Table of contents
- Agile Software Projects
- Professor(s)
- Topics covered
- Assessment
- Final deliverables instructions (coursework 2)
- Module specification
- Past exams
- Syllabus
- Resources
Note: Agile Software Projects CM2020, will be withdrawn in October 2026. If you wish to study Agile Software Projects and have not yet registered on this module, your last opportunity to study this module will be in the October 2024 session. The final assessment retake opportunity for this module will be October 2026. The Professional Practice for Computer Scientists module will be introduced in place of Agile Software Projects CM2020 and will run for the first time in April 2025.
Agile Software Projects
This module aims to provide insights and practice in software development using contemporary methods to produce software that meets the needs of users and supports an organisation’s business function. The module will enable you to gain competence in the conceptualisation of a technology-based solution to a real-world problem, fulfilling the requirements of users and taking constraints imposed by the prevailing and foreseen market conditions and lessons learned from prototypes into account. You will then be given the opportunity to present a proposal for a technical project including a structured plan for implementing the solution using the agile development methodology and test driven development practices. During the whole process from concept to solution presentation, you will be required to work in a distributed team using online collaboration, project tracking and version control tools.
Professor(s)
- Dr. Sean McGrath
Topics covered
- Project management & team working
- Requirements gathering & specification
- Market & solutions research
- User centred design & prototyping
- Project proposal
- Agile software development methodologies
- Test driven software development
- Software validation & user testing
- Professional practices
- Software documentation
Assessment
Coursework only (Type III)
Final deliverables instructions (coursework 2)
Module specification
Past exams
Syllabus
Resources
Complementary learning
- Dark Patterns - “Dark Patterns are tricks used in websites and apps that make you do things that you didn’t mean to, like buying or signing up for something.”
- Manifesto for Agile Software Development
Notes
Textbooks listed for this module
- J. Preece, Y. Rogers and H. Sharp (2011), Interaction Design: Beyond Human-Computer Interaction, John Wiley & Sons
- D. Norman, 2013, The Design of Everyday Things, MIT Press
- Rob Cole and Edward Scotcher. Brilliant Agile Project Management. Pearson 2016
Further reading recommended in Interaction Design: Beyond Human-Computer Interaction, John Wiley & Sons
- COOPER, A., REIMANN, R., CRONIN, D. AND NOESSEL, C. (2014) About Face: The Essentials of Interaction Design (4th ed.). John Wiley & Sons Inc. “This fourth edition of About Face provides an updated overview of what is involved in interaction design, and it is written in a personable style that appeals to practitioners and students alike.”
- GARRETT, J. J. (2010) The Elements of User Experience: User-Centered Design for the Web and Beyond (2nd ed.). New Riders Press. “This is the second edition of the popular coffee- table introductory book to interaction design. It focuses on how to ask the right questions when designing for a user experience. It emphasizes the importance of understanding how products work on the outside, that is, when a person comes into contact with those products and tries to work with them. It also considers a business perspective.”
- LIDWELL, W., HOLDEN, K. AND BUTLER, J. (2010) Revised and Updated: 125 Ways to Enhance Usability, Influence Perception, Increase Appeal, Make Better Design Decisions and Teach Through Design. Rockport Publishers, Inc. “This book presents classic design principles such as consistency, accessibility, and visibility in addition to some lesser-known ones, such as constancy, chunking, and symmetry. They are alphabetically ordered (for easy reference) with a diversity of examples to illustrate how they work and can be used.”
- NORMAN, D.A. (2013) The Design of Everyday Things: Revised and Expanded Edition. MIT Press. “This book was first published in 1988 and became an international best seller, introducing the world of technology to the importance of design and psychology. It covers the design of everyday things, such as refrigerators and thermostats, providing much food for thought in relation to how to design interfaces. This latest edition is comprehensively revised showing how principles from psychology apply to a diversity of old and new technologies. The book is highly accessible with many illustrative examples.”
- SAFFER, D. (2014) Microinteractions: Designing with Details. O’Reilly. “This highly accessible book provides many examples of the small things in interaction design that make a big difference between a pleasant experience and a nightmare one. Dan Saffer describes how to design them to be efficient, understandable, and enjoyable user actions. He goes into detail about their structure and the different kinds, including many examples with lots of illustrations. The book is a joy to dip into and enables you to understand right away why and how it is important to get the micro-interactions right.”