Safeware: System Safety and Computers [Paperback]

Nancy G. Leveson (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0201119722 | ISBN-13: 978-0201119725 | Publication Date: April 17, 1995 | Edition: 1

We are building systems today-and using computers to control them-that have the potential for large-scale destruction of life and environment. More than ever, software engineers and system developers, as well as their managers, must understand the issues and develop the skills needed to anticipate and prevent accidents. Nancy Leveson examines what is currently known about building safe electromechanical systems and looks at past accidents to see what practical lessons can be applied to new computer-controlled systems.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

We are building systems today--and using computers to control them--that have the potential for large-scale destruction of life and environment. More than ever, software engineers and system developers, as well as their managers, must understand the issues and develop the skills needed to anticipate and prevent accidents before they occur. Professionals should not require a catastrophe to happen before taking action.

Addressing this need in her long-awaited book, Nancy Levenson examines what is currently known about building safe electromagnetic systems and looks at past accidents to see what practical lessons can be applied to new computer-controlled systems.

Software

• Demonstrates the importance of integrating software safety efforts with system safety engineering
• Describes models of accidents and human error that underlie particular approaches to safety problems
• Presents the elements of a software program, including management, hazard analysis, requirements analysis, design for safety, design of the human-machine interface, and verification

0201119722B04062001

About the Author

Nancy G. Leveson is Boeing Professor of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of Washington (and Adjunct Professor at the University of British Columbia). Dr. Leveson recently was awarded the Information System Award from the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, " . . . for developing the field of software safety and for promoting responsible software and system engineering practices where life and liberty are at stake." She is the Editor-in-Chief of IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering and a meember of the Board of Directors of the Computing Research Association, the National Research Council Commission on Engineering and Technical Systems, and the ACM Committee on Computers and Public Policy. She recently chaired a National Academy of Science study for NASA of the Space Shuttle software development process.

0201119722AB04062001

Product Details

• Paperback: 704 pages
• Publisher: Addison-Wesley Professional; 1 edition (April 17, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0201119722
• ISBN-13: 978-0201119725
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #160,054 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Software Safety, April 25, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Safeware: System Safety and Computers (Paperback)

This is an OK book that should have been an excellent book. Frankly, it was a big disappointment. The author is the grand poo-bah of software safety, and so I expected the book to be deep and profound. Instead it is rather shallow with lots of generalities. A lot of what is said is the type of common sense discussion that I would expect from a social scientist, rather than a scientist. I was particularly surprised to see but one page on independent verification and validation. This is a very important topic for ensuring software safety, yet one evidently not on Professor Leveson's radar screen.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An excellent introductory text!, September 1, 2005

By 

Oleg Lisagor (UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Safeware: System Safety and Computers (Paperback)

This book is among seminal works on system safety and safety engineering and should be read by anyone who is entering the field. One may not necessarily agree with Prof. Leveson's views (e.g. her often unfair and unjustified dismissal of european approaches to safety engineering) but her views in the field are simply too important and influential to be ignored!
The book is a good "bed time reading" that gives an overview of the field, major problems and introduction to some major approaches. It is however not a handbook per se - you will not understand any particular method sufficiently to apply it.
Overall, very good introductory text with a good coverage and a very easy and clear language!

9 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A book that is still relevant 8 years later, December 22, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Safeware: System Safety and Computers (Paperback)

The key to understanding safety lies in the understanding that no one component failure or no human error ever occurs in isolation - an accident is a result of some systemic problem, and this is the fundamental theme of this book. No single book could ever address in detail all of the finer points of system safety analysis (indeed this would take a series of books) but Leveson is able to capture the core issues in an engaging manner. This book is a must read for any student of software and system safety, and will continue to be relevant in an age where automated technology is ubiquitous.