Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
with a
commit message
which is usually natural language text stating which
changes or additions have been made. The commit message may for instance
refer to the addressed task.
Bug Reports:
Deficiencies found while testing or reviewing the implementation
are usually stored in a bug tracking system, such as Bugzilla
2
. Each issue found
is commonly described with a unique identifier and a detailed description when
and how the software misbehaves. When the problem is fixed, this is also entered
into the bug tracking system, e.g., with a reference to the corresponding commit
in the versioning system.
Build Scripts and Reports:
Continuous integration systems such as Hudson
3
are
often used to automatically integrate and compile the different components of
a software system. Further, automatic testing can be triggered. In combination
with the results reported, the integration steps currently configured can provide
insight about the status the project is in and which parts are already finished.
Task Lists:
In order to keep track of the tasks and their allocation to different
team members, project management tools such as TinyPM
4
are typically used.
Furthermore, the status of each task is maintained, e.g., whether a task is still
pending, has been already started, or is already completed. Tasks can also be
associated to the user stories within such a system. Thus, a project management
system can provide the most detailed input from the management perspective,
assuming that the team members keep the status of the tasks up-to-date. This
facts needs to be validated from the other artifacts that are created during
development.
Wiki Pages:
Many organizations use Wiki systems to manage the knowledge
obtained while working on a project. This may include best practices, lessons
learned or specific design decisions. Wiki pages usually consist of natural lan-
guage text that is only weakly structured by, e.g., marking section headings.
Calendar Entries:
Group calendars are ubiquitous tools for most development
teams. They may store information about meetings concerning specific issues
within the development, such as decisions how to solve specific tasks. The in-
formation about the date and time of the meeting and its content, and maybe
also the according meeting minutes, can provide insights into the progress of the
project.
IM messages and social network postings:
Instant messaging and social networks
can be used by developers for quick communication with colleagues about specific
issues during development, e.g., if a framework or API does not work as expected.
These messages and posting may refer to tasks or the outcome of tasks and, thus,
may be valuable in determining progress.
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