- Paperback: 208 pages
- Publisher: Prentice Hall; 1 edition (24 Nov 1997)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0136820891
- ISBN-13: 978-0136820895
- Product Dimensions: 22.6 x 15 x 1.5 cm
- Average Customer Review: 1.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 4,057,468 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- See Complete Table of Contents
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
Product details |
More About the Author
Product Description
Product Description
PLEASE PROVIDE ???
PLEASE PROVIDE ???
From the Author
Overview of cost estimating concepts in easy to read format
If you're looking for a textbook on cost estimating, this book is not it. I would instead recommend Barry's book (Software Engineering Economics), especially after he comes out with the new version; or Capers new book Estimating Software Costs. This book has value for someone that wants a higher level overview of the field. It would be a good book for someone new to the field that wants to get the general lay of the land prior to delving into one of the massive volumes I recommend above. Also, be aware that the book does use Cost Xpert throughout to illustrate the concepts, which is why an evaluation copy is included. The idea is to get an overview of the concepts and play with a sample tool hands on without spending too much time or money. You can then decide if you want to get into the more advanced volumes, evaluate costing tools for potential purchase, and so on.
If you're looking for a textbook on cost estimating, this book is not it. I would instead recommend Barry's book (Software Engineering Economics), especially after he comes out with the new version; or Capers new book Estimating Software Costs. This book has value for someone that wants a higher level overview of the field. It would be a good book for someone new to the field that wants to get the general lay of the land prior to delving into one of the massive volumes I recommend above. Also, be aware that the book does use Cost Xpert throughout to illustrate the concepts, which is why an evaluation copy is included. The idea is to get an overview of the concepts and play with a sample tool hands on without spending too much time or money. You can then decide if you want to get into the more advanced volumes, evaluate costing tools for potential purchase, and so on.
Tag this product(What's this?)Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organise and find favourite items. |
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This book originally caught my eye because it gave the impression of discussing a variety of estimating techniques from function points to COCOMO. For example the synopsis from amazon.com states, "Powerful, scientific techniques are presented for confidently producing and defending accurate software development estimates and schedules." In my opinion nothing could be farther from the truth. This book should really be titled "A User Manual for CostXPert" which is a copyrighted estimating program developed by the author. It briefly summarizes common estimating techniques in the first two chapters. From chapter three on the text is focused entirely on the CostXPert program. The CostXPert program is included on CD ROM, which is usable for only a six month evaluation period. Of course the author offers to sell you a copy at $995 per license, discounts for larger orders. I am still evaluating the CostXPert software and it could possibly have some merit. The book itself as a means of learning about software project scheduling and cost estimating is woefully inadequate in comparison to other books such as Bary Boehm's "Software Engineering Economics." In fact I am a bit steamed that I spent $50 which is essentially subsidizing the authors marketing costs. If you were interested in the software I would suggest that you go to the authors website and download the program, which comes with a 30 day evaluation. The only benefit that you get with the book is a six month evaluation period instead of 30 days. Caveat Emptor!
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
5 reviews
30 of 30 people found the following review helpful
Caveat Emptor
26 Mar 1998
Format:Paperback
This book originally caught my eye because it gave the impression of discussing a variety of estimating techniques from function points to COCOMO. For example the synopsis from amazon.com states, "Powerful, scientific techniques are presented for confidently producing and defending accurate software development estimates and schedules." In my opinion nothing could be farther from the truth. This book should really be titled "A User Manual for CostXPert" which is a copyrighted estimating program developed by the author. It briefly summarizes common estimating techniques in the first two chapters. From chapter three on the text is focused entirely on the CostXPert program. The CostXPert program is included on CD ROM, which is usable for only a six month evaluation period. Of course the author offers to sell you a copy at $995 per license, discounts for larger orders. I am still evaluating the CostXPert software and it could possibly have some merit. The book itself as a means of learning about software project scheduling and cost estimating is woefully inadequate in comparison to other books such as Bary Boehm's "Software Engineering Economics." In fact I am a bit steamed that I spent $50 which is essentially subsidizing the authors marketing costs. If you were interested in the software I would suggest that you go to the authors website and download the program, which comes with a 30 day evaluation. The only benefit that you get with the book is a six month evaluation period instead of 30 days. Caveat Emptor!
11 of 12 people found the following review helpful
Pricey User Manual
28 Oct 1999
Format:Paperback
If you took out what was not directly related to the vastly overpriced costXpert product you would have about 10 pages.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Good Software - Book is a User's Manual for Trial Software
31 Dec 2001
Format:Paperback
I happened across this book in the University of Wisconsin bookstore and picked it up hoping it would expand on things already covered in Boehm's work. As a book, it isn't so great.
However, the software it contains is one of the most usable cost estimation tools around - if you need that kind of tool. In many cases, I've gone through the process that this software shows with other people who bought the tool outright (it's expensive if you're getting it as a single user - if you're buying it for corporate use, it's quite a value). The software is particularly valuable if you're a novice at cost estimation, since you can experiment with different lifecycles, documentation standards, and environmental factors. From this standpoint, the Marotz tool is an excellent educational device.
In short, if you need a software cost estimation tool - download
the free trial version from Marotz and try it out. This book
by itself is probably promising too much.
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
- Books > Business, Finance & Law > Economics
- Books > Business, Finance & Law > Management > Budgeting & Finance
- Books > Business, Finance & Law > Management > Human Resources > Professional Development
- Books > Business, Finance & Law > Management > Project Management
- Books > Business, Finance & Law > Professional Finance > Budgeting
- Books > Computing & Internet > Programming > Software Design, Testing & Engineering
- Books > Science & Nature > Engineering & Technology
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
