Software Fundamentals: Collected Papers by David L.Parnas (Paperback)

From software design and specification to the social impact of technology, few software engineers have had the insight -- or the impact -- of David L. Parnas. Now, two leaders of the software engineering community have selected, annotated, and brought together 30 of Parnas' best papers: a lifetime of best practices that will be invaluable to every software practitioner -- and anyone who cares about the deeper meaning of information technology. Every article in this collection addresses a key problem in software development -- and presents insights that are as valuable now as when Parnas first shared them.

David L. Parnas is one of the grandmasters of software engineering. His academic research and industrial collaborations have exerted far-reaching influence on software design and development. His groundbreaking writings capture the essence of the innovations, controversies, challenges, and solutions of the software industry. Together, they constitute the foundation for modern software theory and practice.

This book contains thirty-three of his most influential papers in various areas of software engineering. Leading thinkers in software engineering have contributed short introductions to each paper to provide the historical context surrounding each paper's conception and writing.

Software Fundamentals: Collected Papers by David L. Parnas is a practical guide to key software engineering concepts that belongs in the library of every software professional. It introduces and explains such seminal topics as:

• Relational and tabular documentation
• Information hiding as the basis for modular program construction
• Abstract interfaces that provide services without revealing implementation
• Program families for the efficient development of multiple software versions
• The status of software engineering as a profession
• Why complex software, such as for the Strategic Defense Initiative, is unlikely to work the first time that it is used in the field

As a celebration of one of the fathers of modern software engineering, and as a practical guide to the key concepts underlying software development, Software Fundamentals is valuable for professionals, especially those who are interested in teaching the fundamentals of software.

David Parnas is highly regarded for his many valuable contributions to software engineering. He developed and applied cutting-edge software technology to the U.S. Navy's A-7E aircraft, and he advised the Atomic Energy Control Board of Canada on the use of safety-critical, real-time software. During his career, he has contributed more than 200 papers to ACM, IEEE, and ICSE publications. He won an ACM "Best Paper" award, two "Most Influential Paper" awards from ICSE, and the 1998 "Outstanding Researcher" award from ACM SIGSOFT. In May 2001, Dr. Parnas was recognized at the International Conference on Software Engineering for his lifetime of outstanding achievements.

Daniel Hoffman is an Associate Professor of Computer Science at the University of Victoria in British Columbia. David Weiss is the Director of the Software Technology Research Department at Avaya Laboratories.