SPONSORS:
In This Issue:
Fourth Quarter 2007
ARTICLES & NEWS
 Chair Message: ICSQ - David Walker
 What’s the Latest Understanding of CMMI Performance Models? –
Robert W. Stoddard
 Taking the Plunge: Implementing Session-Based Exploratory
Testing Techniques on a High-Priority/Short-Turnaround Project Brenda S. Lee and James A. Reitzel from the 2007 International
IQSP “Live” Webinar CSQE
Conference on Software Quality (ICSQ)
Refresher Course, $495pp
Why Software Quality Assurance Practices Become Evil! - Gregory
plus on-site or on-line self 
Pope
study course at
 A Closer Look at the Pareto Principle for Software - Mechelle Gittens
www.iqps.net
and David Godwin from the Software Quality Professional (SQP)
Journal
 Practical Statistical Process Control for Software Metrics - Diane
Manlove and Stephen H. Kan from the Software Quality Professional
(SQP) Journal
 Benefits of a Higher Quality Level of the Software Process: Two
Organizations Compared - Daniel Galin and Motti Avrahami from the
Software Quality Professional (SQP) Journal
The Westfall Team provides 
A Methodology for Tracing the Requirements in the Object-Oriented
Software Engineering,
Software Design Process Using Quality Function Deployment Quality & Project
article Xiaoqing (Frank) Liu, Yan Sun, Praveen Inuganti, Chandra
Management consulting &
Sekhar Veera, and Yuji Kyoya from the Software Quality Professional
training, including ASQ
(SQP) Journal
CSQE Refresher training.
CONFERENCES & WEBINARS
 Software Division Webinar Report – Introduction to ISO 27001
Information Security Management System – Robin L. Dudash

Conference Report: Synopsis of 2007 FAA National Software
Conference – Mike Kress
ANNOUNCEMENTS
 Announcing the Publication of Fundamental Concepts for the
Software Quality Engineer, Volume 2, Sue Carroll and Taz
Daughtrey, Editors
 SQP Journal Articles – Sue Carroll
 ASQ Software Engineering Training Courses
 New – Division Product Page on Web Site
 Next Newsletter Deadline – 2/22/2008
COLUMNS

GET CERTIFIED
o
Progress on the CSQE BOK Update – Kathy Harris
o
Winter 2007/2008 CSQE Quiz – Linda Westfall
o
Recruiting CSQE Volunteers – Kathi Harris

AEROSPACE
o
Aerospace Corner: DO-178C Update – Gene Kelley

STANDARDS
o
Standards Chair Report – Theresa Hunt
FROM THE REGIONS
 Region 1 New England- Peter Schulz
 Region 4 Canada - Chris Fitz Gibbon
 Region 5 Mid Atlantic – Scott Ankrum
 Region 10 Michigan – Louise Tamres
 Region 13 Mid Central States – Gene Kelly

Region 14 Southwest & Mexico – David Peercy
ARTICLES & NEWS
Chair Message: ICSQ - David Walker
It was exciting to receive so much positive
feedback from attendees at the International
Conference on Software Quality in Denver in
October. This was truly one of the best programs
in terms of the technical program, networking,
exhibitors, and just having fun.
On the weekend before the conference, the
Software Division Council held our quarterly
meeting and a special strategic planning session.
To summarize, we are very concerned with the
circumstances our members face with their
employers, clients, and the software intensive
product industry in general.
Too many of our members are telling us that
their employers will not pay for conferences,
training, or any travel to improve software
quality skills and knowledge. Further, we are
concerned at the focus on software validation
testing, when we know that with software, it’s
too late by then to ensure quality. We believe
that there is a significant need to change the
focus of our publications, materials, and
discussion board support to provide members with more resources to sell the economic case for
quality in their organizations.
The Software Division already subscribes as a division to the ASQ’s Economic Case for Quality (ECQ)
initiative. Going forward, we plan to strengthen our support for this initiative and provide our members
with guidance in this area of focus. Software Quality Assurance professionals need to know how to sell
quality principles and practices and provide data to support it.
Please watch our web site for related updates: www.asq.org/software
What’s the Latest Understanding of CMMI Performance Models? – Robert W. Stoddard
For those in the process improvement world, the Software Engineering Institute’s Capability Maturity
Model Integrated (CMMISM) remains a dominant force as a framework for evaluating and increasing the
maturity of a software-intensive organization. Within the CMMI High Maturity Levels 4 and 5, a
concept of a process performance model exists as the engine of high maturity. This article in intended
to shed some light that will increase your insight and understanding of CMMI process performance
models. Hopefully, it will also motivate your organization to consider building some to predict key
performance outcomes. Read more…
Taking the Plunge: Implementing Session-Based Exploratory Testing Techniques on a HighPriority/Short-Turnaround Project - Brenda S. Lee and James A. Reitzel
Session-Based Exploratory Testing (SBET) is a widely used test methodology developed by James
Bach and Jonathan Bach. SBET formalizes ad hoc testing by providing charters that describe areas of
functionality to investigate and then allows pairs of testers to determine how to approach testing the
functionality. This technique was used to test a web-based application developed by Sandia National
Laboratories to provide inventory management capabilities for an external customer. The test team
deviated from traditional exploratory testing by including the applicable requirements as part of the
charter, as well as providing recommended test cases to execute during the session. As a result of
these modifications, the test team was able to validate 41 requirements and execute over 200 test
cases using 17 test charters during a 7-day test window. In addition, a high-level summary of the test
results was provided for customer review only two days after the conclusion of system test. This paper
reports on the specific modifications made during our use of SBET and evaluates its success. Read
more…
Why Software Quality Assurance Practices Become Evil! - Gregory Pope
This paper explores the challenge of determining the best practices for software development and why
the topic usually sparks a lively debate. The premise is that best practices are application specific and
are not easily portable from one industry to another. He considers a case study of three different types
of software developments and contrasts their differences. This article examines how to apply an
alternative method to best practices, which is a common set of principles that are turned into
appropriate best practices based on project risk. Read more…
A Closer Look at the Pareto Principle for Software - Mechelle Gittens and David Godwin
The first SQP article is “A Closer Look at the Pareto Principle for Software” by Mechelle Gittens and
David Godwin. This article discusses evidence of the Pareto principle as it relates to the distribution of
software defects in code. The authors look at evidence in both the context of the software test team
and the software users. They also investigate two related principles. The first principle is that the
distribution of defects in code relates to the distribution of complexity in code. The second hypothesis
discusses how one defines complexity and whether that definition relates to the distribution of
complexity in code. The authors present this work as an empirical study of three general hypotheses
investigated for large production-level software. They show that the essence of the principle holds and
precise percentages do not. Read more…
Practical Statistical Process Control for Software Metrics - Diane Manlove and Stephen H.
Kan from the Software Quality Professional (SQP) Journal
The second SQP article: Software metrics are an essential tool for project and quality management,
but when are metrics signaling to take action? How can one identify significant trends and process
changes or deviations? How does one know if process shifts are statistically significant? Statistical
limits help take the guesswork out of metrics analysis and empower project members to
knowledgeably control development processes and achieve product quality objectives. In this article,
some of the challenges of implementing SPC for software processes are discussed, several methods
for addressing the problems unique to SPC use within software development are described, and
practical examples of SPC implementation across the software development life cycle are explained.
Other traditional quality tools, such as Pareto analysis, are used to augment metrics analysis. Read
more…
Benefits of a Higher Quality Level of the Software Process: Two Organizations Compared Daniel Galin and Motti Avrahami from the Software Quality Professional (SQP) Journal
The third SQP article: Software quality assurance professionals believe that a higher quality level of
software development process yields higher quality performance, and they seek quantitative evidence
based on empirical findings. The few available resources that present quantitative findings use a
methodology based on a comparison of “before-after” observations in the same organization. A
limitation of this methodology is the long observation period, during which intervening factors may
substantially affect the results. The authors’ study employed a methodology based on a comparison of
observations in two organizations simultaneously (Alpha and Beta). Six quality performance metrics
were employed: 1) error density, 2) productivity, 3) percentage of rework, 4) time required for an
error correction, 5) percentage of recurrent repairs, and 6) error detection effectiveness. Read more…
A Methodology for Tracing the Requirements in the Object-Oriented Software Design
Process Using Quality Function Deployment - article Xiaoqing (Frank) Liu, Yan Sun, Praveen
Inuganti, Chandra Sekhar Veera, and Yuji Kyoya from the Software Quality Professional
(SQP) Journal
The fourth SQP article: It has been widely acknowledged that software products should be developed
based on customer requirements in order to achieve a high level of software quality and customer
satisfaction. However, customer requirements, as well as the software artifacts at later stages of the
software development life cycle, are not equally important. Tracing these differing customer
requirements and their impacts through the software development life cycle is not a well-explored
area. In this article, a framework is presented that uses quality function deployment (QFD) to trace
customer requirements explicitly through various phases, such as requirements elicitation, analysis,
and design in object-oriented software development, by assessing their impact on software artifacts of
the next stages. Degrees of impact are clearly calculated and presented in QFD, and an objectoriented software design example is developed to illustrate and validate the framework. Read more…
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CONFERENCES & WEBINARS
Software Division Webinar Report – Introduction to ISO 27001 Information Security
Management System by John Weaver – Robin L. Dudash
The fifth ASQ Software Division Webinar, “Introduction to ISO 27001 Information Security
Management System” was conducted on Friday, October 19, from noon to 1pm, eastern standard
time. John Weaver, an IRCA Certified Lead Auditor for ISO 27001 Information Security, presented a
very formative discussion on the ‘who, what, when and why’ of ISO 27001, and even a brief how on
getting your Information Security Management System (ISMS) third-party registered. The John’s
presentation is available for downloaded from the ASQ Software Division website,
http://www.asq.org/software/training-education/index.html. Read more…
Conference Report: Synopsis of 2007 FAA National Software Conference – Mike Kress
This year’s 2007 FAA National Software Conference covered over 50 papers outlining the advancement
of processes, methodologies and regulations within the FAA for airborne software. In addition,
complex electronic hardware, aeronautical data bases and software security are addressed. Such
topics have not been addressed in any depth previously. The complete proceedings are on CD and are
available from the author. This synopsis summarizes some of these papers deemed most relevant to
the certification, configuration control and conformity processes for airborne software for commercial
aircraft. Read more…
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ANNOUNCEMENTS
Announcing the Publication of Fundamental Concepts for the Software Quality Engineer,
Volume 2, Sue Carroll and Taz Daughtrey, Editors
This volume provides selected articles gathered from the last five volumes of Software Quality
Professional (SQP), a peer-reviewed quarterly publication applying quality principles to the
development and use of software and software-based systems. This collection of articles provides you
with insights from authors around the globe -- which is vital in today's global economy. As with SQP
and this series' first volume, this book follows the categories of the ASQ Certified Software Quality
Engineer Body of Knowledge. The articles are each related to one of the seven knowledge areas and
provided in numbers proportional to the relative weights assigned to each category in the certification
exam.
Software engineers should use this book to broaden their knowledge in several important aspects of
software quality. The field keeps growing and expanding to meet the changing needs of technology;
the insights presented in this book can help you meet the challenge and begin your journey. To order
this book visit http://www.asq.org/quality-press/display-item/index.html?item=H1313.
SQP Journal Articles – Sue Carroll
Software Quality Professional (SQP) Journal is an ASQ journal supported by the ASQ Software
Division. In each quarterly issue there is an article that is available to non-subscribers. We’ll include
the abstract and a pointer to that article in each quarterly Software Division newsletter. The fourth
issue of the SQP each year has all articles available – that is the issue highlighted this month. So,
there is a pointer to four articles instead of one! You can find this quarter’s articles in the articles and
news section of this newsletter. If you would like to write an article for the journal – see the author
guidelines. If you would like to volunteer to review articles or books, or write a letter to the editor
contact Sue Carroll.
ASQ Software Engineering Training Course
ASQ announces the public offerings of its popular Software Engineering course. Students earn CEUs
and ASQ RUs by attending these courses. Click on the ASQ website links below for more information
or to register for these courses:

Software Quality Engineering (SQE)
o

Atlanta, Georgia • May 19-23, 2008
Building Software Quality Skills
o

Software Functional Testing and Test Management
o

Houston, Texas • May 7-9, 2008
Cincinnati, Ohio • April 7-9, 2008
Software Requirements Engineering
o
Atlanta, Georgia • May 19-21, 2008
In addition to these public courses, ASQ can bring these and other Software Engineering, Software
Quality and Software Project Management course on-site to your organization. For a complete course
list …
New – Division Product Page on Web Site
The Software Division has created a new Division product page with items specifically tailored for
Division members. Two new items are now available:

International Conference on Software Quality (ICSQ 2007) CDs for $25.00

Software Division Pens for $4.00
You can visit this site at http://www.asq.org/software/products/index.html
Next Newsletter Deadline – 3/20/2008
If you would like to submit an article, including shorter “tips and techniques” submissions, have
information or events that you would like to see posted or anything else you would like to contribute
to the Software Division Newsletter that you think might be of interest to our members, please send
your submissions to Linda Westfall.
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COLUMNS - GET CERTIFIED
Progress on the CSQE BOK Update – Kathy Harris
Volunteers from the Software Division are making progress on the update to the CSQE Body of
Knowledge (BOK). We held a successful Job Analysis workshop in Milwaukee in July 2007 where
volunteers and I worked with ASQ’s consultant and our test developer to assemble the CSQE survey
that many of you recently received. Thanks to Helene Babich, Dan Bernstein, Anita Kenworthy,
Thomas Oglesby, N. Rhodes Gardner, Jim Turner and Greg Zimmerman for a great job at the
workshop. And thanks also to all of you who took the time to reply to the survey invitation; we
couldn’t do this update without the contributions from each of you!
Our next step is to take the results of the survey and build the new BOK. Over the next six months,
volunteers will be participating in workshops to craft the BOK and to create or update questions for the
exam bank as needed.
CSQE Practice Quiz – Linda Westfall
Want to practice for the ASQ Certified Software Quality Engineer (CSQE) Exam or just test your
knowledge of Software Quality Engineering? Try this practice quiz. Take the CSQE 4Q2007 Quiz…
Recruiting CSQE Volunteers – Kathy Harris
One good way to earn 2 RUs and have fun while doing it is to participate in an exam development
workshop! If you’d like to get involved, please contact our CSQE liaison, Brenda Richardson, at
Brenda_Richardson@bmc.com; she’ll be happy to provide you with more information.
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COLUMNS – AEROSPACE
Aerospace Corner: DO-178C Update – Gene Kelly
RTCA/DO-178B, “Software Considerations in Airborne Systems and Equipment Certification”, is the
recognized means of compliance for airborne software by regulatory authorities in the US, Europe and
other countries. However, DO-178B has been in existence since 1992, and the RTCA/EUROCAE SC205/WG71 working group has been working since 2005 on the next version, DO-178C.
To summarize the objectives of SC-205/WG71, as described in the RTCA Terms of Reference, are:
1)
To promote safe implementation of aeronautical software,
2)
To provide clear and consistent ties with the systems and safety processes,
3)
To address emerging software trends and technologies (such as tool qualification, formal
methods, and object-oriented technology)
4)
To implement an approach that can change with the technology.
This group, with nearly 1300 members, conducts joint meetings at least twice each year, with
subgroups addressing specific technologies that meet more frequently.
The Sixth Joint Meeting of SC-205/WG71 was held at the Technical University of Vienna in Vienna,
Austria from 10 to 14 September 2007. The minutes state that a major outcome of this meeting was
the general plenary agreement that DO-278/ED-109 (CNS/ATM) for ground based avionics and DO178/ED-12 for airborne should be merged, with appropriate risk mitigation monitored and managed.
Progress was also made on tool qualification and integration of formal methods.
The next joint meeting is scheduled for 14 to 18 January 2008 in Vancouver, British Columbia,
Canada. The final deliverable of DO-178C/ED-12C is scheduled for delivery to RTCA/EUROCAE by 1
December 2008. More information can be found at the SC-205/WG71 website at
http://ultra.pr.erau.edu/SCAS/.
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COLUMNS – Standards
Standards Chair Report – Theresa Hunt
Greetings and Happy New Year! Yes, after 10 years of planning our annual conference, I have moved
positions from Vice-Chair Programs to Standards Chair, leaving the Programs committee in the very
capable hands of Stuart Yarost. This report addresses the US Technical Advisory Group (TAG) SC7
meeting held September 18-20, 2007 and future planned meeting dates/locations. Read more …
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FROM THE REGIONS
The following links will provide you with a snapshot of the latest activities in the regions.
Region 1 New England - Peter Schulz

The Software Quality Group of New England (SQGNE)

The Boston Software Process Improvement Network (SPIN)
Read the Region 1 Report for 4Q2007…
Region 4 Canada – Chris Fitz Gibbon

Calgary-based IEEE/ASQ Discussion Group for Software Quality

Software Quality Assurance Vancouver User Group (VanQ)

Toronto Association of Systems and Software Quality (TASSQ)

Toronto Software Process Improvement Network

Montreal Software Process Improvement Network (SPIN)

Information Systems Audit and Control Association’s (ISACA) Ottawa Valley Chapter.

Ottawa Software Process Improvement Network (SPIN)
Read the Region 4 Report for 4Q2007…
Region 5 Mid-Atlantic – N. Moreau

ASQ Washington, DC & Maryland Metro Section

ASQ Baltimore Section

ASQ Philadelphia Section

Mid-Atlantic Collaboration Network (MACN)

Washington DC Process Improvement Network (SPIN)
Read the Region 5 Report for 4Q2007…
Region 6 Pacific Northwest – Tom Gilchrist

Seattle Software Process Improvement Network (SeaSpin)

Seattle Area Software Quality Assurance Group (SASQAG)
Region 10 Michigan, Northeast Indiana & Northwest Ohio – Louise Tamres

Great Lakes SPIN

Ann Arbor Software Quality Professionals (AASQP)

Southeastern Michigan Software Quality Assurance Association (SEMISQAA)
Read the Region 10 Report for 4Q2007…
Region 13 Mid Central States – Gene Kelly
Read the Region 13 Report for 4Q2007…
Region 14 Southwest & Mexico – David Peercy

ASQ Greater Fort Worth Section

ASQ Dallas Section

ASQ Albuquerque Section

Association for Software Engineering Excellence (ASEE) Dallas/Fort Worth (SPIN)
Read the Region 14 Report for 4Q2007…
Region 15 South Eastern US – Mark Neal

Huntsville, AL Software Process Improvement Network (SPIN)

Jacksonville, FL Software Process Improvement Network (SPIN)

Tampa Bay, FL Software Process Improvement Network (SPIN)

Atlanta, GA Software Process Improvement Network (SPIN)
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Questions or comments?
See:
Software Division Web Site
Software Division Leadership
Or Contact:
David Walker, Chair
Rufus Turpin, Chair-Elect
Robert Stoddard, Secretary
Eva Freund, Treasurer
How can we improve Software Quality Live? Did the 3Q2007 issue provide helpful information? Let us
know!