Harnessing Taguchi Methods in Software Development

Many factors may influence the successful development of software (SW). Most practitioners, however, tend to use their own preferred methods—some ad hoc—for this task. This paper reviews recent attempts of using orthogonal array (OA) experiments to determine the effect of various influencing factors and then their optimum settings to reduce errors in the SW created. Genichi Taguchi popularized such an experimental approach—now known as the Taguchi Method—for hardware design. Indeed, this method has proved to be of high value in delivering superior quality products and manufacturing processes. This paper reviews the SW development scene and examines the potential utility of such a framework to improve SW development. Indications are that this approach can reduce bugs and errors in the SW thus developed, and also make the development and testing processes more effective and efficient.