|
|
Early on in our analysis efforts, it's important that we clarify and begin to document our use of terminology. A data dictionary is ideal for this purpose. For each candidate class, the data dictionary should include a simple definition of what this item means in the context of the model/system as a whole; include an example if it helps to illustrate the definition.
The following sidebar shows our complete SRS data dictionary so far.
 |
Course A semester-long series of lectures, assignments, exams, etc., that all relate to a particular subject area, and which are typically associated with a particular number of credit hours; a unit of study toward a degree. For example, Beginning Objects is a required course for the Master of Science degree in Information Systems Technology.
PlanOfStudy A list of the courses that a student intends to take to fulfill the course requirements for a particular degree.
Professor A member of the faculty who teaches sections or advises students.
Section The offering of a particular course during a particular semester on a particular day of the week and at a particular time of day (for example, course Beginning Objects as taught in the Spring 2004 semester on Mondays from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m.).
Student A person who is currently enrolled at the university and who is eligible to register for one or more sections.
Transcript A record of all of the courses taken to date by a particular student at this university, including which semester each course was taken in, the grade received, and the credits granted for the course, as well as a reflection of an overall total number of credits earned and the student's grade point average (GPA).
|
Note that it's permissible, and in fact encouraged, for the definition of one term to include one or more of the other terms; when we do so, we highlight the latter in bold text.
The data dictionary joins the set of other SRS narrative documents as a subsequent source of information about the model. As our model evolves, we'll expand the dictionary to include definitions of attributes, associations, and methods.
| Note?/td> |
It's a good idea to also include the dictionary definition of a class as a header comment in the C# code representing that class. Make sure to keep this inline documentation in sync with the external dictionary definition, however. |
|
|