Software Endgames

Book excerpt: This is the digital version of the printed book (Copyright © 2005). Take Control of Your Project in the Final Stage of Software Development In software development, projects are won or lost during the project endgame-that final stage of software development between release for testing and release to customers. Software Endgames: Eliminating Defects, Controlling Change, and the Countdown to On-Time Delivery presents the core strategies for delivering working software to your customers. Focusing solely on the endgame, the book provides hard-won, hands-on strategies and practices for delivering real value. In the endgame, effective management and repair of defects is crucial. Experienced project manager and consultant Robert Galen shows readers how to conduct effective defect triage -- analyzing, understanding, and categorizing defects-in preparation for scheduling repairs. Readers will learn how to transform the endgame from a time of rampant defects and utter chaos into a time of focused repairs, effective teamwork, and change management. You'll set release criteria, establish endgame release plans, and utilize a variety of change reduction and endgame management techniques. Topics include developing various forms of release criteria and leveraging them to guide your teams' efforts strategies for reducing the rate of change change control and triage techniques that lead to efficient and effective defect repair decisions alternative methods of defect repair for decision-making flexibility setting up a defect-tracking system, managing defects and gathering standard metrics for endgame defect trending techniques for repair planning and efficiency agile extensions -- how to apply these techniques to agile projects how to "mine" your endgames for overall software development improvements.