Writing System Requirements

Parts of a Requirements Spec. Description of the system –Not your system, yet… Indexed requirements Models of the system –Use cases –Sequence diagrams

How to write a requirement Clear, concise statements Active voice Explain acronyms Avoid or explain technical jargon

Example: A Door What requirements might this system have? How do we phrase them clearly?

Example: An elevator Break into groups Write a list of requirements –5 min. –Use paper Try to be: –Clear –Concise –Unambiguous

Example: A Door? What did we underspecify? What did we overspecify?

Example: An Elevator? Break into groups Rotate requirements What is the worst design that still meets the specification? –5 min. –Draw result on whiteboard

Making Good Requirements Your requirements  other people Needs to be: –complete –understandable