The Changing World of Software

1
The Changing World of Software

• Watts S. Humphrey

Presentation by
Cuong Nguyen
2
Introduction

• For a business to be successful it must meet
  customer needs with quality service and
  products.
• The software industry has a poor track record in
  this score.
• The software industry must change as plays an
  increasing role in everyday life.

3
How does the software industry measure up?

• Timely?
• Delivery dates are no better then guesses
• Quality?
• Unlike other industries (eg. Auto, appliances)
  the software industry tolerates defects.
• Efficient?
• Projects are often unplanned, over budget, and
  behind schedule

4
How does the software industry measure up?

• Despite assertions to the contrary, defect free
  software products can be produced.
• Most defects are generally found in a few modules
  of a large software system.
• 50 of defects were found in 3 of the code in
  one system, for example.
• Logically, if 97 of the code can be error free
  the other 3 can be error free as well.

5
The new application environment

• Software is no longer a peripherial business.
• Software defects now can be expensive and
  dangerous (eg. Airlines, finance).
• Software is now replacing hardware in many
  operations (eg. Guns).
• Which increases the importance of creating a
  reliable software system.

6
Is this situation tolerated?

• Customers in the past had been lenient because
  software did not affect as they do now.
• Now that software is at the heart of everything
  they will be less tolerant.
• Unless the quality of the software improves jobs
  could be lost (outside contractor, close
  business).

7
This is not a hypothetical possibility (losing
jobs)

• Examples of projects canceled due to software
  quality issues.
• American Airlines
• Ashton Tate
• Example of projects getting bonuses due good
  deliverables.
• Hughes Electronics

8
What can one engineer do?

• Be aware that if your organizations processes
  are not working your job could be exposed.
• Investigate software process improvement
• Pursue improvements aggressively when you see the
  need.

9
Will There Ever Be Software Engineering?
Micheal Jackson
Presentation by
Cuong Nguyen
10
Introduction

• Jackson is critiquing Ed Yourdons The Future of
  Software Best of Times, Worst of Times essay.
• In particular, he is critiquing the assertion
  that errors dont matter that much, so long as
  it doesnt happen often.
• Yourdons outlook demands the development of
  specialized formal approaches in software
  engineering.

11
Problems

• Computer systems are becoming ever more
  interconnected and interdependent (WordPerfect).
• Softwares attitude is buggy code is better
  then no code.
• Aspirations of bug-free code and efficient
  development have been not come to fruition.

12
Vision of Software Engineering

• David Parnes calls for a separate discipline,
  separate from computer science, with a core body
  of knowledge.
• Software Engineering will then be regulated with
  licensing and minimum standards like other
  engineering fields.
• Failures occur due to no standards in software
  development

13
Vision unrealized

• Some software manufactures encourage faulty
  products
• rush to market
• Increase need for upgrades
• Developers are reluctant to change.
• unconvinced core knowledge is essential
• Assert development is an art.

14
Vision unrealized

• Increasing complexity makes it difficult to
  implement improvements.
• Knowledge for many software projects include
  messy and poorly documented details
• Where in the software continuum is software
  engineering core requirements needed?

15
Specialization

• Software products and projects are varied
• Operational Environment
• Economic and Technical Goals
• Underlying risk factors
• Product life cycles
• Specialization in the software industry as
  systems become more complex.
• Compiler
• Operating System
• Database

16
Specialization

• Software Engineering does not exist.
• Specialized Software engineering does or should
• Compiler engineering
• OS engineering
• Database engineering
• Equivalent to physical engineering (EE, CHE)

17
Conclusion

• Specialize by requirement and product
• Concentrate on our own branch of engineering
  while recognizing others.
• Apply relevant parts of Parnes core to
  specialized field.
• Above all, DONT accept buggy code.