Customer Reviews

Successful Software Development (2nd Edition)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is an amazing book. Initially I was intimidated by the size of the book. But the content is so thoughtfully organized and the language so friendly that reading it was and has been a pleasure. It is reference book every software project manager must have.

As an SEI Authorized Lead Assessor, I am often asked are there any commercially available books to assist in preparing my organization to become an SEI Software Capability Maturity Model (CMM) Level 3 Organizaion. This is the first book that comes to my mind. The book contains solid fundementals and practical guidance for planning and implementing a software development environment capable of meeting the SEI CMM Level 3 key practices.

I would recommend the book for review and use for those software development organizations -- government or commercial -- that want to implement software improvements with the goal in mind to reach a CMM Level 3 Software Maturity Level.

The information in this book appears to be based on experience and factors in a touch of reality. In my view, this book is practical and affordable.

Software development is still an art and not a science. Everyone does it in his/her way. Thus, more ofetn than not it does not meet the expectations of the customer, because somewhere along the line somebody fails to communicate with someone else, or even when they do communicate it ends up as miscommunications. This book is about introducing engineering disciplines into software development activities. It discusses methods that can be esily implemented so that the art of computer science becomes a scientific approach. Donaldson and Siegel introduce various methods for opening up the communications channels throughout the software development life cycle, and provide a technique to measure the effectiveness of a process for prducing software products. They call this measurement technique "Object Measurement (OM)." I belive this book is an excellent resource for anyone who is involved in the information technology industry and/or involved in software development activities. Well done, is the best way I can describe this book.

This book cuts through the fog of competing standards and methodologies in the software engineering domain. It gives a clear picture of a process and associated procedures that can be effectively applied to any capability model (CMM, SPICE), process and procedures approach (TickIT, ISO 9000-3), and does so without drifting into any particular methodology. This is a key strength.

What I found especially valuable is the way the authors clearly illustrate processes as well as artifacts. For example, the Quantified Product Integrity Attributes illustration in chapter 6 distills on a single page a highly complex concept into an easy-to-understand storyboard. Another example, on the facing page is the Requirements Specification Evolution, which portrays a complex sequence in a single illustration. Since the book has around 200 illustrations, most of which are page size, in the book's 745 pages, getting a clear picture of the software development domain and its associated processes is easy. The text is clearly written and hits all of the key areas of software development, starting with business cases and project planning.

In this one book I have found processes, procedures and techniques that I can apply to both application delivery and service delivery for clients. Also, for the first time I was able to clearly see the "big picture" and how carefully thought-out development processes can be used to deliver value to end users instead of mere applications.

I highly recommend this book and give it a solid five stars.

Rare is a technical text that can serve as a real world reference for practicing professionals as well as a college-level text, but this outstanding book manages to completely satisfy these two audiences.

The authors have structured the book's contents along the lines of a sequential life cycle; however, they are not promoting the classic waterfall development approach - just presenting processes and procedures in a logical order. The chapters can be read in sequence or you can skip around without getting lost. The book starts with a chapter on business case development, followed by chapters on project planning, software systems development, change control, product and process reviews, measurement, cultural change, and ending with a chapter on process improvement planning.

What I like most is the book starts with a strong emphasis on making a business case, followed by an in-depth look at project planning. These PM practices are essential to organizations seeking CMM Level 2 and above. I also like the way the book is illustrated because the processes and concepts depicted in the 200 illustrations distill the complexities of software engineering into easy-to-understand process areas.

This book will align nicely to SPICE, CMM, Bootstrap and ISO 9000-3, making it an excellent reference for mature organizations. I strongly recommend it to serious practitioners who are committed to mature practices. I also think it would be an excellent college-level text because it shows how the theoretical aspects of software engineering can be used in the "real world".

The 2nd edition (the first was titled Cultivating Successful Software Development) is a major improvement over the first edition. This edition covers all of the KPAs from the CMM and aligns nicely to the RUP as well. No serious software engineer should be without a copy near her desk.

This book introduces an amazingly effective approach in getting starting in planning software processes and leading teams to be consistent in software development. I was actually quite suprised at how useful and straightforward alot of the concepts are in this book, that even if applyed to a CMMi 1 organization, one with little to no defined process, can they begin to see positive results on a project. It's a good reference for a SEPG (Software Engineering Process Group), or PEG as they call it in this book, in your organization to really begin applying concepts of software process initiatives and improvements. I especially liked the chapters on Project Planning, CCB, Measurements, and Process Improvement which have alot of ready to apply concepts. I also really enjoyed the concept of ADPE (Application Development Process Enviornments) as a way to structure your own organizations practices, which fits into the bigger idea of the SEE (Software Engineering Enviornment). Software development processes, which are a concept that alot of organizations that rely on software today seem to discount, yet continue to manage in an ad-hoc manner and are constently wondering how they can ensure product quality; which can be quite frustrating to developers who do value consistency.

Having seen several development programs from different perspectives, user's, requirements analyst's, tester's and program budget manager's, I know that the process is never perfect and never identical. However, this book, with its clear guidelines and principles, give an excellent framework for consistently developing quality software on-time and within budget. A mature development process can take an organization years to achieve. Donaldson and Siegel give new and old users, devlopers and program managers a great foundation to build upon. The book is very clear in its processes and provides ample justification for taking the steps to consistantly develop quality software, meet your client's expectations and build the positive reputation we all seek.

Donaldson and Siegel have captured and conveyed easy-to-understand core concepts that can be applied gradually on existing programs or at the onset of new programs. Customer buy-in is "key" and the authors emphasize that need for that "seller/buyer" commitment and the means to get there. Unfortunately there are few within-budget, on-time, well-managed, meaningfully "measured" software development programs. "Successful Software Development" presents rationale and concepts that when applied and managed "in the right dose" on any program would result in a successful outcome. The authors capture the essence of a software program's success - the simple concept of "good - documented - communications" between key program components. Their Object Measurement concept uniquely flexible - literally capable of measuring "anything". I've used it and find the results useful in Product Assurance metrics programs and future planning. Although - it does take someone to commit to the effort, gathering the data, and using the OM results. That presents the most common problem of all - and the authors help us there too - and that is "gaining a commitment and changing a culture" to adopt a new software development methodology. I can relate to literally every story portrayed in this text and the pain of cultural change. KUDOS to the authors, their vision, and their solution.

Do not buy this book if you lead teams of software developers. It is one of the few books in my professional library that I have thrown out. It's as if these two consultants wrote down everything they had presented in 10 years...100 pages of information crammed into 745 pages. Process descriptions are junk and inconsistent with good software engineering practices. This book may help a consultant sell a contract, but it will not help you build better software. There are many, many better books. I recommend Quality Software Project Management by Futrell & Shaffer. This is junk.