Editing Use case (section)

=== Cockburn style ===

The template defined by [[Alistair Cockburn]] in his book ''Writing Effective Use Cases'' has been one of the most widely used writing styles of use cases.{{citation needed|date=March 2016}}

==== Design scopes ====

Cockburn suggests annotating each use case with a symbol to show the "Design Scope", which may be black-box (internal detail is hidden) or white box (internal detail is shown). Five symbols are available:<ref>Cockburn, 2001. Inside front cover. Icons "Design Scope".</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Scope !! Icon|| 
|-
| Organization (black-box) || Filled House || [[File:Scope-icons-filled-house.png|Scope-icons-filled-house]]

|-
| Organization (white-box) || Unfilled House || [[File:Scope-icons-unfilled-house.png|center|Scope-icons-unfilled-house]]
|-
| System (black-box) || Filled Box || [[File:Scope-icons-filled-box.png|center|Scope-icons-filled-box]]
|-
| System (white-box) || Unfilled Box || [[File:Scope-icons-unfilled-box.png|center|Scope-icons-unfilled-box]]
|-
| Component || Screw or Bolt || [[File:Scope-icons-screw-bolt.png|center|Scope-icons-screw-bolt]]
|}

{{clear}}

Other authors sometimes call use cases at the Organization level "Business use cases".<ref>Suzanne Robertson. ''Scenarios in Requirements Discovery''. Chapter 3 in Alexander and Maiden, 2004. Pages 39-59.</ref>

==== Goal levels ====
[[File:Cockburnstyle use cases.svg|thumb|Hierarchy of goal levels]]
Cockburn suggests annotating each use case with a symbol to show the "Goal Level";<ref>Cockburn, 2001. Inside front cover. Icons "Goal Level".</ref> the preferred level is "User-goal" (or colloquially "sea level"<ref name=Fowler/>{{rp|101}}).

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Goal Level !! Icon !! Symbol ||
|-
| Very High Summary || Cloud || ++ || [[File:Goal-level-icons-cloud.png|center]]
|-
| Summary || Flying Kite || + || [[File:Goal-level-icons-flying-kite.png|center]]
|-
| User Goal || Waves at Sea || ! || [[File:Goal-level-icons-waves-at-sea.png|center]]
|-
| Subfunction || Fish || - || [[File:Goal-level-icons-fish.png|center]]
|-
| Too Low || Seabed Clam-Shell || -- || [[File:Goal-level-icons-seabed-clam-shell.png|center]]
|}

{{clear}}

Sometimes in text writing, a use case name followed by an alternative text symbol (! +, -, etc.) is a more concise and convenient way to denote levels, e.g. ''place an order!'', ''login-''.

==== Fully dressed ====

Cockburn describes a more detailed structure for a use case but permits it to be simplified when less detail is needed. His fully dressed use case template lists the following fields:<ref name=Cockburn120>Cockburn, 2001. Page 120.</ref>

* Title: "an active-verb goal phrase that names the goal of the primary actor"<ref>Cockburn, 2001. Inside rear cover. Field "Use Case Title".</ref>
* Primary Actor
* Goal in Context
* Scope
* Level
* Stakeholders and Interests
* Precondition
* Minimal Guarantees
* Success Guarantees
* Trigger
* Main Success Scenario
* Extensions
* Technology & Data Variations List

In addition, Cockburn suggests using two devices to indicate the nature of each use case: icons for design scope and goal level.

Cockburn's approach has influenced other authors; for example, Alexander and Beus-Dukic generalize Cockburn's "Fully dressed use case" template from software to systems of all kinds, with the following fields differing from Cockburn:<ref>Alexander and Beus-Dukic, 2009. Page 121</ref>

* Variation scenarios "(maybe branching off from and maybe returning to the main scenario)"
* Exceptions "i.e. exception events and their exception-handling scenarios"

==== Casual ====

Cockburn recognizes that projects may not always need detailed "fully dressed" use cases. He describes a Casual use case with the fields:<ref name=Cockburn120/>

* Title (goal)
* Primary Actor
* Scope
* Level
* (Story): the body of the use case is simply a paragraph or two of text, informally describing what happens.