Introduction
"There is no failure. Only feedback." -Robert Allen
Working on Project Atlantis has been an important learning
experience for WinterSoft, and we think it is crucial that we
take advantage of this experience to decide what we could do
to improve our projects in the future. Below are several
questions which have been answered in more detail in the
document.
The Questions:
If you Took the Course Again, what Would you do Differently?
This question is answered in three parts: communication, organization and
comprehension. We feel we could have improved on all of these. More regular
meetings, and a greater individual effort to understand the project would help.
If this were a Real Situation, what Would you do Differently?
This section discusses how our project differs from real world projects.
We feel a greater emphasis on the customer, and less time spent on design might
work better in the real world.
How well did the Project Satisfy the Requirements?
Here we discuss how close we came to satisfying our customer's
requirements. In general, we feel we did a good job, although
we had trouble meeting the online requirement, due to technical
constraints.
How Useful was the Design Process?
Here we discuss the usefulness of the design process. Getting
feedback from the customer was helpful, but we felt some of our
efforts may have been wasted. Pseudocode and some of the technical diagrams
may have been over emphasized.
How Useful was the Test Plan?
There is a split opinion on this, and we want to ensure we capture
all of the group's opinions, so we discussed them both. Some members
felt the plan improved our efficiency and thoroughness; others felt
it was too formal, and following the procedures was too difficult.
How Were the Group Dynamics?
Here we discuss how well the group worked together. In general, we feel communication
could have been better, and that the managers and workers misunderstood each
other (or at least disagreed). More communication, and possibly smaller groups
would help.
How Useful was the Timeline?
We met all deadlines, but to be fair, they were set strictly for
us by the course outline. We did accomplish some goals ahead of
time, but time management would probably be a bigger concern in the
"real world", where deadlines aren't set by instructors.
What is the Overall Impression of the Course and the Project?
Most of the team enjoyed the course, and found it useful. A number
of people also expressed the feeling that it was nice to work on a
"real" system, rather than contrived examples, as we tend to get in
other courses.
What was our Relationship with the Customer Like?
We had a fairly good relationship with our customer. While it wasn't very formal,
there were a few connections between our group and the customer group, which
gave us some leverage when dealing with them. A more formal and highly-connected
customer-supplier relationship might be desirable.
What Lessons did we Learn?
On an individual level, we learned to deal with other people in
a team, and we learned about time management. On a group level,
we found that it's important for group members to show respect
for each others' work. We also learned that it is important
to prepare for each phase of a project, and plan ahead of time.
Conclusion
By looking at these questions, and inspecting our experiences,
WinterSoft hopes to become a better, more efficient developer,
and we hope that our members will become better software engineers.
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