Agile Methodology
The Agile Process or software development refers to a set of software development methods that are based on iterative development. In this process, the solutions and requirements both evolve mutual collaboration between cross functional teams. These teams are self-organizing in nature.
The Agile software development approach generally promotes a regimented kind of project management process which encourages:
- Frequent adaptation and inspection
- Self-organization and accountability
- A leadership philosophy which promotes teamwork
- A business approach which bring into line the development with consumer needs and corporation objectives
- Along with a group of greatest engineering practices having an intention to allow for rapid delivery of good-quality software.
Extreme Programming (XP)
It’s a software development methodology with an intention to improve software responsiveness and high quality to the volatile requirements of consumers. Becoming a kind of Agile procedure, it promotes frequent releases in little development cycles. This introduces checkpoints and improves the productivity in a way that the new requirements from customers may be adopted.
The positive aspects of Extreme Programming are:
- Unit testing of all code
- Avoiding programming of features until needed
- Programming in pairs or carrying out extensive code review
- Clarity and simplicity in code
- Volatile customer requirements better understood
- A flag management structure
- Frequent communication between the programmers and even with the consumer
The drawbacks of Extreme Programming are:
- No documented compromises of user conflicts
- Unstable requirements
- Lack of overall design document or specification
- Incorporates inadequate software design
- Necessitates meetings at recurrent intervals at massive expense to consumers
- Can enlarge the risk of scope creep due to the lack of thorough requirements documentation
- Calls for excess of cultural change to adopt
Scrum
Scrum is an incremental, iterative framework for agile software development and project management. The word “Scrum” is not actually an acronym. Even so, many companies making use of this methodology spell it with capital letters. Initially Scrum methodology was focused for management of software development projects, but in recent times it can be used to run general program/project management approach or software maintenance teams. Scrum, which contains sets of predefined roles and practices, is often a procedure skeleton. Major roles in this method are:
- Product Owner – Represents Stakeholders
- Scrum Master – The one responsible for maintaining the processes
- Team – A cross functional group of about 6-8 people who do actual design, testing, implementation, etc.
Each of the iteration is referred to as a “sprint”, typical time frame for which is usually about two to four weeks. The length of every sprint is decided by the team. The product “backlog” pushes the set of features into a spring. These capabilities are prioritized set of higher level requirements for the job to be carried out. Based on this product “backlog”, the team determines how numerous of the items might be completed inside the next sprint. When the sprint begins, nobody is allowed to alter the sprint backlog, which indicates that the set of requirements are frozen. On effective completion of a sprint, the team demonstrates the usage of that particular software.
This methodology should be encouraged in organizations considering that the main benefit of making use of the Scrum is that it enables the creation of teams which are extremely self-organizing in nature. This is achieved by encouraging verbal communication amongst the team members, co-location of all the team members and disciplines that are involved for the project.
Differences between Scrum and Extreme Programming (XP):
- The time span for iterative sprints is diverse in both approaches.
- Adjustments are not allowed by the Scrum teams during their sprints. Whereas Extreme Programming teams have to be a lot more agreeable to adjustments.
- Work is completed by XP teams in strict priority order. Whereas in case of Scrum, the product owner prioritizes the set of activities.
- XP does prescribe some engineering practices; Scrum doesn’t.