free to incorporate code or tips you find on the

Web, provided this doesnt make the assignment

trivial and you explicitly acknowledge your sources
Remember: I can Google as well as you can

Course Topics

Chapter 1 : Introduction
Chapter 2 : Software Process
Chapter 3 : Requirements Engineering
Chapter 4 : Architectural Design
Chapter 5 : Software Reuse
Chapter 6 : Component Based SE
Chapter 7 : Software Evolution
Chapter 8 : Software Testing

..\Course Plan BCS 2433 - 2BCSC.docx

Chapter 1- Introduction
LECTURE 1

Topics covered
8

Professional software development

1.

What is meant by software engineering.

2. Software engineering ethics

A brief introduction to ethical issues that affect software
engineering.

Software costs
Software costs often dominate computer system

costs. The costs of software on a PC are often greater

than the hardware cost.
Software costs more to maintain than it does to
develop. For systems with a long life, maintenance
costs may be several times development costs.
Software engineering is concerned with costeffective software development.

Software products
10

Generic
Products

Customized
Products

NEXT
Chapter 1 Introduction

Software products
11

Generic products

Stand-alone systems that are marketed and sold to any customer

who wishes to buy them.
Examples PC software such as graphics programs, project
management tools; CAD software; software for specific markets
such as appointments systems for dentists.

Product specification

The specification of what the software should do is owned by the

software developer and decisions on software change are made
by the developer.

BACK
Chapter 1 Introduction

Software products
12

Customized products

Software that is commissioned by a specific customer to meet

their own needs.
Examples embedded control systems, air traffic control
software, traffic monitoring systems.

Product specification

The specification of what the software should do is owned by

the customer for the software and they make decisions on
software changes that are required.

BACK
Chapter 1 Introduction

Frequently asked questions about software engineering

13

Question

Answer

What is software?

Computer programs and associated documentation. Software

products may be developed for a particular customer or may be
developed for a general market.

What are the attributes of good software?

Good software should deliver the required functionality and

performance to the user and should be maintainable,
dependable and usable.

What is software engineering?

Software engineering is an engineering discipline that is

concerned with all aspects of software production.

What are the fundamental software engineering Software specification, software development, software validation
activities?
and software evolution.
What is the difference between
engineering and computer science?

software Computer science focuses on theory and fundamentals;

Software engineering is concerned with the practicalities of
developing and delivering useful software.

What is the difference between

engineering and system engineering?

software System engineering is concerned with all aspects of computerbased systems development including hardware, software and
process engineering.
Software engineering is part of this more general process.

Chapter 1 Introduction

Frequently asked questions about software engineering

14
Question

Answer

What are the key challenges facing software Coping with increasing diversity, demands for reduced delivery
engineering?
times and developing trustworthy software.
What are the costs of software engineering?

What are the best software

techniques and methods?

engineering While all software projects have to be professionally managed and

developed, different techniques are appropriate for different types
of system.
For example, games should always be developed using a series of
prototypes whereas safety critical control systems require a
complete and analyzable specification to be developed. You cant,
therefore, say that one method is better than another.

What differences has the web made to software

engineering?

Chapter 1 Introduction

Roughly 60% of software costs are development costs, 40% are

testing costs. For custom software, evolution costs often exceed
development costs.

The web has led to the availability of software services and the
possibility of developing highly distributed service-based systems.
Web-based systems development has led to important advances in
programming languages and software reuse.

Essential attributes of good software

15
Product characteristic

Description

Maintainability

Software should be written in such a way so that it can evolve to meet the
changing needs of customers. This is a critical attribute because software
change is an inevitable requirement of a changing business environment.

Dependability and security

Software dependability includes a range of characteristics including reliability,

security and safety. Dependable software should not cause physical or
economic damage in the event of system failure. Malicious users should not
be able to access or damage the system.

Efficiency

Software should not make wasteful use of system resources such as memory
and processor cycles. Efficiency therefore includes responsiveness,
processing time, memory utilisation, etc.

Acceptability

Software must be acceptable to the type of users for which it is designed.

This means that it must be understandable, usable and compatible with other
systems that they use.

Chapter 1 Introduction

Software engineering
16

Software engineering is an engineering discipline that

is concerned with all aspects of software production

from the early stages of system specification through
to maintaining the system after it has gone into use.
Engineering discipline

Using appropriate theories and methods to solve problems

bearing in mind organizational and financial constraints.

All aspects of software production

Not just technical process of development. Also project

management and the development of tools, methods etc. to
support software production.

Chapter 1 Introduction

Importance of software engineering

17

More and more, individuals and society rely on

advanced software systems. We need to be able to
produce reliable and trustworthy systems
economically and quickly.
2. It is usually cheaper, in the long run, to use software
engineering methods and techniques for software
systems rather than just write the programs as if it
was a personal programming project. For most
types of system, the majority of costs are the costs of
changing the software after it has gone into use.
1.

Chapter 1 Introduction

4 Software process activities

18

Software specification, where customers and

engineers define the software that is to be produced
and the constraints on its operation.
2. Software development, where the software is
designed and programmed.
3. Software validation, where the software is checked
to ensure that it is what the customer requires.
4. Software evolution, where the software is modified
to reflect changing customer and market
requirements.
1.

Chapter 1 Introduction

3 General issues that affect most software

19

Heterogeneity

Increasingly, systems are required to operate as distributed

systems across networks that include different types of
computer and mobile devices.

Business and social change

Business and society are changing incredibly quickly as

emerging economies develop and new technologies become
available. They need to be able to change their existing software
and to rapidly develop new software.

Security and trust

As software is intertwined with all aspects of our lives, it is

essential that we can trust that software.

Chapter 1 Introduction

Software engineering diversity

20

There are many different types of software system

and there is no universal set of software techniques

that is applicable to all of these.
The software engineering methods and tools used
depend on the type of application being developed,
the requirements of the customer and the
background of the development team.

Chapter 1 Introduction

8 Application types
21

Stand-alone applications

These are application systems that run on a local computer,

such as a PC. They include all necessary functionality and do not
need to be connected to a network.

Interactive transaction-based applications

Applications that execute on a remote computer and are

accessed by users from their own PCs or terminals. These
include web applications such as e-commerce applications.

Embedded control systems

These are software control systems that control and manage

hardware devices. Numerically, there are probably more
embedded systems than any other type of system.

Chapter 1 Introduction

Application types
22

Batch processing systems

These are business systems that are designed to process data in

large batches. They process large numbers of individual inputs
to create corresponding outputs.

Entertainment systems

These are systems that are primarily for personal use and
which are intended to entertain the user.

Systems for modeling and simulation

These are systems that are developed by scientists and

engineers to model physical processes or situations, which
include many, separate, interacting objects.

Chapter 1 Introduction

Application types
23

Data collection systems

These are systems that collect data from their environment

using a set of sensors and send that data to other systems for
processing.

Systems of systems

These are systems that are composed of a number of other

software systems.

Chapter 1 Introduction

Software engineering fundamentals

24

Some fundamental principles apply to all types of

software system, irrespective of the development

techniques used:

Systems should be developed using a managed and understood

development process. Of course, different processes are used
for different types of software.
Dependability and performance are important for all types of
system.
Understanding and managing the software specification and
requirements (what the software should do) are important.
Where appropriate, you should reuse software that has already
been developed rather than write new software.

Chapter 1 Introduction

Software engineering and the web

25

The Web is now a platform for running application

and organizations are increasingly developing webbased systems rather than local systems.
Web services allow application functionality to be
accessed over the web.
Cloud computing is an approach to the provision of
computer services where applications run remotely
on the cloud.

Users do not buy software buy pay according to use.

Chapter 1 Introduction

Web software engineering

26

Software reuse is the dominant approach for constructing web-

based systems.

When building these systems, you think about how you can assemble them
from pre-existing software components and systems.

Web-based systems should be developed and delivered

incrementally.

It is now generally recognized that it is impractical to specify all the

requirements for such systems in advance.

User interfaces are constrained by the capabilities of web

browsers.

Technologies such as AJAX allow rich interfaces to be created within a web

browser but are still difficult to use. Web forms with local scripting are
more commonly used.

Chapter 1 Introduction

Key points
27

Software engineering is an engineering discipline

that is concerned with all aspects of software production.

Essential software product attributes are
maintainability, dependability and security, efficiency
and acceptability.
The high-level activities of specification,
development, validation and evolution are part of all
software processes.
The fundamental notions of software engineering are
universally applicable to all types of system
development.
Chapter 1 Introduction

Key points
28

There are many different types of system and each

requires appropriate software engineering tools and

techniques for their development.
The fundamental ideas of software engineering are
applicable to all types of software system.

Chapter 1 Introduction

Chapter 1- Introduction
LECTURE 2

Software engineering ethics

Software engineering involves wider responsibilities

than simply the application of technical skills.

Software engineers must behave in an honest and
ethically responsible way if they are to be respected
as professionals.
Ethical behaviour is more than simply upholding the
law but involves following a set of principles that are
morally correct.

Issues of professional responsibility

Confidentiality
Engineers should normally respect the confidentiality of their
employers or clients irrespective of whether or not a formal
confidentiality agreement has been signed.
Competence
Engineers should not misrepresent their level of competence.
They should not knowingly accept work which is outwith their
competence.

Issues of professional responsibility

Intellectual property rights

Engineers should be aware of local laws governing the use of

intellectual property such as patents, copyright, etc. They should be
careful to ensure that the intellectual property of employers and
clients is protected.

Computer misuse

Software engineers should not use their technical skills to misuse

other peoples computers. Computer misuse ranges from relatively
trivial (game playing on an employers machine, say) to extremely
serious (dissemination of viruses).

ACM/IEEE Code of Ethics

The professional societies in the US have cooperated

to produce a code of ethical practice.

Members of these organisations sign up to the code
of practice when they join.
The Code contains eight Principles related to the
behaviour of and decisions made by professional
software engineers, including practitioners,
educators, managers, supervisors and policy makers,
as well as trainees and students of the profession.

Rationale for the code of ethics

34

Computers have a central and growing role in commerce,

industry, government, medicine, education, entertainment
and society at large. Software engineers are those who
contribute by direct participation or by teaching, to the
analysis, specification, design, development, certification,
maintenance and testing of software systems.
Because of their roles in developing software systems,
software engineers have significant opportunities to do good
or cause harm, to enable others to do good or cause harm, or
to influence others to do good or cause harm. To ensure, as
much as possible, that their efforts will be used for good,
software engineers must commit themselves to making
software engineering a beneficial and respected profession.

Chapter 1 Introduction

The ACM/IEEE Code of Ethics

35
Software Engineering Code of Ethics and Professional Practice
ACM/IEEE-CS Joint Task Force on Software Engineering Ethics and Professional Practices
PREAMBLE
The short version of the code summarizes aspirations at a high level of the abstraction; the
clauses that are included in the full version give examples and details of how these
aspirations change the way we act as software engineering professionals. Without the
aspirations, the details can become legalistic and tedious; without the details, the
aspirations can become high sounding but empty; together, the aspirations and the details
form a cohesive code.
Software engineers shall commit themselves to making the analysis, specification, design,
development, testing and maintenance of software a beneficial and respected profession. In
accordance with their commitment to the health, safety and welfare of the public, software
engineers shall adhere to the following Eight Principles:

Chapter 1 Introduction

Ethical principles
36
1. PUBLIC - Software engineers shall act consistently with the public interest.
2. CLIENT AND EMPLOYER - Software engineers shall act in a manner that is in the best
interests of their client and employer consistent with the public interest.
3. PRODUCT - Software engineers shall ensure that their products and related
modifications meet the highest professional standards possible.
4. JUDGMENT - Software engineers shall maintain integrity and independence in their
professional judgment.
5. MANAGEMENT - Software engineering managers and leaders shall subscribe to and
promote an ethical approach to the management of software development and
maintenance.
6. PROFESSION - Software engineers shall advance the integrity and reputation of the
profession consistent with the public interest.
7. COLLEAGUES - Software engineers shall be fair to and supportive of their colleagues.
8. SELF - Software engineers shall participate in lifelong learning regarding the practice of
their profession and shall promote an ethical approach to the practice of the profession.
Chapter 1 Introduction

Ethical dilemmas
Disagreement in principle with the policies of senior

management.
Your employer acts in an unethical way and releases
a safety-critical system without finishing the testing
of the system.
Participation in the development of military
weapons systems or nuclear systems.

Key points
Software engineers have responsibilities to the engineering

profession and society. They should not simply be

concerned with technical issues.
Professional societies publish codes of conduct which set
out the standards of behaviour expected of their members.