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=1.6 required=5.0 tests=BAYES_05,INVALID_MSGID,
	REPLYTO_WITHOUT_TO_CC autolearn=no autolearn_force=no version=3.4.4
X-Google-Language: ENGLISH,ASCII-7-bit
X-Google-Thread: 1108a1,9a0ff0bffdf63657
X-Google-Attributes: gid1108a1,public
X-Google-Thread: f43e6,9a0ff0bffdf63657
X-Google-Attributes: gidf43e6,public
X-Google-Thread: fac41,9a0ff0bffdf63657
X-Google-Attributes: gidfac41,public
X-Google-Thread: 103376,4b06f8f15f01a568
X-Google-Attributes: gid103376,public
From: ell@access.digex.net (Ell)
Subject: Re: Software landmines (loops)
Date: 1998/09/04
Message-ID: <35f36476.17781588@news.erols.com>#1/1
X-Deja-AN: 387721536
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
References: <6rfra4$rul$1@nnrp1.dejanews.com> <35DBDD24.D003404D@calfp.co.uk>
 <m3ogt3qgca.fsf@mheaney.ni.net> <6sbuod$fra$1@hirame.wwa.com>
 <35f51e53.48044143@news.erols.com> <6sdiav$e0g$1@hirame.wwa.com>
 <u90k5f1j1.fsf@gsfc.nasa.gov> <6sfcft$70p$1@hirame.wwa.com>
 <6shp40$ec8$1@nnrp1.dejanews.com> <6sie46$eb7$1@hirame.wwa.com>
 <i53H1.1212$EW4.489160779@newsreader.digex.net> <6siijm$h1m$1@hirame.wwa.com>
 <gio+van+no+ni+8-0309982244140001@dialup62.tlh.talstar.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
X-Complaints-To: abuse@rcn.com
X-Trace: winter.news.erols.com 904881812 19977 207.172.44.80 (4 Sep 1998
 04:03:32 GMT)
Organization: Universe
Mime-Version: 1.0
Reply-To: ell@access.digex.net
Newsgroups: comp.lang.eiffel,comp.object,comp.software-eng,comp.lang.ada
Date: 1998-09-04T00:00:00+00:00
List-Id: <comp.lang.ada>

gio+van+no+ni+8@tal+star+spam.com (Giovanni 8) wrote:

>"[R]eading a thousand-page source listing to learn about the
> components & architecture of a software system is a formidable,
> extremely time-consuming challenge.  Sometimes it is an
> impossible task because a maintenance programmer's 'span of
> understanding' is only 7K to 15K source code lines; & to
> understand this amount of code requires about 3 to 6 months
> of time." --- Carma McClure 1992 _The 3 Rs of Software Automation_
> pg 97 (citing Fletcher J. Buckley 1989-11-?? "Some Standards
> for Software Maintenance" _IEEE Computer_ vol 22 #1 pg 69)

Hence one of the major reasons I recommend that holistic analysis and
physical design (global, and local architectural)  object models be
created.  I find that the average person gains a more comprehensive
understanding of a system or its parts in a quicker amount of time
viewing graphical models as opposed to reading code.

Elliott