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SOFTWARE
ESTIMATION TECHNIQUES.
LECTURE # 5
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Estimation of any project is HARD…!!!

WHY….???
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 Because the only time you know precisely how long it takes to
complete a project is when it’s done. Up to the point of delivery,
teams use educated guesswork to predict the future. Bigger and
more complex a project is, the more expert opinion you need to
predict. Faulty estimates mean missing deadlines and breaking
budgets are the two of the main symptoms of project failure.
 Being a skilled estimator is a crucial part of setting schedules, establishing 5
budgets, managing resources and running a thriving team and business. Knowing
the size of the software to be developed and an understanding of the complexity
involved in developing the same, the planner needs to produce an estimate of the
effort that would be involved.

There are a number of estimation methodologies to choose from and here we’re
going to look few tried-and-trusted ones that work for most types of projects.

1. Expert judgment
2. Comparative or analogous estimation
3. Bottom-up
4. Top Down
5. Algorthmic Methods
EXPERT JUDGMENT 6

This is probably the most common way people get a project

estimation. Talk to the men and women with the best hands-
on experience and understanding of the project requirements.
Just make sure that everyone has the same understanding of
what needs to be delivered. And try to find experts who will
actually be working on the project.

The expert is able to factor in differences between the past

projects and the existing one, and the new techniques
involved in the new project.
COMPARATIVE OR ANALOGOUS 7

ESTIMATION
 If your current project is similar to past ones, take the data from
previous work and extrapolate it to provide your estimates for the
new job.

 The new requirement may be compared to an old/completed project

to understand the similarities and differences.

 Before proceeding, make sure to check whether those projects were

successful.
BOTTOM UP 8

 This method uses a detailed work breakdown structure, and is best

for projects you’re committed to. Each task is estimated
individually, and then those estimates are rolled up to give the
higher-level numbers. This process makes you think about what’s
required in order to take a step back to see if the big picture still
makes sense. You’ll receive more accurate results this method, but
it’s also a greater investment of time.
TOP DOWN 9

 Using a high-level work breakdown structure and data from

previous projects, you can add estimates for each project work item
to determine the overall effort and cost.
ALGORTHMIC TECHNIQUE 10

 These models provide one or more mathematical algorithms, which

produce software cost estimate as a function of the number of cost
drivers.
 COCOMO that we will be learning later is an example.
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Thank you…

Questions….??? If Any…