Quality Attributes

Criteria

Quality Measurement

Accuracy

Those attributes of the software products that provide the required precision in calculations and output products and fully meet the functional, performance, and operational requirements.

Clarity

Those attributes of the software that provide for useful inputs and outputs which are readily assimilated.

Communications

Those attributes of the software that provide the use of commonality standard protocols and interface routines.

Communicativeness

Those attributes of the software products that provide useful inputs and outputs that can be assimilated.

Conciseness

Those attributes of the software products that provide for simplicity and completeness in presentation and for implementation of a function with a minimum amount of code, lending itself to simplicity and modularity.

Consistency

Those attributes of the software products that provide uniform design and implementation techniques. Consistency is measured for report and screen formats, programming techniques, JCL coding, etc.

Data commonality

Those attributes of the software that provide the use of standard data representations and structures.

Encapsulation

Software objects that protect themselves and their associated data, eliminating random effects on other objects in the same system when encountering error conditions.

Error Tolerance

Those attributes of the software products that provide continuity of operation under non-nominal conditions.

Execution efficiency

Those attributes of the software that provide for minimum execution processing time without decrease in functionality.

Expandability

Those attributes of the software products that provide for increasing, changing, and customizing functionality.

Modularity

Those attributes of the software products that provide a structure of highly independent modules with each serving a particular function and accordingly, lending itself to simplicity, ease of maintenance, and future expansion.

Self-descriptiveness

Those attributes of the software that provide explanation of the maintenance and implementation of a function.

Simplicity

Those attributes of the software products that provide maintenance and implementation of the functions in the most understandable manner.

Timeliness

Those attributes of the software products that are delivered on time or run on schedule. For Year 2000 projects, also those attributes of the software products that can be delivered before the event horizon.