Structured analysis and object-oriented development are not compatible

ABSTRACT

Since its introduction in 1978, traditional Structured Analysis has been an industry standar d method for software requirements analysis that is supported by numerous CASE tools. Since their introduction in the early 1980s, various forms of Object-Oriented Development (OOD) have also become the preferred approach for the design and coding of Ada software. More recently, OOD has included various forms of Object-Oriented Requirements Analysis. OOD has therefor e come into direct competition with Structured Analysis. While some methodologists have advocated retaining Structured Analysis and have worked to merge the two paradigms, others have pointed out significant disadvantages of combining them and urge the use of a unifie d object-oriented paradigm throughout all development activities. A recent article published in Ada Letters by Ken Shumate [SH 1991] is illustrative of this controversy and has prompted this reply.It is the thesis of this paper that traditional Structured Analysis, even when modified for real-tim e systems, is a technically obsolete way to specify software requirements, and that Structure d Analysis and Object-Oriented Development are fundamentally incompatible and unnecessarily difficult for software engineers to combine effectively.

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INDEX TERMS

Primary Classification:
  D. Software
  D.2 SOFTWARE ENGINEERING

Additional Classification:
  D. Software
  D.2 SOFTWARE ENGINEERING
        D.2.10 Design**
            Subjects: Representation**
  D.3 PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES
      D.3.2 Language Classifications

          Nouns: Ada

General Terms:
Design, Theory, Verification