Software engineering

Introduction :-

Software is not a few term for us. "Software" and "Program" are interchangeablyused to denote the set of instructions that make computer work. But there exits some conceptual difference between them. Programs are generally small and can do simple things; for example program to generate Fibonacci series, program to find the square-root of the given number etc. Softwares are packaged programs. So, a software can contain many programs. For example, microsoft word is a software. Similarly; Windows XP, Microsoft Excel, etc are softwares. But in general terms programs and software can be thought of as the same thing. programs are small software and softwares are large-programs.

Software Engineering :-
We all know that engineering is involved in all construction works. We must prepare detailed maps before we make our house and before a road or water supply pipelines are constructed. The engineering approach defines a systematic steps and methods of doing something such that the desired things are constructed correctly.
We may not know that softwares are also engineered. There is a special field of computer studies called software enginnering. This is relatively a new field of studies as compared to other engineering subjects. Software engineering defies the systematic and scientific approach of developing a software.
Software engineering has defied several approaches of developing a software which known as software development models. Following are some of the models suggested by the software enginneering.
a. Water fall model of software development
b. Prototyping model of software development
c. Spiral model of software development

May what be the model of software development we use, one thing common in all is that, they view software development as a life-cycle model. The word life-cycle denotes that software development is cyclic and iterative. It never ends. The steps we follow in software development iteratively are called steps of software development life cycle.