Software Engineering Glossary

Software Engineering Glossary

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RAM	An acronym for random-access memory, a temporary storage area that can be read from or written to by the computer or other devices. Information stored in RAM is lost when you turn off the computer.
random failure	A failure whose occurrence is unpredictable except in a probabilistic or statistical sense. See also: intermittent fault; transient error.
rapid prototyping	A type of prototyping in which emphasis is placed on developing prototypes early in the development process to permit early feedback and analysis in support of the development process. Contrast, with: waterfall model. See also: data structure-centered design; incremental development; input-process-output; modular decomposition; object-oriented design; spiral model; stepwise refinement; structured design; transaction analysis; transform analysis.
read	To access data from a storage device or data medium. See also: destructive read; nondestructive read. Contrast with: write.
real address	The address of a storage location in the main storage part of a virtual storage system. Contrast with: virtual address.
real storage	The main storage portion of a virtual storage system. Contrast with: virtual storage.
real time	Pertaining to a system or mode of operation in which computation is performed during the actual time that an external process occurs, in order that the computation results can be used to control, monitor, or respond in a timely manner to the external process. Contrast with: batch. See also: conversational; interactive; interrupt; on-line.
real type	A data type whose members can assume real numbers as values and can be operated on by real number arithmetic operations, such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and square root. Contrast with: character type; enumeration type; integer type; logical type.
record	A set of related data items treated as a unit For example, in stock control, the data for each invoice could constitute one record.
recovery	The restoration of a system, program, database, or other system resource to a state in which it can perform required functions. See also: backward recovery; checkpoint; forward recovery.
recursion	A process in which a software module calls itself. See also: simultaneous recursion. The process of defining or generating a process or data structure in terms of itself.
recursive	Pertaining to a software module that calls itself. Pertaining to a process or data structure that is defined or generated in terms of itself.
reduce	To change a window to an icon by using the Minimize button or the Minimize command. An application that is reduced continues to run, and you can select the icon to make it the active application.
redundancy	In fault tolerance, the presence of auxiliary components in a system to perform the same or similar functions as other elements for the purpose of preventing or recovering from failures. See also: active redundancy; diversity; homogeneous redundancy; standby redundancy.
reenterable	See: reentrant.
reentrant	Pertaining to a software module that can be entered as part of one process while also in execution as part of another process and still achieve the desired results. Syn: reenterable.
reentry point	The place in a software module at which the module is reentered following a call to another module.
regression testing	Selective retesting of a system or component to verify that modifications have not caused unintended effects and that the system or component still complies with its specified requirements.
relative address	An address that must be adjusted by the addition of an offset to determine the address of the storage location to be accessed. Contrast with: absolute address. See also: base address; indexed address; self-relative address.
relative loader	See: relocating loader.
reliability	The ability of a system or component to perform its required functions under stated conditions for a specified period of time. See also: availability; MTBF.
reliability growth	The improvement in reliability that results from correction of faults.
relocatable	Pertaining to code that can be loaded into any part of main memory. The starting address is established by the loader, which then adjusts the addresses in the code to reflect the storage locations into which the code has been loaded. See also: relocating loader.
relocatable address	An address that is to be adjusted by the loader when the computer program containing the address is loaded into memory. Contrast with: absolute address.
relocatable code	Code containing addresses that are to be adjusted by the loader to reflect the storage locations into which the code is loaded. Contrast with: absolute code.
relocate	To move machine code from one portion of main memory to another and to adjust the addresses so that the code can be executed in its new location.
relocating assembler	An assembler that produces relocatable code. Contrast with: absolute assembler.
relocating loader	A loader that reads relocatable code into main memory and adjusts the addresses in the code to reflect the storage locations into which the code has been loaded. Syn: relative loader. Contrast with: absolute loader.
relocation dictionary	The part of an object module or load module that identifies the addresses that must be adjusted when a relocation occurs.
relocation factor	See: offset (1).
remote batch entry	See: remote job entry.
remote job entry (RJE)	Submission of jobs through a remote input device connected to a computer through a data link. Syn: remote batch entry.
repeatability	See: test repeatability.
repeatable level	See: maturity level.
repetitive addressing	A method of implied addressing in which the operation field of a computer instruction is understood to address the operands of the last instruction executed. Contrast with: one-ahead addressing.
replay	See: reversible execution.
report standard	A standard that describes the characteristics of describing results of engineering and management activities.
representation standard	A standard that describes the characteristics of portraying aspects of an engineering or management product.
required training	Training designated by an organization to be required to perform a specific role.
requirement	A condition or capability needed by a user to solve a problem or achieve an objective. A condition or capability that must be met or possessed by a system or system component to satisfy a contract, standard, specification, or other formally imposed documents. A documented representation of a condition or capability as in (1) or (2). See also: design requirement; functional requirement; implementation requirement; interface requirement; performance requirement; physical requirement.
requirement standard	A standard that describes the characteristics of a requirements specification.
requirements analysis	The process of studying user needs to arrive at a definition of system, hardware, or software requirements. The process of studying and refining system, hardware, or software requirements.
requirements phase	The period of time in the software life cycle during which the requirements for a software product are defined and documented.
requirements review	A process or meeting during which the requirements for a system, hardware item, or software item are presented to project personnel, managers, users, customers, or other interested parties for comment or approval. Types include system requirements review, software requirements review. Contrast with: code review; design review; formal qualification review; test readiness review.
requirements specification	A document that specifies the requirements for a system or component. Typically included are functional requirements, performance requirements, interface requirements, design requirements, and development standards. Contrast with: design description. See also: functional specification; performance specification.
requirements specification language	A specification language with special constructs and, sometimes, verification protocols, used to develop, analyze, and document hardware or software requirements. See also: design language.
rescue point	See: restart point.
reserved word	A word in a programming language whose meaning is fixed by the rules of that language and which, in certain or all contexts, cannot be used by the programmer for any purpose other than its intended one. Examples include IF, THEN, WHILE
reset	To set a variable, register, or other storage location back to a prescribed state. See also: clear: initialize.
resident control program	See: kernel (1).
residual control	A microprogramming technique in which the meaning of a field in a microinstruction depends on the value in an auxiliary register. Contrast with: bit steering. See also: two-level encoding.
resource	A directory, printer, or ClipBook page that can be shared with other people.
resource allocation	See: computer resource allocation.
resource management	The identification, estimation, allocation, and monitoring of the means used to develop a product or perform a service. Example is estimating.
response time	The elapsed time between the end of an inquiry or command to an interactive computer system and the beginning of the system's response. See also: port-to-port time; think time: turnaround time.
restart	To cause a computer program to resume execution after a failure, using status and results recorded at a checkpoint.
restart point	A point in a computer program at which execution can be restarted following a failure. Syn: rescue point.
Restore button	The small button containing both an up and down arrow to the right of the title bar. The Restore button appears only after you enlarge a window to its maximum size. Click the Restore button or use the Restore command on the Control menu to return the window to its previous size.
retirement	Permanent removal of a system or component from its operational environment. Removal of support from an operational system or component. See also: software life cycle; system life cycle.
retirement phase	The period of time in the software life cycle during which support for a software product is terminated.
retrospective trace	A trace produced from historical data recorded during the execution of a computer program. Note: This differs from an ordinary trace, which is produced cumulatively during program execution. See also: execution trace; subroutine trace; symbolic trace; variable trace.
return	To transfer control from a software module to the module that called it. See also: return code. To assign a value to a parameter that is accessible by a calling module; for example, to assign the value 25 to parameter AGE for use by a calling module. See also: return value. A computer instruction or process that performs the transfer in (1).
return code	A code used to influence the execution of a calling module following a return from a called module
return value	A value assigned to a parameter by a called module for access by the calling module.
reusability	The degree to which a software module or other work product can be used in more than one computer program or software system. See also: generality.
reusable	Pertaining to a software module or other work product that can be used in more than one computer program or software system..
reverse execution	See: reversible execution.
reversible execution	A debugging technique in which a history of program execution is recorded and then replayed under the user's control, in either the forward or backward direction. Syn: backward execution; playback; replay; reverse execution.
review	A process or meeting during which a work product, or set of work products, is presented to project personnel, managers, users, customers, or other interested parties for comment or approval. Types include code review, design review, formal qualification review, requirements review, test readiness review.
risk	Possibility of suffering loss.
risk management	An approach to problem analysis which weighs risk in a situation by using risk probabilities to give a more accurate understanding of the risks involved. Risk management includes risk identification, analysis, prioritization, and control.
risk management plan	The collection of plans that describe the risk management activities to be performed on a project.
RJE	Acronym for remote job entry.
robustness	The degree to which a system or component can function correctly in the presence of invalid inputs or stressful environmental conditions. See also: error tolerance: fault tolerance.
role	A unit of defined responsibilities that may be assumed by one or more
roll in	To transfer data or computer program segments from auxiliary storage to main storage. Contrast with: roll out. See also: swan.
roll out	To transfer data or computer program segments from main storage to auxiliary storage for the purpose of freeing main storage for other uses. Contrast with: roll in. See also: swap.
root compiler	A compiler whose output is a machine independent, intermediate-level representation of a program. A root compiler, when combined with a code generator, comprises a full compiler.
routine	A subprogram that is called by other programs and subprograms. Note: The terms "routine," "subprogram," and "subroutine" are defined and used differently in different programming languages; the preceding definition is advanced as a proposed standard. See also: coroutine; subroutine.
rule-based language	A nonprocedural language that permits the user to state a set of rules and to express queries or problems that use these rules. See also: declarative language; interactive language.
run	In software engineering, a single, usually continuous, execution of a computer program. See also: run time. To execute a computer program
run stream	See: job stream.
run time	The instant at which a computer program begins to execute The period of time during which a computer program is executing See: execution time.
running time	See: execution time.