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Criterion
Design sheets and interface cards connect to jointly written pseudocode with highlighted unresolved questions.
Architecture
ARID (Active Reviews for Intermediate Designs)
Paper illustration of an assumption matrix with prioritized test cards
Decision Making
Assumption Surfacing
Four paper stations connect system purpose, quality goals, risk cards and focused investigation with a target and gap profile.
Architecture
LASR (Lightweight Approach for Software Reviews)
Paper illustration for Risk Storming.
Architecture
Risk Storming
Purposedifferent
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.Plans often contain assumptions that were never openly stated and remain dangerous precisely because of that. Assumption Surfacing makes these silent premises visible and prioritizes which of them carry the initiative or could sink it.LASR helps development teams identify where their software falls short of important quality goals and which improvements to consider. A small group with existing system knowledge can make an initial assessment and investigate open questions in more detail.Helps clarify architecture context, options, and consequences in concrete terms. It organizes technical context, alternatives, and consequences. The result is captured as an Annotated Diagram, a Prioritized Risk List, and an Action Backlog.
Complexitydifferent
MediumLowMediumLow
Timedifferent
2–4 h review as a planning range; preparation and evaluation additional45-90 min3–4 h for initial assessment; preparation and deeper analysis additional60-90 min
Participantsdifferent
Designers, developers as users, and facilitation2-81 or a small team; particularly suitable for 3–4 people4-12
Formatdifferent
Workshop + asyncWorkshop + asyncWorkshop + asyncWorkshop
Outputdifferent
Prioritized development tasks, Jointly produced code or pseudocode, Observed difficulties and open design questions, Proposed design revisionsAssumption List, Critical Assumptions, Learning PlanLean Mission Statement describing the software’s purpose, Prioritized quality goals and evaluation criteria, Risks and estimated gaps against quality goals, More closely examined findings and open checksAnnotated Diagram, Prioritized Risk List, Action Backlog
Tagsno overlap
ArchitectureEngineeringFeedbackValidationTasks
AssumptionsRiskDecisionDiscovery
ArchitectureQualityRiskAssessmentLean
RiskArchitectureWorkshopValidation
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