CASE = Computer-Aided Software Engineering ASSIGNMENT

The definition of Computer-Aided Software Engineering (CASE), it is a set of tools to (optimally) assist in each step of software development that is typically integrated with a design data repository / design data base (University of Tampere Uta, 1998). In other words meaning of CASE is, it is the software systems which are intended to provide automated support for software process activities. CASE systems are often used for method support. In the Upper-CASE: Tools to support the early process activities of requirements and design and in the Lower-CASE: Tools to support later activities such as programming, debugging and testing (Ian Sommerville, 1995).The supported tasks of case are business systems planning, analysis & design, project management, data definition, program development (program generation), round-trip engineering, prototyping, simulation, integration, and testing (University of Tampere Uta, 1998).The reasons to use this CASE tool are keeping the data definitions in data base and Java classes synchronized, reducing the number of errors, automating a routine (and boring) part of programming, and providing consistency in data management (University of Tampere Uta, 1998).

In the activity automation it includes graphical editors for system model development, data dictionary to manage design entities, graphical ui builder for user interface construction, debuggers to support program fault finding, and automated translators to generate new versions of a program (Ian Sommerville, 2000).Case technology has led to significant improvements in the software process though not the order of magnitude improvements that were once predicted and they are (Ian Sommerville, 2000): Software engineering requires creative thought - this is not readily automatable

Software engineering is a team activity and, for large projects, much time is spent in team interactions. CASE technology does not really support these.The CASE methods and tools flow of process:

The classification helps us to understand the different types of CASE tools and their support for process activities which are Functional perspective (Tools are classified according to their specific function), Process perspective (Tools are classified according to process activities that are supported), and Integration perspective (Tools are classified according to their organisation into integrated units) (Ian Sommerville, 2000). An example of functional tool:

(Computer Courses, 1998)The references used for this assignment are listed below: University of Tampere Uta (1998), CASE Tools [Online] available from . Ian Sommerville (1995), Introduction Software Engineering [Online] Dublin Institute of Technology - School Of Computing available from .

Computer Courses (1998), Systems Development [Online] Florida State University available from .

Ian Sommerville (2000), Software Processes [Online] Dublin Institute of Technology - School Of Computing available from .Zubaidah Abdul Rehman, 20042080, BIS

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