Alistair Cockburn
Encyclopedia
Alistair Cockburn is one of the initiators of the agile
movement in software development, helping write the
Manifesto for Agile Software Development in 2001 and the agile PM Declaration of Interdependence
in 2005. He is a principal expositor of the use case
for documenting business processes and behavioral requirements for software, and inventor of the Cockburn Scale
for categorizing software projects.
The methodologies in the Crystal family (e.g., Crystal Clear
), described by Alistair Cockburn, are considered examples of lightweight methodology
. The Crystal family is colour-coded to signify the "weight" of methodology needed. Thus, a large project which has consequences that involve risk to human life would use the Crystal Sapphire or Crystal Diamond methods. A small project might use Crystal Clear, Crystal Yellow or Crystal Orange.
Cockburn received his PhD
degree from the University of Oslo
in 2003.
Agile software development
Agile software development is a group of software development methodologies based on iterative and incremental development, where requirements and solutions evolve through collaboration between self-organizing, cross-functional teams...
movement in software development, helping write the
Manifesto for Agile Software Development in 2001 and the agile PM Declaration of Interdependence
PM Declaration of Interdependence
The PM Declaration of interdependence is a set of six management principles initially intended for project managers of Agile Software Development projects...
in 2005. He is a principal expositor of the use case
Use case
In software engineering and systems engineering, a use case is a description of steps or actions between a user and a software system which leads the user towards something useful...
for documenting business processes and behavioral requirements for software, and inventor of the Cockburn Scale
Cockburn Scale
The Cockburn Scale, also known as the Project Classification Scale, is a method of describing how much formal process a software project requires. The scale was described in Alistair Cockburn's book Agile Software Development...
for categorizing software projects.
The methodologies in the Crystal family (e.g., Crystal Clear
Crystal Clear (software development)
Crystal Clear is a member of the Crystal family of methodologies as described by Alistair Cockburn and is considered an example of an agile or lightweight methodology....
), described by Alistair Cockburn, are considered examples of lightweight methodology
Lightweight methodology
A lightweight methodology is a software development methodology which has only a few rules and practices or ones which are easy to follow. In contrast, a complex methodology with many rules is considered a "heavyweight methodology"....
. The Crystal family is colour-coded to signify the "weight" of methodology needed. Thus, a large project which has consequences that involve risk to human life would use the Crystal Sapphire or Crystal Diamond methods. A small project might use Crystal Clear, Crystal Yellow or Crystal Orange.
Cockburn received his PhD
PHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
degree from the University of Oslo
University of Oslo
The University of Oslo , formerly The Royal Frederick University , is the oldest and largest university in Norway, situated in the Norwegian capital of Oslo. The university was founded in 1811 and was modelled after the recently established University of Berlin...
in 2003.
Publications
- Agile Software Development: The Cooperative Game, Alistair Cockburn, 2nd edition, October 2006, pages 504, paperback, Addison-Wesley Professional, ISBN 0-321-48275-1, ISBN 978-0-321-48275-4 .
- Crystal Clear : A Human-Powered Methodology for Small Teams, Alistair Cockburn, October 2004, pages 336, paperback, Addison-Wesley Professional, ISBN 0-201-69947-8.
- People and Methodologies in Software Development, Alistair Cockburn, February 2003, pages 180, paperback, D.Ph. dissertation, U. of Oslo Press, online at http://alistair.cockburn.us/index.php/People_and_methodologies_in_software_development.
- Patterns for Effective Use Cases, Steve Adolph, Paul Bramble, with Alistair Cockburn, Andy Pols contributors, August 2002, pages 272, paperback, Addison-Wesley Professional, ISBN 0-201-72184-8.
- Agile Software Development, Alistair Cockburn, 1st edition, December 2001, pages 256, paperback, Addison-Wesley Professional, ISBN 0-201-69969-9.
- Writing Effective Use Cases, Alistair Cockburn, 1st edition, January, 2000, pages 270, paperback, Addison-Wesley Professional, ISBN 0-201-70225-8.
- Surviving Object-Oriented Projects, Alistair Cockburn, 1st edition, December, 1997, pages 272, paperback, Addison-Wesley Professional, ISBN 0-201-49834-0.