software design (contd) [this is as with the first entry, a first draft. some of the characterizations may not be in keeping] -------------- There is no right way to begin, nor is there one right design. In the real world, these presumptions of a pre-existing path to our design goal are just adolescent insecurities. [cringe] That said, experience teaches us that some ways of beginning a design are more effective than others. I call these the Heuristics. One of the more valuable Heuristic is that of Stepwise Refinement, the process of dividing a large and largely incomprehensible problem space -- the Inchoate -- into smaller subproblems that are more tractable of solution. In our case, for example, we can subdivide our domain space into Outside (the world) and Inside (our head, if you will). What connects the Outside and Inside is an Interface (in our case, the Modalities). Drawing a picture, which I will call a Schema, should make this less abstract -- see Figure 1.0. [Sorry, i dont know how to insert that.] This represents a first partition of our design space. The words we pick are arbitrary, in some sense. For example, Head could be replaced by Central Nervous System, or Brain. At this point, it is not worth fretting over. We need to get started. As our thinking clarifies, we can always return to our Schema and recalibrate it, so to speak. The important thing is to not become paralyzed by our lack of certainty, or concern that some contemptuous authority is hovering over us examining our efforts and dismissing not just our initial effort but our inherent ability itself. We all encounter people in our lives that we allow to do this to us. [maybe that is too strong and unnecessary] It is useful to redraw our Schema as a tree structure rooted in the Inchoate gestalt of our design space, as pictured in Figure 1.1. This will allow us to introduce a second valuable Heuristic in a way we can more easily wrap our head around: Recursion. When we add Recursion to Stepwise Refinement, we create one of our primary design mechanisms, Recursive Stepwise Refinement, for transforming the Inchoate into the Coherent. Stepwise Refinement partitions a design space into component spaces based on some form of Decomposition. It can represent a Functional Decomposition, such as dividing the Modalities into Touch, Hearing, Vision, Smell (Olfaction), and so on. Or it can represent a Structural Decomposition, such as dividing the World into solids, liquids, gases, and wave energies such as sound and light. Or it can represent a decomposition into more abstract Categories, such as Sensation, Perception, and so on. We will look at all of these strategies of decomposition in the course of our design. (Footnote: please dont become frightened if this all seems incomprehensible. we are, after all, dwelling in the Inchoate, and that can be quite discomforting at first. the important thing, really, is not to despair. I know, easy for me to say! But trust me, one day you will say the same as well.)
Posted on: Thu, 30 Jan 2014 14:51:26 +0000
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