Abstract
This paper presents results produced by a domain-independent system development model that enables objective and quantitative calculation of certain development cycle characteristics. The presentation recounts the model’s motivation and includes an outline of the model’s structure. The outline shows that the model is constructive. As such, it provides an explanatory mechanism for the results that it produces, not just a representation of qualitative observations or measured data. The model is a Statistical Agent-based Model of Development and Evaluation (SAbMDE); and it appears to be novel with respect to previous design theory and methodology work. This paper focuses on one development cycle characteristic: resource utilization. The model’s resource estimation capability is compared to Boehm’s long-used software development estimation techniques. His Cone of Uncertainty (COU) captures project estimation accuracy empirically at project start but intuitively over a project’s duration. SAbMDE calculates estimation accuracy at start up and over project duration; and SAbMDE duplicates the COU’s empirical values. Additionally, SAbMDE produces results very similar to the Constructive Cost Model (COCOMO) effort estimation for a wide range of input values.
Highlights
A development cycle model represents the phases of system and/or product development
In the language of the proposed model, completing a project is traversing a development space (DSpace) along a development paths (DPaths) that leads to a desired end product (DEP)
First is the definition of the components of a resource estimation calculation: DSpace traversal, a pricing scheme, and the cost computation procedure
Summary
A development cycle model represents the phases of system and/or product development. There are many such models currently in use. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and other government organizations specify standards and instructions [3,4] that are necessarily incorporated by industry [5,6]. Researchers such as [7], have often enumerated and compared various methodologies.
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