[polarsys-iwg] [Maturity] First steps towards a definition of maturity

[Boris Baldassari <boris.baldassari@xxxxxxxxx>]

Hiho dear all,

First of all, I'm not used to the Eclipse working groups so please 
accept my apologises if I'm doing something wrong.
I wanted to edit the polarsys wiki but I'm not able to log in with my 
eclipse credential -- any help on that matter would be appreciated.

As a first step in the definition and assessment of software project 
maturity, I'd like to propose some basic pieces of interpretation and 
semantics. Please feel free to argue or comment.

Maturity in a generic meaning refers to the state gained after the 
youth. It usually concepts of reliability, mastership, absence of common 
errors, predictability.

However in the context of critical embedded software it has a specific 
semantic. After a few discussions with Pierre Gaufillet and others 
around me, here is what maturity could induce:
* Some sort of reliability: the software product has been enough 
exercised to detect and correct the most frequent or critical bugs. 
Considering Reliability Growth Models, the number of bugs discovered in 
a mature project is decreasing.
* Some sort of functionality: the software product is fully able to 
deliver its functionalities, it is usable and complete.
* Some sort of maintainability: it should be easy to modify and improve 
the software, even if developers change.
* Some sort of process predictabilitiy: the project delivers products 
with constant quality and at planed dates.
* Some sort of documentation and support: manuals are easily available 
for the different actors involved in the product usage (user, 
administrator, installation, upgrade, customisation..), and there is 
enough support to get answers in a timely and complete fashion. Support 
can be provided by the community, or a public or privately held company.
* Some sort of process traceability: there are publicly available 
documents tracking decisions, contributions, or important things. This 
part is especially useful for the certification.


It should be noted that Maturity is a sub-characteristic of reliability 
in the ISO 9126 / SQuaRE standards. The definition given for it is:
* ISO9126: the capability of the software product to avoid failure as a 
result of faults in the software.
* SQuaRE: degree to which a system, product or component meets needs for 
reliability under normal operation.

The SQuaRE adds an interesting note to this definition: "The concept of 
maturity can also be applied to other quality characteristics to 
indicate the degree to which they meet required needs under normal 
operation."

I'm conducting a research project (Maisqual) on a similar subject, so I 
may be able to add more on quality models, metrics and links between 
both, but this would make this email inefficient. Depending on your 
answers, I could add them on the wiki as soon as I can get a login.

Any thought, comment, remark are welcome..


--
Boris Baldassari
SQuORING Technologies