Have you ever heard, "I can't define a good design but I know one when I see it" Designing Hard Software discusses ways to develop software system designs that have the same tangibility and visibility as designs for hard objects like buildings or computer hardware. It emphasizes steps called "essential tasks" which result in software specifications that show how each requirement, including robustness and extensibility, will be satisfied. All software developers and managers seeking to develop "hard" software will benefit from these ideas. There are six essential tasks necessary for a good design: User (run-time) requirements Development sponsor (build-time) requirements Domain information Behavior identification and allocation Behavior description Software system architecture Designing Hard Software goes beyond the standard software development methodologies such as those by Booch, Rumbaugh, Yourdon, and others, by providing techniques for a complete system architecture as well as explicit measures of the goodness of design. So, "you define a good design."