Software Design Specification - Literature review Example

Project Software Design Specification mm/dd/yyyy Version: x.xx . Prepared for: Project Manager Project Manager Department Prepared by: Document Author’s Name, Title Document Author’s Department Revisions Version Primary Author(s) Description of Version Date Completed Initial Draft Student Name Initial draft that is created for distribution and review comments 08/03/15 First Draft Student Name Draft addressing identified issues TBD Second Draft Student Name Second draft incorporating initial review meeting comments, distributed for final review. TBD Final 1.0 Student Name First complete draft, which is submitted for final review 10/28/01 Revision 1 TBD Revised draft, revised according to the change control process and maintained under change control TBD Revision 2 TBD Revised draft, revised according to the change control process and maintained under change control TBD Contents Revisions i Contents ii 1 Introduction 1 2 Design Considerations 4 3 Architecture 5 4 High Level Design 6 5 Low Level Design 7 6 User Interface Design 8 1 Introduction This software design specification is a follow up on the software requirements specifications (SRS). This document defines the sales management system, the specific information regarding the expected input, output and functions that are aimed at meeting the purpose of the system. This document is to be used by the software designers to meet each milestone and deliver reliable and efficient software to meet the user needs. 1.1 System Overview The software system will be a sales system for an online based business enterprise similar to eBay and Amazon. The system’s goals is to simplify the customer’s experience as well as the employees productivity by providing tools to ease the acquisition of the desired products that would otherwise be done manually and collected physically. By doing so the system would offer the customers an exciting and convenient shopping experience while at the same time simplifying the work of the respective employees. More specifically, the system allows the customer to maintain and manage their own shopping list and their payment methods more efficiently. A client can simply make purchases from the comfort of his or her home and use their credit card to make payment. Goods are delivered once the payment has been verified by the accounts department. The system also helps the inventory clerks to maintain accurate inventory of all items available. Communication with the client and the company will be done via the online platform and through the email provided by the customer. Fill in forms and selection panes are used through each stage of product cycle from inventory to purchase. The customer also provides their details through fill in forms and makes selection of products to purchase through the selection panels. Most importantly, the system contains a relational database where the product details and the customer details are stored. 1.2 Design Map Section Contents Description Section 1 Revision Provides details of document history, the drafts, and revisions to the final draft. Section 2 Introduction Introduction section provides an introduction to the document by explaining the purpose of the document, providing design map and references, and a brief overview of each section within the document. Section 3 Design considerations This section describes issues that need to be addressed or resolved prior to or while completing the design as well as issues that may influence the design process. Section 4 Architecture The architecture provides the top level design view of a system and provides a basis for more detailed design work. These are the top level components of the system we are building and their relationships. Section 5 High level design This section describes in further detail elements discussed in the Architecture. Normally this section would be split into separate documents for different areas of the design. Section 6 Low level design This section provides low-level design descriptions that directly support construction of modules. Section 7 User Interface design This section provides user interface design descriptions that directly support construction of user interface screens. 1.3 Supporting Materials References Sales management system –SRS-001: the software requirements specification document. 1.4 Definitions and Acronyms This  is  a  comprehensive  list  of  all  terms  used  in  this  vision  document. Inventory : A  detailed  list  of  goods  and  materials  that  are  in  stock. User : A  person  who  can  interact  with  the  software   can  be  an  employee  or  end  user  (customer). Database (DB): An organized (structured) body of related information. End  of  Day  Report: A  report  that  is  done  after  business  hours  are  over.  Typically, it includes sales and inventory. Sales: The overall money transaction during a specified time interval. Transaction : The  exchange  of  goods  or  services  for  legal  tender. 2 Design Considerations 2.1 Assumptions The design of the software is dependent on a database that must be carefully developed to offer the required services. The graphical user interface is designed to operate on a GUI platform but mostly a Microsoft visual basic platform. Integration between the database and the online GUI comes at a later stage and may result in a few changes to the requirement specifications. 2.2 Constraints The system is developed using the Microsoft platform and therefore can run on any Microsoft platform. It may be a challenge to run the GUI on other platforms that are not Microsoft based. Users must also have some computing knowledge to use the software. Most importantly the database is an open source DBMS that can be freely accessed by the authorized clients or users. 2.3 System Environment The system environment is composed of the back end and the frontend environments. The backend stores the relational database where all the data to be used in the system is stored. This will require a server machine for storage and web server for internet access through the web portal. The front end is composed of the employee interface and the client interface. These can comfortably run on any computing device but must be running a windows operating system. A basic computer on the clients end will be sufficient. On the employees end, the computer used must be fast with proper display. 2.4 Design Methodology The software will be developed using the conventional software development life cycle. The system will be designed using the object oriented technique with UML. To start with the design will be presented in DFD (data flow diagram) to show the major objects and entities that interact in the system. It will also involve the use case diagrams before the actual coding is done. 2.5 Risks and Volatile Areas . N/A 3 Architecture The architecture provides the top level design view of the system and provides a basis for more detailed design work. These are the top level components of the system and their relationships. 3.1 Overview The system is structurally decomposed into three sections that include the sales, inventory and transaction. This decomposition is based on the nature of data and information needed for each subcomponent and the entities responsible for these components. The system is further decomposed into functional units that include client registration, definition of products, editing products, search product, make purchases, delivery and payment. Each function is completed by different entities in the system including the client, sales personnel, inventory clerk and the accountant. The products must be defined and details kept accurate, a client must register to avail the details that will be used for the final transaction. The software is developed on a windows platform where communication between users and the application is through a browser. 3.2 Rationale The architecture chosen is reliable and can easily be used by an user with little computing knowledge. It is important to note that the system us developed for the organization as well as the general public with diverse computing skills. The windows platform is common to most users and very easy to implement in the organization. 3.3 Component Details N/A 4 High Level Design 4.1 Conceptual View The system is made of two parts the web interface and the employee interface. The web interface will contain the platform through which the customer can view their selected items. This interface is used to display product particulars to potential clients. Additionally, the client can easily manage their purchases through this online interface. It is through this platform that the client’s details and personal information is collected. The employee interface on the other hand has an interface through which the employees can record inventory; carry out stock taking exercises among other tasks. This interface is used for the general management of the business ensuring that all the needed tasks are performed effectively. The employee interface has the major purpose of maintaining inventory, client data and information and completion of the transactions that are initiated by the customers through the online portal. The system is data centric and depends on data stored in the company and those provided by the client. Therefore, a relational database is used to store all the information that is needed for the operation of the system. The database will store customer information, inventory records and transaction records. The two interfaces will communicate with the database to retrieve required information and to store data and information when necessary. 5 Low Level Design 5.1 Module 1..n 6 User Interface Design This section provides user interface design descriptions that directly support construction of user interface screens. 6.1 Application Control The user interface screens will have a blue theme with common controls for minimization, maximizing, and close buttons. The menu will have file, edit, and exit options to the left of the window. The main window will be made of various objects such as textboxes, labels, data grids among others to allow display and entering of data into the system. Each interface must have the company logo on the top right hand of the screen. 6.2 Screen 1: Splash screen The splash screen will be initiated once the program is launched. It mainly contains the company information including, Name, Logo, Vision, Mission and the contact details. It will also have a progress bar to indicate the progress while the system loads. The color will be light blue and covers half of the device display. Once the progress bar is complete (100%), the next window which is the login interface is loaded. 6.3 Screen 2: System Login The system login screen provides an interface through which all the users both the customer and the employees log in. The screen is blue in color with labels for user name and password, there is a textbox for entering the required credentials before clicking a command button that will login the user into the system 6.4 Screen 3: The Main Menu Once the user is logged in they are taken t the main menu from where they can choose the actions they wish to perform. The menu is organized in a vertical format where links to the various sections of the application is provided. These include; Customer Registration Product Definition Product Search Purchasing 6.5 Screen 4: Customer Registration The screen provides an interface through which the customer is registered through the web portal. The client provides their personal identification details, contact information and billing details. The information needed include customer_Name, Address, Phone_No, Email Address, City, Card_No among other details. Again the labels for these details are arranged vertically in a form and information is submitted b clicking the command button named Register. The information can also be edited or registration cancelled. Once information is submitted, the client is issued with an ID and data is stored in the database. 6.6 Screen 5: Product Definition Product definition is done by the inventory clerk who fills in a form with the product details. The form is designed similar to the customer registration form. The information is stored in the database. The details for product registration include; product name, description, category, price and a picture that is used in the product catalogue. 6.7 Screen 6: Product Search Product search is done by the customer. The screen provides a catalogue of products that include a brief description, the price and a picture of the product. They are arranged in categories and the customer can search the catalogue for their desired products. Once they have identified their products the client will be prompted to add these products to shopping list which will be displayed as a data grid. 6.8 Screen 7: Purchasing Here the items selected by the customer in the shopping list are billed to his/her credit card. The payment is done through a credit card or PayPal before the items are delivered to the client. Reference Heim, S. (2008). The Resonant Interface : HCI Foundations for Interaction Design. Carlifornia: Pearson/Addison Wesley. Wiegers, K., & Beatty, J. (2013). Software requirements. 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