Software Development | OCR A-Level Computer Science (H446)
Software Development
- 41 questions
- 3 subtopics
- Component 01: Computer systems
- Component 01
Software Development is examined on component 01 of OCR Computer Science, Computer systems.
41 recall questions across 3 subtopics.
Sample questions from Software Development
Answer each one closed book first, then open the answer.
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The five development methodologies
State the stages of the waterfall lifecycle in order.
Show the answer
Feasibility study; requirements analysis; design; implementation (coding); testing; installation, then ongoing evaluation and maintenance. Each stage is completed and approved before the next begins. -
Writing and following algorithms
What is a trace table, and why is it used?
Show the answer
A table with a column for each variable, in which each row records the values after one step or one pass of the algorithm, together with any output produced. It is used to dry run an algorithm by hand, so that its behaviour can be checked without a computer and the exact point at which the values go wrong can be located.
The 3 subtopics
One subtopic is one session. Work down the list.
| Subtopic | What it covers | Questions |
|---|---|---|
| The five development methodologies | Recall questions on the waterfall lifecycle, agile methodologies, extreme programming, the spiral model and rapid application development, the merits and drawbacks of each, prototypes, and what iterative development means. | 20 |
| Choosing a methodology: merits, drawbacks and fit | Recall questions on choosing a development methodology for stated projects, whether waterfall is obsolete, customer involvement, the trade-off between documentation and speed, cost estimation, and what goes wrong when agile loses its architecture. | 10 |
| Writing and following algorithms | Recall questions on writing algorithms before code, pseudocode and flowcharts, trace tables, following short algorithms, divide-by-zero and off-by-one faults, syntax, logic and runtime errors, validation and verification, test data and subroutines. | 11 |
How the guide is worked
Answering a question from memory stores it far better than reading the answer again. The guide runs that as a fixed procedure on one subtopic at a time, about twenty minutes a session.
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Step 1 · Closed book
Cover the answers. Work through one subtopic and write down what you can. Leave blanks where you have nothing.
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Step 2 · Open book
Go back to the top. Read each printed answer and write it out in full, including the ones you had right.
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Step 3 · Closed book again
Same questions, same order, from memory. The gap between pass one and pass three is the session result.
Read the full method, the return schedule and the research behind it.
Nearby topics
OCR A-Level Computer Science Active Recall Guide
Every topic, not just this one. 1,549 questions with their answers.