Software Engineering Notes questions and
answers 2025/2026
Paradigm - answerphilosophy or approach for building a product. (eg. OO vs structured approaches)
Analysis - answerdecompose a large problem into smaller, understandable pieces. Abstraction is the
key.
Software Engineering - answera discipline that applies sound engineering principles to the development
of software.
Synthesis - answerbuild (compose) software from smaller building blocks. Composition is challenging.
Fault - answeroccurs when a human makes a mistake, called an error, in performing some software
activities.
Failure - answeris a departure from the system's required behavior.
Transcendental View - answerquality is something we can recognize but not define.
User View - answerquality is fitness for purpose.
Manufacturing View - answerquality is conformance to specification.
Product View - answerquality tied to inherent product characteristics.
Value-Based View - answerdepends on the amount the customers is willing to pay for it.
What are the 3 ways of considering quality? - answerThe quality of the product, the quality of the
process, the quality of the product in the context of the business environment.
, (True or False) Users judge external characteristics to determine the quality of a product. - answerTrue.
McCall's quality model includes what dimensions of quality? - answerCorrectness, reliability, efficiency,
integrity, usability, maintainability, testability, flexibility, portability, reusability, interoperability.
Modeling the development process addresses questions such as: - answerwhere to find a particular kind
of fault; how to find faults early; how to build in fault tolerance; what are alternative activities.
Name some models for process improvement. - answerSEI's Capability Maturity Model (CMM); ISO
9000; Software Process Improvement and Capability Determination (SPICE)
Return on Investment (ROI) - answerhow much money is it going to cost to make the product and how
much money will I earn? If it costs more than I will earn, then I won't build it.
Interpreted in different terms: reducing costs, predicting savings, improving productivity and costs
(efforts and resources)
What is the system approach? - answerDetermine the hardware, software, interact with people;
identifying activities and objects; define the system boundary; consider nested systems, systems
interrelationship.
Activities and Objects - answerAn activity is an event initiated by a trigger. Objects or entities are the
elements involved in the activities.
Relationships and the System Boundaries - answerA relationship defines the interaction among entities
and activities. System boundaries determine the extent to which you have to program; determining how
far you should do code for.
(True or False) Some systems are dependent to other systems. - answerTrue - the interdependencies
may be complex.
What is the full engineering approach? - answerRequirements analysis and definition
System design
answers 2025/2026
Paradigm - answerphilosophy or approach for building a product. (eg. OO vs structured approaches)
Analysis - answerdecompose a large problem into smaller, understandable pieces. Abstraction is the
key.
Software Engineering - answera discipline that applies sound engineering principles to the development
of software.
Synthesis - answerbuild (compose) software from smaller building blocks. Composition is challenging.
Fault - answeroccurs when a human makes a mistake, called an error, in performing some software
activities.
Failure - answeris a departure from the system's required behavior.
Transcendental View - answerquality is something we can recognize but not define.
User View - answerquality is fitness for purpose.
Manufacturing View - answerquality is conformance to specification.
Product View - answerquality tied to inherent product characteristics.
Value-Based View - answerdepends on the amount the customers is willing to pay for it.
What are the 3 ways of considering quality? - answerThe quality of the product, the quality of the
process, the quality of the product in the context of the business environment.
, (True or False) Users judge external characteristics to determine the quality of a product. - answerTrue.
McCall's quality model includes what dimensions of quality? - answerCorrectness, reliability, efficiency,
integrity, usability, maintainability, testability, flexibility, portability, reusability, interoperability.
Modeling the development process addresses questions such as: - answerwhere to find a particular kind
of fault; how to find faults early; how to build in fault tolerance; what are alternative activities.
Name some models for process improvement. - answerSEI's Capability Maturity Model (CMM); ISO
9000; Software Process Improvement and Capability Determination (SPICE)
Return on Investment (ROI) - answerhow much money is it going to cost to make the product and how
much money will I earn? If it costs more than I will earn, then I won't build it.
Interpreted in different terms: reducing costs, predicting savings, improving productivity and costs
(efforts and resources)
What is the system approach? - answerDetermine the hardware, software, interact with people;
identifying activities and objects; define the system boundary; consider nested systems, systems
interrelationship.
Activities and Objects - answerAn activity is an event initiated by a trigger. Objects or entities are the
elements involved in the activities.
Relationships and the System Boundaries - answerA relationship defines the interaction among entities
and activities. System boundaries determine the extent to which you have to program; determining how
far you should do code for.
(True or False) Some systems are dependent to other systems. - answerTrue - the interdependencies
may be complex.
What is the full engineering approach? - answerRequirements analysis and definition
System design
