Software Design

This is the process of visualizing and defining software solutions. In this section you will find terms related to this design discipline, ie the process of creating a project.

One of the major components of software design is Software Requirements Analysis (SRA). SRA is part of the development process and lists the specifications used in engineering.

If software is "semi-automated" or user-centered, software design may involve a user experience that creates a storyboard to help determine those specifications.
If software is fully automated (meaning there is no user interface), the design can be as simple as describing the flowchart or the text of the planned sequence of events.

The goal of design is to define the internal features of the system and the specifications of its visible properties on the basis of the requirements issued by the customer.

There are also semi-standard methods, such as Unified Modeling Language and basic modeling concepts. In both cases, part of the planned documentation is usually the product of the design.

In addition, software design can be platform-specific independent, based on the availability of the technology used for the project.

Software design includes the following main activities:

choice of the method and strategy;
selection of internal data representation;
development of the basic algorithm;
software documentation;
testing and selection;
selection of the input data representation.

Depending on the class of software being created, the design process can be provided both by "manual" design and various means of its automation. In the process of designing software to express its characteristics, various notations are used: block diagrams, ER, UML, DFD diagrams, and layouts.

To help you get acquainted with the software design process, we gathered the most widely used terms and definitions. If any words or concepts are still unclear for you, please, send your questions to [email protected] and we’ll add the explanations in the near future.