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Fig. 4.3
Gantt chart
4.2.3 Gantt Chart
Another useful project planning strategy, closely related to the WBS, is the use of
Gantt Charts. A Gantt Chart is essentially a specific type of bar graph, tailored to
illustrate the progression of a project. It does this by mapping out the activities
involved in a software engineering project over the project's timeline. That is, a
period of time is displayed along one axis of the graph, while the activities to be
completed during that period of time are displayed in the order that they occur
along the other axis. Figure 4.3 provides an example of a Gantt Chart.
As you can see, the various activities ( Task 1 , Task 2 , etc.) are mapped along
the vertical axis of the chart, and are graphed over the dates of the project, which are
laid out along the horizontal axis. Each task spans from its start date to its projected
end date, and is shaded to illustrate current progress. Since their creation, Gantt
Charts have been enhanced in various ways, and other common management tools
have been incorporated into them. For instance, relationships are often depicted
between the various activities on the chart in order to show task dependencies. Like
the other planning tools that we have discussed, Gantt Charts show a selected level of
project decomposition, which can be modified to suit the needs of the developer. As
with a WBS, the various elements of a Gantt Chart can again be decomposed into
other Gantt Charts of their own, to show the constituent tasks of the activity in
question. In fact, quite often, the elements of a Gantt Chart are actually decomposed
into a WBS, thus incorporating the various methods of project abstraction.
4.3 Communicating Ideas
In addition to planning the development process, project managers are also
charged with organizing, managing, and motivating the people who work on the
project.
These
people
are,
after
all,
the
greatest
assets
that
any
software
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