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| Criterion | ![]() Decision Making Delphi Method | ![]() Architecture Architecture Decision Record | ![]() Architecture Views and Beyond | ![]() Architecture arc42 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When knowledge is distributed and direct dominance should be avoided, groups quickly fall under the sway of their opinion leaders. The Delphi Method gathers assessments iteratively and gradually brings expert judgments closer together. | 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. | Views and Beyond organizes architecture into several views so no single diagram has to do everything at once. This makes it possible to choose the representation that fits the stakeholder's question. | arc42 structures architecture knowledge so teams can document system, decisions, and risks consistently. The template builds a living understanding of the architecture instead of scattered notes. |
Complexitydifferent | High | Low | Medium | Low |
Timedifferent | 1-4 Wochen | 15-45 min | 1-3 Tage | 1-2 Tage |
Participantsdifferent | 6-30 Experten | 1-3 | 1-4 | 1-4 |
Formatdifferent | Async | Async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Expert Forecast, Consensus Range, Assumption Notes | ADR File, Decision Log, Rationale | Architecture Views, Cross-view Notes, Rationale | Architecture Document, Context View, Runtime View, Deployment View |
Tagsno overlap | ForecastingExpertsDecisionStrategy | ArchitectureRationaleDocumentationGovernance | DocumentationStakeholdersArchitecture | ArchitectureDocumentationCommunication |



