Abstract

This paper presents an approach to writing specifications for parts of software systems. The main goal is to provide specifications sufficiently precise and complete that other pieces of software can be written to interact with the piece specified without additional information. The secondary goal is to include in the specification no more information than necessary to meet the first goal. The technique is illustrated by means of a variety of examples from a tutorial system.

Keywords

Computer scienceVariety (cybernetics)Software engineeringSoftwareSoftware requirements specificationProgramming languageFormal specificationSoftware developmentSoftware constructionArtificial intelligence

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Publication Info

Year
1972
Type
article
Volume
15
Issue
5
Pages
330-336
Citations
737
Access
Closed

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David Lorge Parnas (1972). A technique for software module specification with examples. Communications of the ACM , 15 (5) , 330-336. https://doi.org/10.1145/355602.361309

Identifiers

DOI
10.1145/355602.361309