Part 2: Requirement Analysis & BRD Review

When I built shotsrv, my solo project for taking screenshots of URLs, I didn’t start with a requirements document. I didn’t even start with a plan. I just opened my editor, installed PhantomJS, and started coding. If I hit a snag—like realizing PhantomJS didn’t support modern JavaScript—I’d Google a workaround or switch to Puppeteer. There were no deadlines, no budgets, and no one to answer to.

But when you’re building something like FamFlix, a Netflix-like platform for families to share private videos, that “just code it” approach falls apart. Why? Because team projects aren’t just about writing code—they’re about aligning expectations, managing resources, and delivering value on time.

In this article, we’ll explore how to turn vague ideas (“We want a Netflix for family videos!”) into actionable requirements—and why this process is both a challenge and a gift for developers.

The Solo Project Mindset: Freedom, Chaos, and Hidden Costs

In solo projects, you’re free to:

• Ignore deadlines: You finish when you finish.
• Skip planning: You discover requirements as you code.
• Forget costs: You pay the server bill whenever it arrives.

This freedom is liberating, but it comes at a cost. Without a plan, you might:

• Waste weeks optimizing a feature no one will use.
• Hit a technical wall (e.g., PhantomJS’s limitations) and have to start over.
• Underestimate the time and money required to scale.

For example, when I built shotsrv, I didn’t think about cost until my AWS bill arrived. Suddenly, I was scrambling to optimize screenshot storage—a problem I could’ve avoided with upfront planning.

The Team Project Reality: Structure, Collaboration, and Shared Responsibility

In a team project, you don’t have the luxury of winging it. You need to:

1. Define requirements upfront: What are we building, and why?
2. Set deadlines: When will each feature be delivered?
3. Budget resources: How much will this cost, and who’s paying?

The good news? You’re not alone. While the product owner worries about deadlines and budgets, and the UX designer focuses on user flows, you can focus on what you do best: writing code.

For FamFlix, this means:

• The backend engineer doesn’t have to worry about server costs—that’s the DevOps team’s job.
• The UX designer doesn’t have to think about storage policies—that’s the infrastructure team’s responsibility.
• The frontend developer doesn’t have to stress over GDPR compliance—that’s legal’s domain.

This division of labor lets everyone focus on their strengths, while the project moves forward as a cohesive whole.

The BRD: Your Blueprint for Success

The Business Requirement Document (BRD) is where vague ideas become concrete plans. It’s the foundation of every team project, and it answers three key questions:

1. What are we building?
   • For FamFlix: A private video platform for families, with Netflix-like browsing and streaming.
2. Why are we building it?
   • To help families share and preserve memories in a secure, user-friendly way.
3. How will we measure success?
   • KPIs like upload success rate, streaming latency, and user retention.

The BRD also outlines functional requirements (what the system should do) and non-functional requirements (how it should perform). For example:

• Functional: “Users can upload videos up to 1GB in size.”
• Non-functional: “Videos should process within 5 minutes of upload.”

The Timeline: From “What We Want” to “What We’ll Build”

In a solo project, timelines are flexible. In a team project, they’re critical. Here’s how FamFlix’s timeline might look:

1. Week 1-2: Requirement Gathering
   • Meet with stakeholders to define scope, success metrics, and constraints.
   • Draft the BRD and get sign-off from all parties.
2. Week 3-4: Technical Design
   • Break the BRD into actionable tasks (e.g., “Build video upload API”).
   • Assign ownership to teams (backend, frontend, DevOps, etc.).
3. Week 5-8: Development Sprint 1
   • Build the MVP (e.g., video upload, basic playback).
   • Conduct internal testing and gather feedback.
4. Week 9-12: Development Sprint 2
   • Add advanced features (e.g., adaptive streaming, user comments).
   • Perform load testing and security audits.
5. Week 13: Launch Prep
   • Finalize documentation, train support teams, and prepare marketing materials.
   • Soft launch to a small group of users for real-world testing.

This timeline ensures everyone knows what’s expected, when it’s due, and who’s responsible.

Why This Process Matters

At first glance, requirement analysis and BRD review might feel like bureaucracy. But they’re actually a developer’s best friend. They:
- Prevent scope creep: No more last-minute requests for “just one more feature.”
- Clarify priorities: You know exactly what to build first.
- Reduce rework: Stakeholder alignment means fewer surprises down the road.

For example, if the BRD specifies that FamFlix must support videos up to 1GB, you won’t waste time building a system that only handles 500MB files.

Coming Up Next…

In Part 3, we’ll dive into System Design & Architecture Planning: how to turn requirements into a scalable, secure infrastructure that won’t collapse under 10,000 screaming toddlers watching their birthday videos.

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