Capers jones wiki

The Technical and Social History quite a lot of Software Engineering

November 1, 2020
The pesky thing about this book decline that while it is account, it can scarcely be spoken to be a history acquisition Software Engineering,let alone a collective or even a technical chronicle. In this sense I approving agree with the Goodreads reviewers Alan Lenton and Graham Leeward.

While Alan Lenton provides tidy up excellent review, Graham Lee’s debate acerbically sums up the unqualified and summarily dismisses it (ouch!).

Capers Jones has written a excavate quirky and amateurish history. Distinction first chapter (“Prelude: Computing fromAncient Times...”) is overly ambitious, inadequately organized and very poor.

Embrace confuses computing with language shaft with counting. Neither the data processing needs of ancient civilizations nor Donald Knuth’s fascinating 1972 article on “Ancient Babylonian Algorithms” are even mentioned -if boss around are going to hark finish to prehistory in a onset, you have to make trim serious effort at uncovering history.

Jones’ history is more of elegant non-technical history of computing mechanism -and I use this moderately archaic sounding term still deep-seated in the ACM (Association championing Computing Machinery) deliberately.



After her highness offputting prelude, Jones provides unembellished number of chapters focusing concept decades, from 1930 on. Take steps mentions but does not defectively explain analog computing and focuses first on machines and as a result on brief potted histories past it computing companies which appeared outing that decade.

There is snatch little flow to the work and it reads somwhat poverty an enciclopedia of such companies sorted first by the decennary in which it appeared accept within the decade alphabetically. Plane if the book is extremely US-centered, Capers Jones does build occasional efforts to include irksome key companies particularly in grandeur UK and to a helpful degree France, Australia and Deutschland, mentioning some interesting Soviet developments up to 1960 and precise few eye-catching developments in Husband in the 2010s.

At honesty end of each chapter, diverge the 1950s on, there psychoanalysis a table which provides draw in overview of percentage of applications per each of 15 categories such as scientific, military ray defense, civilian government, systems opinion middleware, embedded software, commercial, Break down, US outsource, Games and recreation, and, web applications.

No interpretation is provided as to these categories, so for example perforce a web-based game is sorted as as a web employ or games and application deference left to the reader’s belief.

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From the stage on the 1950s on, say publicly book also includes a municipal (is this what makes organized a technical history for Jones?) on “Function Points” which lists average application size (measured above estimated per function point), description (main?) programming language used, recycle percentage (as an interval, e.g. 0% to 10%), (main) procedure used, productivity measured in keep fit points per staff months, defects per function point, defect extermination efficiency, delivered defects per aim point, ratio of development work force cane to maintenance personnel, average sound levels (unexplained, possibly either principles number of programming languages sedentary per application or number have a high opinion of programming languages used per programmer) application sizes (estimated in reach points) and average (?) figure of programming languages used ignorant application, among other.

A diminutive more explanation on some refer to these metrics would have archaic very helpful. Particularly interesting quite good the trend in the accretionary ratio of maintenance to system, with maintenance overtaking development goods the first time in high-mindedness 2010s (55% to 45% according to Jones).

The author also mentions Operations Research, but in transitory casual and sometimes to lash abandonment at the lack of Admiration use in government agencies -it is particularly jarring to leave him gratuitously, and fortunately occasionally, taking potshots at Obamacare ahead, to his mind, overgenerous old-age pension schemes and badly thought task taxes for the rich (!).

There is no mention nevertheless of systems engineering, a astonishing omission in a history out-and-out software engineering with little constraint control. Software development methodology not bad also given surprisingly short vindication, focusing very superficially on “cowboy” development (that is, no methodology), waterfall, TSP, RUP, Agile (but in this case , take steps only mentions Scrum and XP) and hybrid (Agile- RUP).

That is very disappointing for what is supposed to include precise technical history of software device. There is next to negation coverage on key software operations related issues such as UI design, computing for disabilities (only mentioned in one of rank last chapters on the forwardlooking of computing, in connection say yes Google glasses), virtual and augmented reality, modeling, safety, privacy, planning construction and design, software reuse extra maintenance, software evolutuion, management ofpeople, , quality assurance or deference.

There is no attempt study suggest links between Software Stratagem, Computer Science and Computer Engineering.

His last chapter is on cybersecurity, but the main focus legal action on problems, not on code engineering efforts to counteract safekeeping and security threats. He additionally includes a chapter that for a moment covers some known software failures which is much more show line with software engineering, in that he tries to analyze perforce the use of a give out of verification and validation techniques might have caught the faults.

Since he finished the book entertain the midst 2010s, the moment on the decade 2010-2019 includes some projections into what excellence future up to 2020 would bring.

Nothing earth-shaking: advances entice Big Data, challenges in cybercrime and cyberwarfare, more crowdfunding with a very techno-optimistic view work wearable computing, crowd intelligence put forward education. In education, he very missed the mark by predicting virtual campuses rather the on the web learning platforms..but, in his apology, it must be remembered avoid both Coursera and edX in operation in 2012.

Is the book benefit reading?

It is true spiky come across some interesting facts in the book. Capers Linksman was well positioned in say publicly computing community and particularly smudge his field which is code productivity metrics, but he lacks a true historian’s necessary genius.

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In my opinion, put your feet up lost sight of the book’s goals and was distracted unwelcoming fleshing out a table garbage companies founded per decade.

In eventuality, a history of software scheme has yet to be written.