Metrics
Metrics are measurements, collections of data about
project activities, resources and deliverables. Metrics
can be used to help estimate projects, measure project
progress and performance, and quantify product
attributes.
Software metrics can be classified into three categories:
Product metrics (size, complexity, performance)
Process metrics (used to improve development and
maintenance)
Project metrics (cost, schedule, productivity)
Metrics for software process
Some of the software metrics
Productivity & efficiency metrics
Management support metrics
Size metrics (also used to create other
metrics):
Lines
of code (LOC)
Function points (FP)
Lines of code
Not as simple metric as it may sound
Is used in many metrics, for example in defect rate:
defects per KLOC (=thousand lines of code) or LOC
inspected
Many problems
The ambiguity of the counting meaning is not the same with
Assembler or high-level languages
What to count? Blank lines, comments, data definitions, only
executable lines..?
Problematic for productivity studies: the amount of LOC is
negatively correlated with design efficiency
Function points
Function Points measure software size by
quantifying the functionality provided to the user
based solely on logical design and functional
specifications
Has gained acceptance in terms of productivity
(for example FP/year) and quality (defects/FP)
The IFPUG counting practices committee (
http://www.ifpug.org ) is the de facto standard for
counting methods
Function points
A weighted total of five major components that
form an application:
Number
of external inputs (e.g. transaction types)x4
Number of external outputs (e.g. report types)x5
Number of logical internal files (from the users point
of view as the may be conceived, not physical
files)x10
Number of external interface files (files accessed by
the application but not maintained by it)x7
Number of external inquiries (types of online inquiries
supported)x4
Function points
Can be calculated with low or high weighting
factors depending the complexity assesment of
the application
Many metrics can be based on function point
calculations
Although FP is usually more realistic metric than
LOC...
Calculating FPs needs training
Sometimes LOC is a metric fair enough
Software metrics for process
purposes
The effectiveness of defect removal inprocess
The pattern of testing defect arrival
The response time of fix process
Also in-process quality metrics improve both
the product and the process:
Defect density during machine testing
Phase-based defect removal pattern
Defect density during machine
testing
A simple metric: defects/KLOC or defects/FP
Defect rate during formal machine testing is usually
connected with the defect rate in the field
Higher defect rates found during testing indicate that the
software has experienced high error injection unless
some new testing approach is used or some extra
testing is used for some reason
Indicates the quality of the product when the software is
still tested many defects in testing mean that theres
too much error input in process
Can be used in other metrics
Defect Removal Effectiveness
(DRE)
A simple metric:
DRE=
Defects removed during a development phase
Defects still hidden in the product
x100%
Of course the number of latent defects in the product at any given
phase is not known, so the metric is based on approximation. Its
usually estimated by:
Defects removed during the phase + defects found later
Defect Removal Effectiveness
The metric can be calculated for the entire development process, for
each phase or before code integration
The higher the value, the more effective the development process
and fewer defects escaping to next phase or the field
For example, calculated for spesfic phases = phase effectiveness:
About productivity metrics..
Software productivity is a complex subject concerning
lots of factors (resources, quality, time..)
Metrics like LOC/hour, FP/person-month, hours / class
and average person-days/class (in object metrics) etc.
Usually number of units of output per unit of effort
Can be used to increase development by focusing on
certain not-efficient phases usually problematic in other
sense, too
Tools for analyzing metrics
Metrics are no use if they are not analyzed properly
For process and quality control at the project level
Some are more useful than others
Ishikawas 7 old tools:
Checklist
Pareto Diagram
Histogram
Scatter diagram
Run chart
Control Chart
Cause-and-effect diagram
Tools for analyzing metrics
Also new tools: the affinity diagram, the
relations diagram, the tree diagram, the
matrix chart, the matrix data analysis
chart, the process decision program chart
and the arrow diagram
Plenty of tools, but just using them doesnt
improve anything careful and selective
usage might do so
Software process improvement in
general
Usage of model based approach, like Capability
Maturity Model for Software (CMM) or Capability
Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) for guiding
and measuring process improvement effort
Goal should be improving process maturity
instead of attaining CMMI level
Measures and analyzes are used when
determining process qualities
Example: Using function point metrics
to measure software process
improvements
What kind of value results process improvements
bring?
Fewer
failures?
Higher productivity and quality?
Shorter schedules?
Higher user satisfaction?
Measurement with function points
First a formal process assessment and a
baseline, followed by a six-stage improvement
program
Using function point metrics to measure
software process improvements
Software process assessment, baseline
Assesment:
finding all the strengths and weaknesses
associated with software
Baseline: providing a quantitative basis for quality,
productivity, costs etc. -> collected with function point
metrics
Stage 1: Focus on management technologies
Stage 2: Focus on Software Processes and
methodologies
Using function point metrics to measure
software process improvements
Stage 3: Focus on new tools and
approaches
Stage 4: Focus on Infrastructure and
Specialization
Stage 5: Focus on Reusability
Stage 6: Focus on Industry Leadership
Using function point metrics to measure
software process improvements
As the focus has been in all the 6 stages
in improvement, data is collected and
metrics are used estimating the results
Function points can measure noncoding
activities such as design, documentation
and management, too
Using function point metrics to measure
software process improvements
Imaginary values are used to demonstrate how values improve
when improving the process from CMM 1 to CMM 3
Using function point metrics to measure
software process improvements
For noticing..
Almost everything can be measured, but for what purpose?
Planned metrics vs. actual metrics (for example error estimation)
Evaluation designed and careful, objectivity needed
Software process is a complicated matter with lots of elements
like creativity and mental activity. Using statistic metrics and
tools doesnt absolutely make it better, but the right usage
(Goal/Question/Metric) can help to improve the process.
Improving software process is a long way depending on various
factors and should be done with a model
References
Stephen H. Kan, Metrics and Models in
Software Quality Engineering, Pearson
Education Limited 2003, Boston, United States
International Function Point Users Group,
http://www.ifpug.org
SPC metrics resources,
http://www.spc.ca/resources/metrics/index.htm
R.S. Pressman & Associates, Inc., Software Engineering
Resources, http://www.rspa.com/spi/
