Chapter 18. Using Function Point Metrics to Measure Software Process Improvements

Capers Jones

Software cost overruns, schedule delays, and poor quality have been endemic in the software industry for more than 50 years.

Since the incorporation of the Software Engineering Institute (SEI) in 1984, it has often been asserted that companies or projects that use state-of-the-art development processes and advanced tool suites can create software applications faster and with fewer risks of failure than traditional methods.

Are these assertions true? For software process improvement, there has been comparatively little solid, empirical data published on four important topics:

  1. What does it cost to improve software processes?

  2. How long does it take to see tangible ...

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