Over the years we have identified quite a number of standard types of smart use cases, describing frequently appearing requirements, such as "we need a page to modify a customers properties" (Manage) or "we want to be able to select a CD given the name of the artist or the name of the album" (Search). These standard types can be modeled in UML modeling tools using the use case stereotype.
A default complexity in smart use case points is assigned to each of the stereotypes, based on experience in past projects. This measure of complexity is used in doing
Smart Estimation.
Front end
- Simple Select (1 - Piece of Cake). A use case for selecting a single item from a list of items of a business class.
- Select (2 - Moderate). A use case for selecting a single item from a list of business objects from one class, with some added functionality, such filtering on property values of the business object.
- Multi Select (3 - Average). Use case to select multiple instances from a list, with some added functionality, such filtering on property values of the business object.
- Search (3 - Average). A use case for selecting an single instance of a business object from a list. Search arguments may be use to filter the list.
- Extended Search (4 - Hard). A use case for selecting an single instance of a business class from a list. Search arguments may be use to filter the list. The use case contains additional functionality, such as displaying properties from associated business entities, or filtering items from the list, based on authorisation.
- Manage (3 - Average). A use case that manages maintenance for a single item of a business class. This use case contains additional functionality, such as business rules, comparisons, authorization.
- Define (3 - Average). The same as a Manage use case, but without database access.
- List Detail (4 - Hard). Use case that contains a list of items from a business class and that manages a single instance selected from this list.
- Master detail (4 - Hard). Use case that manages a single item from a business class and a list of items from an associated business class, such as order-orderline.
Reporting
- Simple View (2 - Moderate). A use case that shows a single item of a business entity. This use case contains no complex functionality, such a business rules, comparisons, authorisation.
- View (4 - Hard). Use case where an item is viewed, for instance overview of your order, or your new subscription. In most cases, actions can be performed from this use case, such as finalisation of your order, or adding items to a shopping cart. In most use cases several items are displayed.
- Report (4 - Hard). Use case representing a regular report, over one or several business entities.
- Extended Report (5 - Very difficult). Use case representing a complex report, over several business entities, for instance with totals and calculations.
- Graph Report (8 - Extreme, but known). A use case that represents a report over one or more business entities, and containing one or more graphs.
Services
File Handling¶
- File Import (8 - Extreme, but known). A use case that implements reading data from (flat) files, such as XML documents or spread sheets. Possibly split. Look for different types of items to read.
- File Export (10 - Extreme and unknown). A use case that writes to a (flat) file, such as XML documents or spread sheets. Possibly split. Look for different types of items to write.
Business inteligence
For business intelligence projects we add a number of specific smart use case types, that largely deal with the ETL process. See also
standard types of smart use cases in BI projects.
- Collect (5 - Very difficult). Use case that collects data from a source, perform basic checks and prepares the source for staging in.
- Integrate (10 - Extreme and unknown). Use case that integrates data from different sources, perform basic checks and prepares the data for the following layer.
- Aggregate (3 - Average). Use case that aggregates and denormalizes data and performs basic checks to prepare the data for general staging out.
- Calculate (8 - Extreme, but known). Use case that calculates and can create new information based on different rules, applies filters and performs basic checks to prepare the data for the different dependent data marts.
- Present. Use case which complexity is highly dependent on the type of presentation that is required, for instance reporting, graphs, ad-hoc query environment, analysis environment of maybe even the implementation of analytical models.
- Publish (3 - Average). Use case that that is concerned with layout, security and authorization.
Unknown
- Unknown (10 - Extreme and unknown). There are times when we just don't know what a specific use case will look like yet. To be able to identify them anyway, we added the stereotype Unknown, which represents a use case with unknown functionality and complexity. Although this sound ackward, use this type to identify still vague use cases for estimation. Split up (and possibly remove) when the use case becomes less vague.