Editing Waterfall model (section)

==Supporting arguments==
Time spent early in the software production cycle can reduce costs at later stages. For example, a problem found in the early stages (such as requirements specification) is cheaper to fix than the same bug found later on in the process (by a factor of 50 to 200).<ref name="rapid">{{cite book |last=McConnell |first=Steve |title=Rapid Development: Taming Wild Software Schedules |publisher=Microsoft Press |year=1996 |isbn=1-55615-900-5 |url=https://archive.org/details/rapiddevelopment00mcco }}</ref>

In common practice, waterfall methodologies result in a project schedule with 20–40% of the time invested for the first two phases, 30–40% of the time to coding, and the rest dedicated to testing and implementation. With the project organization needing to be highly structured, most medium and large projects will include a detailed set of procedures and controls, which regulate every process on the project.<ref>{{ cite web |title=Waterfall Software Development Model |url=http://www.oxagile.com/company/blog/the-waterfall-model/ |access-date=11 August 2014 |date=5 February 2014 }}</ref>{{failed verification|date=March 2021}}

A further argument supporting the waterfall model is that it places emphasis on documentation (such as requirements documents and design documents) as well as [[source code]].{{Citation needed|date=March 2021|reason=Who argues this?}} In less thoroughly designed and documented methodologies, knowledge is lost if team members leave before the project is completed, and it may be difficult for a project to recover from the loss. If a fully working design document is present (as is the intent of [[big design up front]] and the waterfall model), new team members and new teams should be able to familiarise themselves to the project by reading the documents.<ref>{{ cite news |author=Arcisphere technologies |title=Tutorial: The Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC) |url=http://softwarelifecyclepros.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Tutorial-Software-Development-LifeCycle-SDLC.pdf |year=2012 |access-date=2012-11-13 }}</ref>

The waterfall model provides a structured approach; the model itself progresses linearly through discrete, easily understandable and explainable phases and thus is easy to understand. It also provides easily identifiable milestones in the development process, often being used as a beginning example of a development model in many software engineering texts and courses.<ref>{{ cite web |last=Hughey |first=Douglas |title=Comparing Traditional Systems Analysis and Design with Agile Methodologies |url=http://www.umsl.edu/~hugheyd/is6840/waterfall.html |publisher=University of Missouri – St. Louis |access-date=11 August 2014 |date=2009}}</ref>

Similarly, simulation can play a valuable role within the waterfall model.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Saravanos |first1=Antonios |last2=Curinga |first2=Matthew X. |date=December 2023 |title=Simulating the Software Development Lifecycle: The Waterfall Model |journal=Applied System Innovation |language=en |volume=6 |issue=6 |pages=108 |doi=10.3390/asi6060108 |doi-access=free |issn=2571-5577|arxiv=2308.03940 }}</ref> By creating computerized or mathematical simulations of the system being developed, teams can gain insights into how the system will perform before proceeding to the next phase. Simulations allow for testing and refining the design, identifying potential issues or bottlenecks, and making informed decisions about the system's functionality and performance.