The Distributed Development Environment

Addressed to practising systems analysts and software engineers, this book provides an idea of the range of CASE tools available, their capabilities and limitations and, in particular, how they relate to current developments methodologies such as SSADM (Structured System and Design Methodology). Computer-aided Software Engineering (CASE) is a technology that has to date promised a good deal more than it has delivered - certainly to professsionals working in the mainstream of commercial software design and development. However, all the indications are that CASE is now at long last poised to realize its potential. The text gives information as to the technology's capabilities and limitations and, in particular, how they relate to current development methodologies such as SSADM (Structured Systems Analysis and Design Methodology). Of crucial importance is the question of how CASE tools, which have mostly been designed for PCs or workstations, can be applied in the kind of distributed development environment required for main frame applications.
It is also questionable whether tools written for specific hardware and designed to assist with one stage of the software life cycle can be integrated into larger systems. These and other issues are addressed by a distinguished range of contributors who not only describe what is, in principle, possible but also provide first-hand accounts of how the use of CASE is already delivering practical and qualifiable benefits in their own companies.