Tim said:
In my opinion, there are so many possible designs for a project, even
small up to a class. How can I know which one is better? Is there any
important point I should consider in the design? What I should do
first for a large project? Design the whole system? or Start a small
workable version and then expand?
I am not really sure what book to recommend, there are so many. But
one thing for sure: you need a good book on designing software systems.
To answer your question directly: the best design is (a) simple,
(b) extendable, (c) scalable, (d) maintainable, (e) ... You get the
idea. Of course it has to reflect the model it's supposed to
represent (it's kind of useless to have all the scalability and
maintainability in the world, if your system doesn't do what it's
intended to do). Now, how to achieve those things is what you want
to learn. And it's not just software that needs those things in its
design. Any engineering product is supposed to fit the description
to some degree. Nobody says you need an extendable *shovel*. Most
likely it will not be as extendable as some designs in the software
field nowadays. But if you think of it, simplicity, ability to come
in different sizes, be made from different materials, etc., can be
pretty important in a shovel... I digress.
You need to start a library of good books in the field you want to
dedicate yourself to. I assume you already have some C++ books.
Check out 'comp.software-eng' newsgroup and ask about books they
recommend for taking your knowledge about software design to the
next level. Or you could simply search on the Web, I bet you are
not the only person concering themselves with "what makes a good
design".
Good luck!
V
