software quality

I’ve been thinking a lot about software quality and testing. This is what I’ve come up with:

softwarequality

1 Comments.

  1. Look at the average development cycle (simplified):

    [HACK][SHIP]

    Is there any question why software quality and testing are such a joke? I think it has to do something with the software process itself being fundamentally broken.

    My two favorite examples of brokenness: unit testing and 6 Sigma Methods.

    Unit testing is great, but so many companies use it as their *only* form of testing. Great, the function worked, but is the output at the end sane? Well, that is not what this tool is meant for.

    6 Sigma Methods. Ok, this is my Motorola training coming out for this rant. For the un-brainwashed, sigma is supposed to be a measure of goodness. Where 0 Sigma = pure crap, and 7 sigma = 0 flaws per million. For some odd reason, 6 Sigma = 3.14 flaws per million, which is close enough to perfect. Too bad that when it comes to software, 1 flaw per anything means that your program may be totally hosed. Or more simply put Almost Perfect is a nicer way of saying Not Totally F’ed.