Can measurement be the system development savior of the 21st century, or is it a passing fad? The truth lies somewhere in between. The secrets of highly successful measurement programs extend well beyond the technical correctness of the chosen metrics and collecting of data. This article explores these secrets and identifies characteristics critical to measurement program success. The secrets of highly successful measurement programs extend well beyond the technical correctness of the chosen metrics and collecting of data. This article explores these secrets and identifies characteristics critical to measurement program success.

This paper presents data on the effectiveness of software fault insertion, discusses the advantages and risks of fault insertion, provides tips on gaining cultural acceptance for fault insertion and suggests high payback areas for fault insertion which have proven themselves over multiple products. In a typical software development cycle, defect detection starts to trail off once the mainline code stabilizes. With software fault insertion, it was found that the defect detection rate does not level off and the hardest task becomes not one of finding defects but one of prioritizing the stream of defects.

Have you ever run an installation program that wreaked more havoc than the installed application was worth? We often talk about user headaches from faulty software, but sometimes the pain begins with the installation process itself. Just for fun, here's a humorist's fictional account of a nightmare installation he (barely) endured.

The history of software metrics is almost as old as the history of software engineering. Yet, the extensive research and literature on the subject has had little impact on industrial practice. This is worrying given that the major rationale for using metrics is to improve the software engineering decision making process from a managerial and technical perspective.