Professional Software Development

Professional software is built for organizations, customers, or the public. It must be reliable, maintainable, documented, and able to evolve over time. Unlike personal scripts or hobby projects, professional systems often support critical business operations.

Which statement best describes professional software development?

Many people think of software as just the program code. In reality, professional software products include multiple components that allow the system to be installed, configured, used, and maintained.

Which of the following must be included in a complete software product?

Software companies build two broad categories of products. Some are sold to a wide market (like office suites), while others are built specifically for one customer (like a hospital management system).

Which statement correctly distinguishes generic and customized software products?

High-quality software must satisfy users, operate reliably, and be efficient. These attributes determine whether a system is usable and maintainable in the long term.

Which of the following is an attribute of good software?

Professional software must satisfy several quality attributes to be considered successful. These attributes ensure that the system is dependable and usable in real-world environments.

Select all attributes of good software.

All software processes—whether agile, plan-driven, or hybrid—include four fundamental activities that guide the creation and evolution of a system.

Sort the following activities in the correct order.

Software engineering addresses several fundamental questions about what software is, what makes it good, and how it should be built.

Match each question with its correct answer category.

Software engineering addresses several fundamental questions about what software is, what makes it good, and how it should be built.

Match each question with its correct answer category.

A complete software product includes several components that work together to deliver functionality to users.

Which component is required for correct operation of the software?

Professional software is rarely built by a single person. Teams collaborate to design, implement, test, and maintain systems.

Fill in the missing word: Professional software is usually developed by 1($) rather than individuals.

Software built specifically for a single customer is often referred to using a traditional term from British engineering.

Fill in the missing word: Customized software is also known as ______ software.

Software built specifically for a single customer is often referred to using a traditional term from British engineering.

Fill in the missing word: Customized software is also known as ______ software.

Software projects involve many cost components: design, coding, testing, deployment, and maintenance. In many projects, development costs represent a significant portion of the total.

Roughly what percentage of software costs are development costs?

Testing is a major part of software engineering because it ensures the system behaves correctly and safely.

What percentage of software costs are typically testing costs?

After a system is delivered, it must be updated to fix bugs, support new requirements, and adapt to changing environments. These updates can be expensive.

For custom software, which cost often exceeds development cost?

Generic software products—such as spreadsheets or photo editors—are built for a broad market. Their features are determined by the company that develops them.

Who controls the specification of a generic software product?

Customized (bespoke) software is built for a specific client, such as a hospital or government agency.

Who controls the specification of a customized software product?

Different software products serve different markets. Some are mass‑market, while others are built for a single organization.

Match each product type with its example.

Different software products serve different markets. Some are mass‑market, while others are built for a single organization.

Match each product type with its example.

The diagram compares two categories of software products.

Which product type is sold on the open market?

Professional software must evolve after deployment to fix bugs, support new requirements, and adapt to new environments.

Fill in the missing word: Professional software must be 1($) and changed throughout its life.