Key Points

• The construction sequence and integration approach affect the order in which classes are designed, coded, and tested.

• A well-thought-out integration order reduces testing effort and eases debugging.

• Incremental integration comes in several varieties, and, unless the project is trivial, any one of them is better than phased integration.

• The best integration approach for any specific project is usually a combination of top-down, bottom-up, risk-oriented, and other integration approaches. Tshaped integration and vertical-slice integration are two approaches that often work well.

• Daily builds can reduce integration problems, improve developer morale, and provide useful project management information.