As the new Technical Director for the Data & Analysis Center for Software, I wish to introduce myself and discuss the technical direction of the DACS.
Ihave been involved in software engineering, particularly software engineering management, for over thirty years. During this time I have held positions in government and industry. While in industry I have seen first hand the problems encountered in DoD software development efforts and have experienced the difficulty in transitioning both new and old technologies. I have participated in software process assessments and software capability evaluations, having the opportunity to lead a government team in direct support of a procurement action. A particular interest, specifically with respect to software process improvement, has been the application of measurement in the support of software engineering. In my view, this is the next major step that needs to be taken in support of the process improvement program led by the Software Engineering Institute.
While in government I was involved in almost every major software engineering and technology initiative from the early efforts to develop and implement Ada, language standardization, the Software Initiative (now the STARS program) and DOD-STD-2167, Defense System Software Development Standard. I believe that I have a sound understanding of the issues and problems that the DoD faces in managing software development and introducing new practices to devise solutions.
As I look forward to my new assignment as the Technical Director of the DACS, I am excited over the opportunity to contribute to the field of measurement and data acquisition in support of new thrusts in these areas. I am already deeply involved in the effort to create a National Software Council (NSC), an initiative which emerged from the Rome Laboratory sponsored Software Quality Workshop held in Cooperstown, New York, and known as Cooperstown I. In this respect I am leading a National Security Industrial Association (NSIA) team, under the auspices of the NSIA's Software and Information Systems Committee, to perform the planning and take the necessary implementation steps to advocate and organize the NSC. The NSC is intended to be a high level government council to consider national software issues and recommend national polices, programs, and legislative actions. I will have the opportunity to present the NSC organizational activity at Cooperstown II, which is currently being planned, and will be actively supported by the DACS. The other thrust that emerged from Cooperstown I was the concept of a national data repository. This repository would house software data that would allow analysts to create technical solutions to measurement problems, and formulate an information base to support decisions makers with the kind of information that would allow responsible engineering and management decisions relative to all facets of software acquisition. These are sometimes called software development "norms" such as what is reasonable, considering the state of the practice, to expect in terms of reliability and productivity levels for typical software developments across a spectrum of system (domain) types.
The National Software Data and Information Repository (NSDIR) thrust, is led by the USAF, under the leadership of Mr. Lloyd Mosemann, the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Communications, Computers and Support. Unisys, under a STARS task, has been tasked to create a prototype and strategic plan for the repository. The NSDIR will be the major topic at Cooperstown II, a workshop organized and hosted by Mr. Andrew Chruscicki of Rome Laboratory, scheduled for the week of 21 August 1994.
I believe that the DACS can play an important role in these areas. Our technical focus is software information services and measurement as a practice in software development. Over the next several years we will focus our efforts in support of these thrusts as well as other government needs. This newsletter will keep you abreast of these major developments. Please feel free to contact me for additional information or to comment on anything in this newsletter.
Mr. John J. Marciniak,
DACS Technical Director
POC: DACS Director
(315) 334-4905
[email protected]