Comments on: Are scenarios just requirement specifications? http://blog.anderstoxboe.com/archives/are-scenarios-just-requirement-specifications/ A frequent spill from the world of Anders Toxboe Fri, 05 Dec 2008 00:48:06 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.1 By: David Heinemeier Hansson http://blog.anderstoxboe.com/archives/are-scenarios-just-requirement-specifications/#comment-3 David Heinemeier Hansson Wed, 14 Sep 2005 15:36:09 +0000 http://blog.anderstoxboe.com/archives/are-scenarios-just-requirement-specifications/#comment-3 This relies on the assumption that textual descriptions of functionality is a reasonable approach to discovering valuable software. And I don't think that's true. Customers don't know what they want before they see it. Developers don't know how to implement it before they do it. Attempting to describe a complete system through a textual document is an expensive way to postpone inevitable failure. This relies on the assumption that textual descriptions of functionality is a reasonable approach to discovering valuable software. And I don’t think that’s true. Customers don’t know what they want before they see it. Developers don’t know how to implement it before they do it.

Attempting to describe a complete system through a textual document is an expensive way to postpone inevitable failure.

]]> By: Anders Toxboe http://blog.anderstoxboe.com/archives/are-scenarios-just-requirement-specifications/#comment-4 Anders Toxboe Thu, 15 Sep 2005 09:29:24 +0000 http://blog.anderstoxboe.com/archives/are-scenarios-just-requirement-specifications/#comment-4 This so-called _soft prototype_ is not meant to be of a complete system from my point of view - but more of something like a "spike":http://www.extremeprogramming.org/rules/spike.html as in XP. If you have a difficult interface problem, scenarios _might_ be a good tool to explore possible solutions. Of course you would have to do a cost-benefit analysis of whether it is faster and less expensive to just make a quick-and-dirty empty shell (be it a HTML page or a app shell) without any functionality working, than it is to use the whole toolbox of personas and scenarios. The whole point of using personas (not scenarios) should be that all parties involved know the personas so well, that they all can instantly imagine the same scenarios with the persona in question. If you look at it in this way, the use of written scenarios aren't really that important. I agree with you that customer's don't know what they want before they see it and developers don't know how to implement it before they do it. But I believe that there are _some_ good stuff to use from the UCD world in getting closer to what the customer wants first try than without. I guess the ultimate question from my side is whether there is something called "user experience" - and if it is possible to design a uniform and well-thought-out user-experience across the application without the use of UCD? Note the title of the post... I am not sure about whether scenarios are actual useful tools or just another requirement document to add that nobody reads. This so-called soft prototype is not meant to be of a complete system from my point of view – but more of something like a spike as in XP.
If you have a difficult interface problem, scenarios might be a good tool to explore possible solutions. Of course you would have to do a cost-benefit analysis of whether it is faster and less expensive to just make a quick-and-dirty empty shell (be it a HTML page or a app shell) without any functionality working, than it is to use the whole toolbox of personas and scenarios.

The whole point of using personas (not scenarios) should be that all parties involved know the personas so well, that they all can instantly imagine the same scenarios with the persona in question. If you look at it in this way, the use of written scenarios aren’t really that important.

I agree with you that customer’s don’t know what they want before they see it and developers don’t know how to implement it before they do it. But I believe that there are some good stuff to use from the UCD world in getting closer to what the customer wants first try than without.

I guess the ultimate question from my side is whether there is something called “user experience” – and if it is possible to design a uniform and well-thought-out user-experience across the application without the use of UCD?
Note the title of the post… I am not sure about whether scenarios are actual useful tools or just another requirement document to add that nobody reads.

]]>