A Quality Model for Actionable Analytics in Rapid Software Development

Background: Accessing relevant data on the product, process, and usage perspectives of software as well as integrating and analyzing such data is crucial for getting reliable and timely actionable insights aimed at continuously managing software quality in Rapid Software Development (RSD). In this context, several software analytics tools have been developed in recent years. However, there is a lack of explainable software analytics that software practitioners trust. Aims: We aimed at creating a quality model (called Q-Rapids quality model) for actionable analytics in RSD, implementing it, and evaluating its understandability and relevance. Method: We performed workshops at four companies in order to determine relevant metrics as well as product and process factors. We also elicited how these metrics and factors are used and interpreted by practitioners when making decisions in RSD. We specified the Q-Rapids quality model by comparing and integrating the results of the four workshops. Then we implemented the Q-Rapids tool to support the usage of the Q-Rapids quality model as well as the gathering, integration, and analysis of the required data. Afterwards we installed the Q-Rapids tool in the four companies and performed semi-structured interviews with eight product owners to evaluate the understandability and relevance of the Q-Rapids quality model. Results: The participants of the evaluation perceived the metrics as well as the product and process factors of the Q-Rapids quality model as understandable. Also, they considered the Q-Rapids quality model relevant for identifying product and process deficiencies (e.g., blocking code situations). Conclusions: By means of heterogeneous data sources, the Q-Rapids quality model enables detecting problems that take more time to find manually and adds transparency among the perspectives of system, process, and usage.Comment: This is an Author's Accepted Manuscript of a paper to be published by IEEE in the 44th Euromicro Conference on Software Engineering and Advanced Applications (SEAA) 2018. The final authenticated version will be available onlin

A quality model for actionable analytics in rapid software development

Accessing relevant data on the product, process, and usage perspectives of software as well as integrating and analyzing such data is crucial for getting reliable and timely actionable insights aimed at continuously managing software quality in Rapid Software Development (RSD). In this context, several software analytics tools have been developed in recent years. However, there is a lack of explainable software analytics that software practitioners trust. Aims: We aimed at creating a quality model (called Q-Rapids quality model) for actionable analytics in RSD, implementing it, and evaluating its understandability and relevance. Method: We performed workshops at four companies in order to determine relevant metrics as well as product and process factors. We also elicited how these metrics and factors are used and interpreted by practitioners when making decisions in RSD. We specified the Q-Rapids quality model by comparing and integrating the results of the four workshops. Then we implemented the Q-Rapids tool to support the usage of the Q-Rapids quality model as well as the gathering, integration, and analysis of the required data. Afterwards we installed the Q-Rapids tool in the four companies and performed semi-structured interviews with eight product owners to evaluate the understandability and relevance of the Q-Rapids quality model. Results: The participants of the evaluation perceived the metrics as well as the product and process factors of the Q-Rapids quality model as understandable. Also, they considered the Q-Rapids quality model relevant for identifying product and process deficiencies (e.g., blocking code situations). Conclusions: By means of heterogeneous data sources, the Q-Rapids quality model enables detecting problems that take more time to find manually and adds transparency among the perspectives of system, process, and usage.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Evaluating Process Quality Based on Change Request Data – An Empirical Study of the Eclipse Project

Abstract. The information routinely collected in change request management systems contains valuable information for monitoring of the process quality. However this data is currently utilized in a very limited way. This paper presents an empirical study of the process quality in the product portfolio of the Eclipse project. It is based on a systematic approach for the evaluation of process quality characteristics using change request data. Results of the study offer insights into the development process of Eclipse. Moreover the study allows assessing applicability and limitations of the proposed approach for the evaluation of process quality

IoT integrated antenna rotator

This project deals with the design and fabrication of an IoT Integrated Antenna Rotator to upgrade an existing antenna rotator by integrating it with Internet of Things (IoT) technology. The objective of this thesis is to integrate Google Maps into web server with the antenna rotator system in order to achieve a speedy and high accuracy standalone antenna pointing system. This thesis describes the software development of the rotator system which includes the specification, system and software design, implementation and unit testing, integration and system testing, and finally the operation. NodeMCU ESP32 is implemented as the microcontroller in this SDP to control the system by using its central processor. A web server is developed in order to act as a user interface to interact with the antenna rotator system. Digital map is integrated with the system to attain IoT technology by using Google Maps API. The IoT Integrated Antenna Rotator is tested upon the integration and fabrication process. The antenna rotator is able to rotate to a desire location precisely through web server by using Google Maps API. The outcomes can result in significant cost and time savings, as well as increase the product reliability and user confidence in using IoT Integrated antenna pointing system

A Requirements Measurement Program for Systems Engineering Projects: Metrics, Indicators, Models, and Tools for Internal Stakeholders

Software engineering (SE) measurement has shown to lead to improved quality and productivity in software and systems projects and, thus, has received significant attention in the literature, particularly for the design and development stages. In requirements engineering (RE), research and practice has recognized the importance of requirements measurement (RM) for tracking progress, identifying gaps in downstream deliverables related to requirements, managing requirements-related risks, reducing requirements errors and defects, and project management and decision making. However, despite the recognized benefits of RM, research indicates that only 5\% of the literature on SE measurement addresses requirements. This small percentage is reflected in the lack of well-defined and ready to use requirements metrics, approaches, tools, and frameworks that would enable the effective implementation and management of a RM program. Such a program would, in turn, provide the various internal stakeholders with various quantitative requirements-driven information (e.g., measures, indicators, and analytics, etc.) in order for them to better manage, control, and track their respective process activities. This shortage makes the process of RM, at best, complicated and, at worst, non-existent in most projects. The RM process is further complicated in large systems engineering projects due to large project sizes, numerous internal stakeholders, time pressure, large numbers of requirements, other software artifacts, to name a few. This integrated-article thesis aims to address the aforementioned problem through the following main contributions that have been researched and validated within the context of a large systems engineering project in the rail-automation domain: (i) an empirically derived and validated structured requirements metric suite; (ii) an approach for deriving and organizing requirements metrics and related information; (iii) a requirements-centric, measurement-based health assessment framework; (iv) a meta-model for managing requirements -driven information for internal stakeholders; (v) a prototype requirements dashboard that builds upon and automates the concepts in i, ii, iii, and iv. These contributions have implications for research on RM through extending the body of work on RM and promulgating further research. For practice, the results of this thesis are anticipated to facilitate the implementation and management of RM programs in real-world projects

Propuesta de métricas de calidad en el proceso de desarrollo de software en la Oficina de Sistemas e Ingeniería de la Información de la Universidad Privada Antenor Orrego.

Las empresas de desarrollo de software en nuestro país, son alrededor del 1%, cuya mayoría son micro y pequeñas empresas que cubren el 90% y solo el 4% son las grandes empresas, por tanto hay un mercado con gran disponibilidad para su incorporación y cubrir necesidades de todas las empresas a nivel nacional. Asimismo con respecto a la calidad de software que se produce es aún muy bajo en los micros y pequeñas empresas debido a su informalidad que es un factor común en ellas. De ahí la importancia que se formalice las empresas de desarrollo en cuanto a sus procesos y modelos de medición para obtener producto de mayor calidad y sin defectos cuando salgan al mercado. En tal sentido el presente trabajo desarrolla una propuesta de un Modelo de Medición que asegure el proceso de medición y análisis en una empresa de desarrollo de software, de manera que pueda alcanzar una certificación CMMI Nivel 2, para ello se compararon y adaptaron dos metodologías, tales como PSM y GQM, los cuales cubren características relevantes en los procesos de medición, estableciéndose un Modelo de Medición propuesto que tiene las siguientes fases: Definir objetivos y métricas, Elaborar un plan de medición, Ejecutar el plan de medición e Interpretar y evaluar la medición. Para el despliegue se usó herramientas como Code Metric Values y Simbia. Así se implementó el Modelo de Medición en el Área de Desarrollo de la OSIE de la Universidad Privada Antenor Orrego. Luego se evaluaron los atributos del modelo a través de opiniones de expertos para luego clasificarlos, obteniéndose, un puntaje final de 410.49 para los atributos favorables y de 164.80 para los atributos desfavorables, lo cual representa que el modelo tiene una implementación significativa en la mayoría de fases del ciclo de vida de desarrollo de software. Se analizaron los datos obtenidos de las métricas definidas para su evaluación, cuyos resultados nos dan un diagnóstico preciso del estado actual de la construcción de los sistemas que se desarrollan en el Área de Desarrollo de la OSIE.The software development companies in our country, around 1%, most of them are micro and small companies that only cover 90% of the total; and only 4% are big companies, so there is an available market for their incorporation and meet the needs of all companies in our national area. Also, respect to the quality of software that is produced is still very low in micro and small companies due to their informality that is a common factor in them. Hence the importance of formalizing the development companies in terms of their processes and measurement models to obtain higher quality product and without defects when they come to market. In this sense the present work develops a proposal of a Measurement Model that assures the process of measurement and analysis in a software development company, so that it can reach a certification CMMI Level 2. For that it was compared and adapted two methodologies, such as PSM and GQM, which cover relevant characteristics in the measurement processes, establishing a proposed Measurement Model that has the following phases: Define objectives and metrics, develop a measurement plan, execute the measurement plan and Interpret and evaluate the measurement. Tools such as Code Metric Values and Simbia were used for the deployment. Thus the Model of Measurement was implemented in the Development Area of the OSIE of the Private University Antenor Orrego. Then the attributes of the model were evaluated through expert opinions and then classified, obtaining a final score of 410.49 for the favorable attributes and of 164.80 for the unfavorable attributes, which represents that the model has a significant implementation in the majority of Phases of the software development lifecycle. We analyzed the data obtained from the metrics defined for its evaluation, the results of which provide an accurate diagnosis of the current state of construction of the projects developed in the Development Area of the OSIE (Office of System and Information Engineering)Tesi

Impact of Service Characteristics on Rational and Emotional Components of Information Systems Service Evaluations

Information systems (IS) research and practice have recognized the need to move the IS field to a more service oriented paradigm. This requires a good understanding of how IS services are evaluated and the factors that influence the perceptions of service performance. Measures of IS service quality have provided an insight into the rational/technical factors that influence the evaluation of IS services. Recently, the need for the investigation of additional factors that influence IS service evaluations has been recognized. One such factor that can influence the evaluation of an IS service is the emotional response that the IS service elicits in a recipient. Emotional responses play a major role in building attitudes, beliefs and behavioral intentions. However, IS service research has focused more on the rational aspects of these phenomena while largely ignoring the emotional aspects when explaining IS service evaluations. This research seeks to provide a better understanding of how individuals evaluate IS services by focusing on the salient characteristics of the IS service that can influence these evaluations. To achieve this, the research focuses on two research objectives: (1) to investigate the how the individual components of IS service evaluations – the emotional and rational evaluation components – impact various behaviors associated with the IS service and (2) to investigate how specific, theory driven service characteristics impact the emotional and relational components of IS service evaluation. A controlled experiment is used to investigate IS service evaluations and the characteristics of IS services that influence them. Results suggest that both emotional and rational components of IS service evaluations have significant impacts on behavioral intentions associated with the IS service. Furthermore, findings indicate that while the specificity of service output impacts both the emotional and rational evaluations of the IS service, the complexity of the service task only influences the emotional component by increasing the level of emotional evaluations associated with the service. Proximity between service provider and service recipient was found to have no significant impact on the emotional evaluation of the service

Testitapausten testikattavuuden riittämättömyys

Tiivistelmä. Testitapausten luonti on keskeisessä roolissa ohjelmistotestauksessa. Tämä pätee niin testauksen toteutukselle, tutkimukselle kuin myös muulle alan teoreettiselle pohjalle. Testaus on hyvin pitkälti rakentunut testitapausten ympärille. Aiempi tutkimus on havainnut testitapauksilla testattaessa myös löytyvän sellaisia ohjelmistovirheitä, jotka eivät ole testitapausten määräämällä ohjelman alueella. Testitapauksia käytettäessä testauksessa, ne määräävät testattavasta ohjelmasta toiminnallisuuksien ja ominaisuuksien alueen, jota testit koskevat. Silloin on myös oltava ohjelman alue, joita testitapaukset eivät koske, ts., testitapausten ulkopuolinen alue. Testitapausten käsikirjoituksen määräämä testikattavuus ei siis välttämättä täysin vastaa toteutunutta testauksen laajuutta, kun testitapausten joukon testit ajetaan manuaalisesti. Tämän opinnäytetyön tarkoituksena on tutkia tätä testitapausten testikattavuuden ulkopuolisten virheiden ilmiötä. Näin kaksi tutkimuskysymystä on esitetty: ”Kuinka suuri osa käsikirjoitetun testauksen löytämistä ohjelmistovirheistä ovat käsikirjoitettujen testitapausten kattamia?” sekä ”Vaikuttaako testitapausten testausohjeistuksen rakenne ulkopuolisten virheiden esiintymiseen?” Näihin kysymyksiin vastaamiseksi järjestettiin aikarajoitettu opiskelijoilla tehtävä koe manuaalisesta funktionaalisesti käsikirjoitetusta testauksesta, joka pohjautui ennalta luotuihin testitapauksiin. Testikattavuuden yksiköitä usein luonnehditaan riittämättömäksi täysin kattavalle testaukselle, mutta tämän kokeen tulokset tuo tarkastelun alle vielä toisenlaisen ongelman testikattavuudesta: vaikka testitapausten määräämä testikattavuus olisi riittävä, se ei kuitenkaan välttämättä realisoidu riittävinä testauksen tuloksina. Vain osa virheistä löytyivät, jotka olisi pitänyt testitapauksia testaamalla löytää. Tämän lisäksi merkittävä osuus löytyneistä virheistä eivät olleet testitapausten kattamalla alueella. Testitapausten ulkopuolinen olisi tiedostettava ja huomioitava paremmin. Sen huomiotta jättäminen ja testitapauksiin sokea luottaminen saattaa aiheuttaa ongelmia ja ylimääräisiä kustannuksia ohjelmistoalalla.The insufficiency of test case test coverage. Abstract. The creation of test cases is in a central role in software testing. This applies to software testing in the software industry as well as its’ research and other theoretical basis. Testing is largely based on test cases. Prior research conducted on test case-based testing has noted that the testing process discovers defects from the tested software which are not covered by the test cases’ script, i.e., defects external to the test cases’ coverage. When test cases are used in testing, they determine an area from the functionalities and other features of the software which the tests cover. This also means that there should exist an area outside this coverage: the external area of test coverage. The purpose of this thesis is to study the phenomenon of the discovery of external defects of test case test coverage. Thus, two research questions have been formed as follows: “How large part of the defects found by scripted testing are covered by the test coverage of the script?” and “Does the structure of the test script affect the emergence of external defects of the test case test coverage?” To answer these questions an experiment of scripted testing was conducted with students as participants. While the metrics of test coverage are often described as insufficient for complete testing, yet, as a result of this thesis, another issue of test coverage is brought upon inspection: even if the test coverage was sufficient; the testing conducted to achieve the coverage does not necessarily actualize as sufficient. Only a part of the defects were found with the tests which cover the defects and, in addition to this, a portion of the defects found by testing the test script are not actually covered by the script. The external of the test case should be acknowledged and noted in greater detail. The ignorance of the external and blind reliance on a test script may cause troubles and extra costs in the field of software testing

Uma Abordagem Baseada em Ontologias para Integração Semântica de Ferramentas de Apoio à Medição de Software

Medição de software é considerada uma prática fundamental para a melhoria de processos e a gerência de projetos, uma vez que fornece dados para apoiar a tomada de decisão nos níveis organizacional e de projetos. Para que a medição de software seja eficiente, ela deve ser orientada aos objetivos da organização ou dos projetos, caso contrário, podem ser definidas medidas e coletados dados não alinhados às reais necessidades da organização. Devido à natureza das atividades relacionadas à medição de software, o uso de ferramentas computacionais é essencial. No entanto, considerando que a medição de software pode ser realizada no contexto de vários processos de software e que esses processos geralmente possuem diferentes ferramentas de apoio, é comum a utilização de várias ferramentas para que seja possível obter dados relacionados aos diferentes processos. Comumente, as ferramentas são desenvolvidas em diferentes momentos, por equipes diferentes e sem que haja preocupação com integração. Como resultado, as organizações têm que lidar com problemas de integração para permitir a devida comunicação entre as ferramentas e apoiar o processo de medição de software. Um fator chave para a integração de aplicações é garantir que elas compartilhem um entendimento comum do significado dos termos e serviços trocados. Em outras palavras, é importante que haja integração não só no nível sintático das aplicações, mas também no nível semântico. Entre os instrumentos utilizados para atribuição de semântica, as ontologias são reconhecidas como um importante meio para apoiar a integração semântica de aplicações. Elas podem ser usadas como uma interlíngua a fim de mapear os conceitos e serviços usados pelas diferentes aplicações. Considerando esse cenário, este trabalho explora a utilização de ontologias de domínio e de tarefa de medição de software na integração de ferramentas para apoiar o processo de medição de software. Para isso, é proposta uma abordagem baseada em objetivos para o levantamento de requisitos para integração de ferramentas de apoio à medição de software. Para avaliar a abordagem proposta, ela foi utilizada para integrar ferramentas visando apoiar o processo de medição de software em uma organização de desenvolvimento de software real