Cleanroom Software Engineering: Technology and Process

Rating:
Summary: Finally, breakthru science for better software quality.
Review: As a contributor to the theory and methods of Cleanroom software engineering, I am pleased to recommend this book. It brings together the full range of Cleanroom ideas from box structure specification to statistical testing. The authors have done an outstanding job of describing the Cleanroom approach in a clear and logical presentation. Examples are well chosen and support understanding of the underlying Cleanroom concepts. This book deserves a place on the desks of all software engineers.

Rating:
Summary: An Excellent Presentation of the Cleanroom SE Approach
Review: As a contributor to the theory and methods of Cleanroom software engineering, I am pleased to recommend this book. It brings together the full range of Cleanroom ideas from box structure specification to statistical testing. The authors have done an outstanding job of describing the Cleanroom approach in a clear and logical presentation. Examples are well chosen and support understanding of the underlying Cleanroom concepts. This book deserves a place on the desks of all software engineers.

Rating:
Summary: A method that shows "how" to other methods's "whats"
Review: Frequently, software development methods describe concepts in a way that suggests that one can get better only by divine inspiration. Thankfully, this book's premise is that software development can be done in a deterministic and algorithmic fashion, rather than a heuristic which some are better at applying than others. The importance of this point is that while some people design software much like artists make paintings, people can be trained in Cleanroom Engineering technology. For 95% of all software we don't need artists. Sadly, current software development methods assume they are continuously available.

My background is in controls engineering, both hardware and software, and when things machines break due to an error in its control, there is frequent economic loss and, regrettably but occasionally, loss of life. So, in order to avoid these things engineers in controls development do effectively the same thing described in this book. We develop in a stepwise fashion while always proving the implementation in the small before integrating it in the large.

I learned of Cleanroom Engineering in 1994 from the STARS project. I formalized my controls engineering to the techniques identified in that literature to great success. When I entered software design and engineering as a full-time effort, most of my colleagues and fellow employees thought I was nuts when I developed software using Cleanroom Engineering. However, my software always arrived on time, without defect, and well reused.

Cleanroom Software Engineering identifies the necessary techniques to deliver zero-defect software. By strictly applying these techniques one achieves several other silver-bullet strategies: design and implementation reuse, abstraction of design patterns, configuration management, value engineering, refactoring. By combining Cleanroom Engineering with other techniques (e.g., SEI SW-CMM, PSP, ESP, ISO 9000), one can deliver high quality, reasonably priced product in a variety of domains: controls engineering, software engineering, database development, process and business reengineering, network engineering. Wise managers would require the reading and implementation of the techniques described in this book. I highly recommend it to all practitioners of software design, it fills the hole of "how" for other software development methods "what".

K. Milec -- Detroit, Michigan

Rating:
Summary: A method that shows "how" to other methods's "whats"
Review: Frequently, software development methods describe concepts in a way that suggests that one can get better only by divine inspiration. Thankfully, this book's premise is that software development can be done in a deterministic and algorithmic fashion, rather than a heuristic which some are better at applying than others. The importance of this point is that while some people design software much like artists make paintings, people can be trained in Cleanroom Engineering technology. For 95% of all software we don't need artists. Sadly, current software development methods assume they are continuously available.

My background is in controls engineering, both hardware and software, and when things machines break due to an error in its control, there is frequent economic loss and, regrettably but occasionally, loss of life. So, in order to avoid these things engineers in controls development do effectively the same thing described in this book. We develop in a stepwise fashion while always proving the implementation in the small before integrating it in the large.

I learned of Cleanroom Engineering in 1994 from the STARS project. I formalized my controls engineering to the techniques identified in that literature to great success. When I entered software design and engineering as a full-time effort, most of my colleagues and fellow employees thought I was nuts when I developed software using Cleanroom Engineering. However, my software always arrived on time, without defect, and well reused.

Cleanroom Software Engineering identifies the necessary techniques to deliver zero-defect software. By strictly applying these techniques one achieves several other silver-bullet strategies: design and implementation reuse, abstraction of design patterns, configuration management, value engineering, refactoring. By combining Cleanroom Engineering with other techniques (e.g., SEI SW-CMM, PSP, ESP, ISO 9000), one can deliver high quality, reasonably priced product in a variety of domains: controls engineering, software engineering, database development, process and business reengineering, network engineering. Wise managers would require the reading and implementation of the techniques described in this book. I highly recommend it to all practitioners of software design, it fills the hole of "how" for other software development methods "what".

K. Milec -- Detroit, Michigan

Rating:
Summary: An excellent book for students, practitioners, and managers
Review: Many articles have been published describing Cleanroom software engineering technical and management processes, and many successful projects have demonstrated the value of Cleanroom as an engineering process. This book provides, in a single volume, concise descriptions and concrete examples of Cleanroom technical and management processes, a mapping of Cleanroom processes to CMM KPAs, and a detailed case study. I recommend this book highly to software engineering students, practitioners, and managers who want to develop reliable software on time and within budget.

Rating:
Summary: Management, engineering, and process... they are all there.
Review: The powerful technology of Cleanroom practice is expertly revealed in "Cleanromm Software Engineering- Technology and Practice" spanning project management, product engineering, and process management.The book is presented through the prism of process management organized around common features similar to the SEI CMM. The rigorous engineering technology enables the practitioner to genuinely attempt defect free software development. With the assistance of a non-trivial worked example (case study) and its templates, the practitioner is introduced to the routine practice of Cleanroom Software Engineering that can be carried out on the factory floor. The insightful management practice equips the manager with the models needed to confidently make commitments and provides the visible artifacts needed to status meeting interim commitments.

Rating:
Summary: Definitive Cleanroom reference
Review: This book is the authoritative text on this compelling technique. From the very beginning the book delves into an explanation of how to implement Cleanroom and, for better or worse, spends little time explaining why anyone should use Cleanroom instead of other processes. It will work best as a detailed manual for the team or organization which has already examined the breadth and depth of development techniques available and has decided to use Cleanroom. It is certainly not a process marketing tool, as are many other books competing for space on the developer's bookshelf.

This book is exceptionally thorough and detailed, and the examples presented are much more elaborate and realistic than those in most other books. However, the notation and process are presented in an isolated manner with little mention of other techniques. Only one tool that supports the Cleanroom process is mentioned, but it is not one of the more popular modeling or software engineering tools. Instead of changing notation and terminology to align with object-oriented technology and the UML, the authors steadfastly focus on the "box" as the fundamental unit of program organization and behavior. Those readers familiar with object-oriented notations and vocabulary will find this book to be quite foreign in its approach. Only one paragraph in the entire book is devoted to relating object-orientation to Cleanroom. This is the one outstanding flaw in an otherwise well-written book.

Rating:
Summary: Definitive Cleanroom reference
Review: This book is the authoritative text on this compelling technique. From the very beginning the book delves into an explanation of how to implement Cleanroom and, for better or worse, spends little time explaining why anyone should use Cleanroom instead of other processes. It will work best as a detailed manual for the team or organization which has already examined the breadth and depth of development techniques available and has decided to use Cleanroom. It is certainly not a process marketing tool, as are many other books competing for space on the developer's bookshelf.

This book is exceptionally thorough and detailed, and the examples presented are much more elaborate and realistic than those in most other books. However, the notation and process are presented in an isolated manner with little mention of other techniques. Only one tool that supports the Cleanroom process is mentioned, but it is not one of the more popular modeling or software engineering tools. Instead of changing notation and terminology to align with object-oriented technology and the UML, the authors steadfastly focus on the "box" as the fundamental unit of program organization and behavior. Those readers familiar with object-oriented notations and vocabulary will find this book to be quite foreign in its approach. Only one paragraph in the entire book is devoted to relating object-orientation to Cleanroom. This is the one outstanding flaw in an otherwise well-written book.

Rating:
Summary: Finally, breakthru science for better software quality.
Review: This well written book will help the programmer mired in the trenches understand that there is help in terms of both quality and productivity. There are two epiphany's: programs are too complex to be solved by thinking harder or working harder, and 2) testing necessarily is sampling. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and highly recommend it for any professional developer insterested in moving to a whole new level.