Customer Reviews

Transparent CM: How to Get There (Configuration Management)

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Mr. Lyon's earlier book, "Practical CM" (ISBN 0966124820) is the foundation of this work, which extends the approach - in the author's own words - to presenting 'unique methodology for a successful evolution from today's CM practices to best CM practices, then on to the implementation of a truly automated CM system in order to reach the ultimate goal of transparent CM.'

This book accomplishes that goal in every respect. After a chapter giving an overview of CM, the seeds of this approach are planted in the chapter titled, "Transition From Current CM Practices to Best CM Practices". A clear approach, based on the product data management approach within the CM discipline, is given. Included are a distilled list of best practices, and flow charts of the associated process. Chapters 3 and 4 cover a proposed PDM system in great depth. The requirements are outlined in sufficient detail to both gain a full understanding of the scope of the system, as well as to layout a fairly high-level system diagram if you were to build such a system in-house. Since building a system is probably not cost-effective for most organizations, Chapter 5 extends the requirements by giving advice on how to evaluate tools and vendors, and to select the best solution within constraints.

Chapters 6 and 7 describe the evolution from automated CM to transparent CM, which is the focus of the book. These are followed up with a final chapter that ties of loose ends by addressing the people dimension. Appendices A (List of Best Practices) and B CM Plan outline are invaluable, as are the documents on the accompanying CD ROM.

This is an outstanding book for advanced CM practitioners, especially those who have read and liked the author's earlier book, and/or those who are seeking to improve an existing, stable CM process.