Status Report on Software Measurement

The most successful measurement programs are ones in which researcher, practitioner, and customer work hand in hand to meet goals and solve problems. But such collaboration is rare. The authors explore the gaps between these groups and point toward ways to bridge them. n any scientific field, measurement generates quantitative descriptions of key processes and products, enabling us to understand behavior and result. This enhanced understanding lets us select better techniques and tools to control and improve our processes, products, and resources. Because engineering involves the analysis of measurements, software engineering cannot become a true engineering discipline unless we build a solid foundation of measurement-based theories. One obstacle to building this base is the gap between measurement research and measurement practice. This status report describes the state of research, the state of the art, and the state of practice of software measurement. It reflects discussion at the Second International Software Metrics Symposium, which we organized. The aim of the symposium is to encourage researchers and practitioners to share their views, problems, and needs, and to work together to define future activities that will address common goals. Discussion at the symposium revealed that participants had different and sometimes conflicting motivations.