Page 138 -

CHAPTER 4 SOFTWARE PROCESS AND PROJECT METRICS 109

PROBLEMS AND POINTS TO PONDER

4.1. Suggest three measures, three metrics, and corresponding indicators that might
be used to assess an automobile.
4.2. Suggest three measures, three metrics, and corresponding indicators that might
be used to assess the service department of an automobile dealership.
4.3. Describe the difference between process and project metrics in your own words.

4.4. Why should some software metrics be kept “private”? Provide examples of three
metrics that should be private. Provide examples of three metrics that should be public.
4.5. Obtain a copy of Humphrey (Introduction to the Personal Software Process, Addison-
Wesley, 1997) and write a one- or two-page summary that outlines the PSP approach.
4.6. Grady suggests an etiquette for software metrics. Can you add three more rules
to those noted in Section 4.2.1?
4.7. Attempt to complete the fishbone diagram shown in Figure 4.3. That is, fol-
lowing the approach used for “incorrect” specifications, provide analogous informa-
tion for “missing, ambiguous, and changed” specifications.
4.8. What is an indirect measure and why are such measures common in software
metrics work?
4.9. Team A found 342 errors during the software engineering process prior to release.
Team B found 184 errors. What additional measures would have to be made for proj-
ects A and B to determine which of the teams eliminated errors more efficiently? What
metrics would you propose to help in making the determination? What historical data
might be useful?
4.10. Present an argument against lines of code as a measure for software produc-
tivity. Will your case hold up when dozens or hundreds of projects are considered?
4.11. Compute the function point value for a project with the following information
domain characteristics:
Number of user inputs: 32
Number of user outputs: 60
Number of user inquiries: 24
Number of files: 8
Number of external interfaces: 2
Assume that all complexity adjustment values are average.

4.12. Compute the 3D function point value for an embedded system with the fol-
lowing characteristics:
Internal data structures: 6
External data structure: 3