Deliverable 3: Software Design Specification

This document provides an outline for the Software Design Specification. Use this outline to structure the design specification for your software.

0. Cover Sheet

• Project title
• Deliverable number and title
• Date
• Group members
• Signatures of group members

1  Introduction

1.1  System Objectives

Describe overall goals and software objectives.

1.2  Major Software Requirements

Without getting into implementation details, describe major inputs, processing functionality, and outputs. You could copy and edit portions of the software requirements specification for this section.

1.3  Design Constraints and limitations

Describe circumstances which force you to make certain design decisions.

2  Data Design

A description of all data structures used by the software.

2.1  Internal Data Structures

Describe significant data structures that are passed among software components.

2.2  Global Data Structures

Describe significant data structures that are available (globally) to software components.

2.3  Temporary Data Structures

Describe significant data structures that are temporarily created by software components.

2.4  File and Database Structure

Describe databases and files created/used in the application.

3  Architectural Design

Detailed description of the program architecture.

3.1  Program Structure

3.1.1  Architecture Diagram

Graphical representation of the software architecture.

3.1.2  Rationale

Provide reasons for the architecture adopted for this software.

3.2  Procedural Design (for each module)

3.2.1  Processing Narrative

Narrative description of what this module does.

3.2.2  Interface description

Detailed description of the inputs expected by this module and the outputs produced by this module.

3.2.3  Design Language (or other) description of algorithmic details

3.2.4  Modules used (by this module)

3.2.5  Internal (local ) data structures

3.2.6  Restrictions and limitations

4  Software Interface Description

Describe how the software interfaces with the outside world (user/software/hardware)

4.1  Machine interfaces

4.2  System interfaces

4.3  User Interfaces

4.3.1  Screen images

What does the user see when they use the software ?

4.3.2  Objects and actions

Describe each screen object and associated actions.

5  Appendices

5.1  Packaging and installation issues

5.2  Other (supplementary) information