subject: Why Agile Methodology Is Better Than The Waterfall Model [print this page] There is a classic book on software project management that was written by Frederick Brooks in 1975. Titled The Mythical Man-Month, the book showcased the authors opinion that increasing manpower to wrap up a software development project faster only ends up as an obstacle. According to Frederick, the involvement of additional manpower for the same project will lead to non-linear projection in communication.
The Waterfall Model
Interestingly, a software development service dubbed as Waterfall Model had been introduced five years prior to the release of Frederick Brooks book. This methodology was empowered by intelligence from various fields of engineering, such as mechanical engineering, civil engineering and even software engineering. This approach aimed at initially making a list of the requirements, making the design, applying the design, testing it and eventually introducing it in a linear order.
But that was then. After all these years, we have gained a lot of knowledge about software development and we have realized today that the Waterfall Model is actually rigid and impractical and has many flaws. Its impractical because the kind of requirements that we have in software development are continually changing and not precise, so taking note of all the projected requirements at once is literally impossible and unrealistic. What actually works in todays world of software development is the Agile methodology, which allows engineers to continually synchronize their software with the needs of their customers and their business.
Why the Waterfall Model Failed
One of the biggest misconceptions that people harbor about software is their belief that it can be tweaked and adjusted anytime and quite easily too, which is far from true. People out to know that software follows similar procedures like all mechanical systems and isnt moldable just like that. And yet its a known fact that all businesses require continual change, which apparently could not be handled by the Waterfall Method. Thats because the development cycle in this method was very time consuming and over-engineering of systems ended in huge investments. The reason for the doom of the Waterfall Model was the failure to register the truth, which surmounted to sheer arrogance.
Agile Methodologies: The future of software development India?
The first part of the 90s witnessed the surfacing of many Agile software development methods. Although these methods were not identical in their approach and details, yet they came to a common conclusion that a big rearrangement of thought was required. They agreed that change is something that they have to get adjusted to and be prepared for adaptation.
