CS 16 SOFTWARE ENGINEERING

Decision Table
It represents conditions and the respective actions to be taken to address them, in a structured
tabular format.
Basic

Structure of a Decision Table

Condition stub lists all the possible conditions associated with that particular problem
Condition entries indicate the outcome of each conditions as either a Yes (Y) or No (N)
Action stub lists all likely actions related to the problem
Action entries marked by X if a particular set of conditions in a column leads to one or more of
the actions
Rule entries identified with a number, each unique combination of conditions leading to a set of
action(s)

Physical Layout of a Typical Decision Table

Condition Stub
Action Stub

Rule Entries
Condition Entries
Action Entries

Data Flow Diagram (DFD)

It is a graphical representation of flow of data in an information system. It is capable of depicting
incoming data flow, outgoing data flow and stored data. The DFD does not mention anything about how
data flows through the system.
There is a prominent difference between DFD and Flowchart. The flowchart depicts flow of control
in program modules. DFDs depict flow of data in the system at various levels. DFD does not contain any
control or branch elements.
DFD Components

Entity
An entity is the source or destination of data. The source in a DFD represents these entities that
are outside the context of the system. Entities either provide data to the system (referred to as a
source) or receive data from it (referred to as a sink). Entities are often represented as rectangles
(a diagonal line across the right-hand corner means that this entity is represented somewhere else
in the DFD). Entities are also referred to as agents, terminators, or source/sink.
Process
The process is the manipulation or work that transforms data, performing computations, making
decisions (logic flow), or directing data flows based on business rules. In other words, a process
receives input and generates some output. Process names (simple verbs and dataflow names, such
as Submit Payment or Get Invoice) usually describe the transformation, which can be
performed by people or machines. Processes can be drawn as circles or a segmented rectangle on
a DFD, and include a process name and process number.
Data Store

CS 16 SOFTWARE ENGINEERING

A data store is where a process stores data between processes for later retrieval by that same
process or another one. Files and tables are considered data stores. Data store names (plural) are
simple but meaningful, such as customers, orders, and products. Data stores are usually
drawn as a rectangle with the righthand side missing and labeled by the name of the data storage
area it represents, though different notations do exist.
Data Flow
Data flow is the movement of data between the entity, the process, and the data store. Data flow
portrays the interface between the components of the DFD. The flow of data in a DFD is named to
reflect the nature of the data used (these names should also be unique within a specific DFD). Data
flow is represented by an arrow, where the arrow is annotated with the data name.

Levels of DFD
Level 0 - Highest abstraction level DFD is known as Level 0 DFD, which depicts the entire
information system as one diagram concealing all the underlying details. Level 0 DFDs are also
known as context level DFDs.
Level 1 - The Level 0 DFD is broken down into more specific, Level 1 DFD. Level 1 DFD depicts
basic modules in the system and flow of data among various modules. Level 1 DFD also mentions
basic processes and sources of information.
Level 2 - At this level, DFD shows how data flows inside the modules mentioned in Level 1.

Data Dictionary (DD)

Data dictionary is the centralized collection of information about data. It stores meaning and origin
of data, its relationship with other data, data format for usage etc. Data dictionary has rigorous definitions
of all names in order to facilitate user and software designers.
Data dictionary is often referenced as meta-data (data about data) repository. It is created along
with DFD model of software program and is expected to be updated whenever DFD is changed or updated.
In recording the data elements, the DD will contain information like:
Data Names
Data Description
Aliases
Data Type
Length
Data Values
Used in
Example:
Data Names
Data Description
Aliases
Data Type
Length
Data Values
Used in

The name of the data item

A brief description of the data item
Is the data name referred by another name?
The data type of the data item
The size of the data item
Permissible values that can be stored
Which process(es) uses it

STOCK_NO
A unique number that identify each stock item
ITEM_NUMBER
Integer
5
10000-99999
Data-entry-proc
Check-stk-no-proc
Update-master-proc