Anita D. Carleton

Statistical process control: analyzing space shuttle onboard software process

Demand for increased software process efficiency and effectiveness places measurement demands on the software engineering community beyond those traditionally practiced. Statistical- and process-thinking principles lead to the use of statistical process control (SPC) methods to determine the consistency and capability of the processes used to develop software. The authors use data and analysis from a collaborative effort between the Software Engineering Institute (a federally funded research and development center sponsored by the US Department of Defense) and the Space Shuttle Onboard Software Project as a vehicle to illustrate the analytic processes analysts frequently encounter when using SPC.

Seven/spl plusmn/two software measurement conundrums

Since computer science has traditionally considered itself more an application of discrete logic than of continuous functions, measurement has not played as important a role in software as it has in other areas of engineering. Since almost no computer science programs teach courses in measurement theory, statistics, experimental design, or related areas, software engineering has not benefited from rigorous development as a quantitative science. This article discusses several current problems facing the quantitative study of software engineering that present challenges to the software measurement community.<<ETX>>

The Future of Software Engineering

This special issue offers a range of perspectives on software engineerings future from professionals working around the world in diverse areas of software. The content ranges from detailed technical articles about the research areas behind todays trends to shorter essays and opinion pieces from folks working to sharpen the focus of their own visions of that future. The Web extra at https://youtu.be/LnSHGDl9O7U is an audio recording of st Shull and Anita Carleton of the Software Engineering Institute and Rafael Prikladnicki of Pontificia Universidade Catolica do Rio Grande do Sul talking about the authors, articles, and discussions that went into the IEEE Software January/February 2016 theme issue on the future of software engineering.