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| Criterion |  Decision Making Trade-off Analysis |  Decision Making Risk Matrix |  Architecture arc42 |  Architecture LASR (Lightweight Approach for Software Reviews) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | With limited resources, quality, speed, cost, and risk almost always compete with each other. Trade-off Analysis makes these tensions explicit and prevents decisions from producing hidden side effects. | When a project faces many possible disruptions, it quickly becomes unclear which risks deserve attention first. It separates options, evaluation criteria, and open risks. The result is captured as a Risk Matrix and a Top Risk List. | 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. | 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. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Low | Low | Medium |
Timedifferent | 45-120 min | 30-60 min | 1-2 Tage | 3–4 h for initial assessment; preparation and deeper analysis additional |
Participantsdifferent | 2-8 | 3-10 | 1-4 | 1 or a small team; particularly suitable for 3–4 people |
Formatsame | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Trade-off Matrix, Criteria List, Decision Rationale, Accepted Downsides | Risk Matrix, Top Risk List | Architecture Document, Context View, Runtime View, Deployment View | Lean 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 checks |
Tagsno overlap | TradeoffsDecisionCriteriaOptions | RiskDecisionPrioritizationAssessment | ArchitectureDocumentationCommunication | ArchitectureQualityRiskAssessmentLean |