Adaptive software development is a rapid and evolving approach to building software systems, with no real endpoint. It involves a lack of planning and a focus on coding, allowing for quick updates and added features. The process consists of three phases: speculation, collaboration, and learning.
Adaptive software development is a design principle for building software systems. The principle focuses on the rapid creation and evolution of software systems. There is never a time when the software is finished; there are only stable periods between new releases. The adaptive development method grew out of the rapid application development method. These two methods are similar in structure, but rapid application development allows for a time when the project is finished, while adaptive software development does not.
The core of adaptive development is in computer code. Instead of planning the software in advance, developers have a basic idea in their head and get to work. When parts need to be modified or adapted to a new system, programmers simply do it. If the program needs a patch, someone does.
Overall, the lack of planning steps allows developers to get the software up and running very quickly. While this sometimes results in software not performing the precise functions required, it is generally not a problem. The development cycle in this process is so short that a new version with added features can come out very quickly. This process or rapid prototyping is the cornerstone of both adaptive software development and rapid application development.
Where the two methods differ is in whether or not the endpoint is. For adaptive software development, there is no real endpoint, just a point in time when the software is no longer needed or the code is ported to a higher generation application. On the other hand, rapid application development allows for the end of a project, a time when the software is bug-free and has met the buyer’s requirements.
Adaptive software development consists of three phases, each of which revolves around coding a program. The first step is speculation. During this stage, programmers try to understand the exact nature of the software and the needs of the users. This phase relies on bugs and user reports to guide the project. In no report available, the developers use the basic requirements outlined by the buyer.
The collaboration stage is when individual developers consolidate what they are doing and how to combine their parts. This phase is usually completely internal. Developers don’t need any additional information or external inputs to manage this piece of software.
The last step is to learn. During the learning phase, the latest version of the software is released to users. This generates the bugs and user reports used during the first phase of the project and the cycle repeats.
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