In a short article in the July/August issue of IEEE Software, Tom DeMarco, one of the founding figures from the 1980s of the software engineering movement, recants.
DeMarco became a major influence on SE with his 1982 book Controlling Software Projects: Management, measurement and estimation.
In my reflective mood I’m wondering, was its advice correct at the time, is it still relevant, and do I believe that metrics are a must for any successful software development effort? My answers are no, no, and no.
What does he now think?
Software development is and always will be somewhat experimental.
So now even he knows. Direct Development – is its hour come at last?
