Ten Commandments of Formal Methods

0018-9162/06/$20.00 © 2006 IEEE 40 Computer P u b l i s h e d b y t h e I E E E C o m p u t e r S o c i e t y Real engineers use mathematics. Formal methods are the mathematics of software engineering. Therefore, software engineers should use formal methods. Yet even with this elegant simplicity, most projects hold formal methods at arm’s length unless they involve the design and maintenance of critical systems.7 Some formal techniques such as program assertions are reasonably popular, but they represent only a tiny slice of the vast formal methods pie. Oddly, despite their spotty application, formal methods continue to appear in the trade literature.8 Apparently, the software engineering community is not willing to abandon formal methods, given the slight increase in formal methods projects,9 but neither is it willing to embrace them. Perhaps revisiting our commandments might explain this curious stalemate. Not all our colleagues agreed with our final commandment choices, arguing that some would not stand the test of time. Would a retrospective prove that our colleagues were right?