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| Criterion |  Architecture Architecture Decision Record |  Product Discovery MVP Test Matrix |  Architecture ARID (Active Reviews for Intermediate Designs) |
|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | An ADR permanently records an architecture decision with context, trade-offs, and consequence. It creates continuity for later changes because the decision path stays traceable. | When several minimal variants compete to answer the same question, it makes comparing and choosing between them cleaner. It separates problem, assumption, solution, and evidence. The result is captured as a Test Matrix and a Test Plan. | ARID examines how well developers can work with a technical design. It focuses on a part of the system that can still be revised, between the architecture overview and the detailed specification. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Medium | Medium |
Timedifferent | 15-45 min | 45-75 min | 2–4 h review as a planning range; preparation and evaluation additional |
Participantsdifferent | 1-3 | 2-8 | Designers, developers as users, and facilitation |
Formatdifferent | Async | Workshop | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | ADR File, Decision Log, Rationale | Test Matrix, Test Plan | Prioritized development tasks, Jointly produced code or pseudocode, Observed difficulties and open design questions, Proposed design revisions |
Tagsno overlap | ArchitectureRationaleDocumentationGovernance | ExperimentsValidationDiscoveryOptions | ArchitectureEngineeringFeedbackValidationTasks |
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