Iterative Rapid Application Development Methods

USoft Approach follows an iterative approach with the following characteristics:

·	The phases are open; you may go back to an earlier stage because each (sub)phase focuses on a different aspect.

·	Each phase has its initial global targets.

The term iteration refers to taking a step backwards for improvements. This can be within a phase (for instance as a result of prototyping), or between phases.

The main advantage is that it is easier to change specifications because every phase in the development process has another topic as its subject. Of course there are ripple effects because of functional relationships between different aspects (like the relationship between data structure and rule definition) but USoft Developer minimizes the consequences.

In linear methods an aspect is modeled in every phase, but the level of detail differs per phase. A change has a double ripple effect because of relationships between the different aspects and because of the fact that every aspects is modeled in more detail in each and every phase. The only way to avoid these effects is to close and sign off every phase.

The phases of USoft Approach and the global flow are illustrated below:

The contents of each step are given below, with a description of the result per phase.