Methods & tools: design methodology and design practice

Abstract

For several decades, the field of design methodology has addressed design processes, epistemological considerations, and work practices in the design disciplines [2, 10, 11, 13]. There are good reasons for considering the development of software as a design discipline [7, 14]. Design methodology as a general field has developed across disciplines, primarily architecture, engineering design, and industrial design. This body of knowledge is not well known in our discipline but appears to be highly relevant. In this article, we introduce a number of design methods from other design disciplines and the literature on design methodology. We hope that they will prove useful for software designers.