Jimali Software Engineering

I found this to be a scary book - scary in a Dilbert sort of way. It is a sad fact that many organisations don't perform many of the practices outlined in this book, but the good news is that this book presents practices that will help organisations to improve. It seems to me that the authors have learned how to build, test, and ship software the hard way, getting their fingers burnt in the process. They have documented a comprehensive list of practices that will help development teams of all types to improve the way they deliver software. The authors describe each practice in detail, and discuss how to start using the practice, as well as describing the signs that indicate its successful implementation. The chapter detailing common problems and their solutions discusses many of the barriers that software teams are likely to encounter and gives guidance to removing them. Much of the advice seems to come from the authors' previous experience, and much of it matches what I've seen as well. This book is very easy to read, and is arranged as a series of "bite sized chunks". Each practice is written as a complete package that allows the reader to consider the practice in isolation. This also allows the practices to be implemented as the software team needs them, rather than implementing them simultaneously. The authors give practical advice for convincing organisations to implement one or more of the practices. What I liked

• The chapter on common problems and how to fix them.
• The suggested reading list in Appendix H is a good idea despite the ever increasing list of books on each topic. This list gives a decent starting point for evaluating the various aspects of software projects.
• Easy to read.
• Practical advise for project delivery problems.
• The How to Get Started, You're Doing It Right If ..., and Warning Signs sections of each practice.

What I disliked

• Appendices B through G. These appendices lists tools and provides selection guidelines to help with the process. In reality, tools change and so whilst it is a reasonable start, the tools listed in these appendices probably should have been captured on a web site instead. It may actually have been better to simply move these appendices in their entirety to a website.

Recommendations This book serves its purpose of collating software development practices into a single place. For me, it is a good tool for promoting practices that will improve software implementation and delivery. I have ordered a copy of this book because it allows me to easily promote good software engineering practices by giving the book to those who have not been exposed to these practices. I believe that this book should be owned by anyone who is serious about improving the way that software is built, tested, and delivered by their organisation.