Not so very long ago, I was given an assignment to perform a forensic analysis on a piece of firmware. It seems that my client’s device had a rather spectacular failure which endangered many lives. The job was critical, but this was new territory for me.
As the holiday weekend winds down, the list of the worlds 500 fastest supercomputers has once again been updated. Since 1993 the list has been updated twice a year, and the world has watched as nations and corporations compete to move ahead and stay ahead of the competition. Publicity occasionally accompanies a major technology leap; but normally the updates go by without much fanfare.
There are many books you can get if you want to learn to program in C++ and Java. There are books about how to perform software design for business, how to develop embedded systems, and how to develop complex algorithms; but what if you want to write high-assurance software using object-oriented techniques? We’ve got a resource for you.
Earlier this week, I attended a colloquium hosted by the Minnesota chapter of the IASA. The presenter was Roger Sessions, CTO of ObjectWatch, and the topic was “The IT Complexity Crisis”. The presentation was well-received by most of the audience, but I found myself somewhat at odds with the material.
The so-called experts will tell you it can’t be done; it is not possible to create bug-free software, at least at low-cost for a non-trivial application. Now it seems, we have our first documented case of ostensibly zero-defect software.
Continue reading “Correctness by Construction: Praxis Scores!” »
I just finished reading Steve McConnell’s Professional Software Development: Shorter Schedules, Higher Quality Products, More Successful Projects, Enhanced Careers. This is not a book about languages, software design, or coding techniques. It is a book about being a software professional, and about managing and leading software professionals. It is a book about the state of software development as a profession, and about what we should aspire for it to become. All that, and it is an interesting read.
Continue reading “Professional Software Development – A Book Review” »
I wanted to express my thanks to Todd, over at FAAConsultants.com. He placed this site on his resource page, and we’re beginning to see some referred traffic as a result.
Continue reading “FAAConsultants.com: Compliance Made Simpler” »
