🚀 go-pugleaf

On 31 May 1997 11:19:00 -0700, mrcope@primenet.com (Mike Copeland)
wrote:

>> hello, I was wondering if anyone could answer this question I have.
>> 
>> How would you describe the iterative nature of the software development
>> life cycle.
>
>   Depending on how deeply you want to go into the S/D process, it's an 
>iterative process throughout the entire Life Cycle of the 
>product/application.  I see it as something like:
>
>  repeat
>    plan application/change
>    design application/change
>    implement application/change
>    test & debug application/change
>    document & distribute application/change
>    (receive error reports from users)
>  until end_of_product_life
>
>where each step that's performed is done for whatever the "work product" 
>is - a new application, an enhancement, an error fix, etc.  At some 
>point, the base product achieves "end of life" (however that's decided, 
>by whomever), and the process stops.  But each of the above steps 
>applies, to some degree, to whatever work is done on the product - so 
>therefore I see many iterations for successful software products.  8<}}

If, as I suspect, you mean the mathematical process for the solution
of equations, this is simply the technique that goes:-

	Guess an answer
	Plug it into your equation
	See if it gives a close approximation to a correct answer
	Make a better informed guess
	Go round the loop again until the answer is sufficiently close

	for your purposes.

There are formal methods for making this quicker. The Newton-Raphson
one comes to mind.