Chapter 3

What are the shared characteristics of different agile methods of
software development?

Processes of specification, design and implementation are interleaved;
Developed in a series of versions;
Developed using interactive UI

For what types of system are agile approaches to development
particularly likely to be successful?

Small or medium sized product,
Custom system development with involved customer and without many rules

List the 5 principles of agile methods.

Customer involvement,
Incremental delivery,
People not process,
Embrace change,
Maintain simplicity

List 4 questions that should be asked when deciding whether or not
to adopt an agile method of software development.

1. Is it important to have a very detailed specification and design before moving to implementation? If so, you probably need to use a plan-driven approach.
2. Is an incremental delivery strategy, where you deliver the software to customers and get rapid

Name three important agile techniques that were introduced in
extreme programming?

Incremental development;
Customer involvement;
People, not process;
Change is embraced;
Maintaining simplicity

What is test-first development?

Write the tests before you write the code, to help discover problems during development

What are the possible problems of test-first development?

Programmers might take shortcuts because they don't like testing;
Tests are hard to write incrementally;
Difficult to judge the completion of test sets

Why has the Scrum agile method been widely adopted in preference to
methods such as XP.

1. The product is broken down into a set of manageable and understandable chunks.
2. Unstable requirements do not hold up progress.
3. The whole team has visibility of everything and consequently team communication is improved.
4. Customers see on-time de

What is a Scrum sprint?

A Scrum sprint is a planning unit in which the work to be done is assessed, features are selected for development, and the software is implemented

What are the barriers to introducing agile methods into large
companies?

May affect project in unknown way;
All projects must follow standards and procedures;
Wider range of skill level;
Cultural resistance to new method