From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 X-Spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 3.4.4 (2020-01-24) on polar.synack.me X-Spam-Level: X-Spam-Status: No, score=-1.3 required=5.0 tests=BAYES_00,INVALID_MSGID autolearn=no autolearn_force=no version=3.4.4 X-Google-Language: ENGLISH,ASCII-7-bit X-Google-Thread: fac41,f66d11aeda114c52 X-Google-Attributes: gidfac41,public X-Google-Thread: 103376,f66d11aeda114c52 X-Google-Attributes: gid103376,public From: Bertrand Meyer Subject: Re: Critique of Ariane 5 paper (finally!) Date: 1997/08/15 Message-ID: <33F48C0B.41C67EA6@eiffel.com>#1/1 X-Deja-AN: 264311201 References: <33E503B3.3278@flash.net> <33E8FC54.41C67EA6@eiffel.com> <33E9B217.39DA@flash.net> <33EA5592.5855@flash.net> <33EB4935.167EB0E7@eiffel.com> <33EB754E.446B9B3D@eiffel.com> <33EBE46D.2149@flash.net> <33EF9487.41C67EA6@eiffel.com> <33F20BCE.AB3@link.com> <33F22AD8.41C67EA6@eiffel.com> <33F33261.127D@link.com> <33F39E3C.50FB@invest.amp.com.au> <33F4908D.3509@link.com> Organization: Interactive Software Engineering Inc. Newsgroups: comp.lang.ada,comp.lang.eiffel Date: 1997-08-15T00:00:00+00:00 List-Id: Samuel Mize wrote as part of his response to Thomas Beale: > The paper claims DBC/Eiffel is THE ONE method that could have > found the Ariane 5 flaw. The paper in question (Jean-Marc Jezequel and Bertrand Meyer, "Design by Contract: The Lessons of Ariane", IEEE Computer, January 1997, pages 129-130, slightly revised version at http://www.eiffel.com) says no such thing, which would be silly. Once you have discovered a bug, you can usually think ex post facto of many "methods" that "could" have found it -- some technical (such as Design by Contract), some organizational (more design/code reviews, more testing etc.). What the paper says (going into the details, and drawing the lessons) is that reuse without a contract is folly, and that such improper reuse was the direct cause of the Ariane failure. I don't see the point of criticizing people for something else than what they wrote, especially when the text is available for everyone to read. -- Bertrand Meyer, President, ISE Inc. ISE Building, 2nd floor, 270 Storke Road, Goleta CA 93117 805-685-1006, fax 805-685-6869, http://www.eiffel.com, with downloading instructions == ISE Eiffel 4: Eiffel from those who invented it ==