Code quality has traditionally been decomposed into internal and external quality. In this paper, we discuss the differences between these two views and consider the contexts in which either of the two becomes the main quality goal. We argue that for physics software the programmer’s perspective, focused on the internal quality, is the most important one. Then, we revise the available tools and techniques for the verification and improvement of the internal code quality, having in mind the programmer’s perspective. We conclude with a list of challenges for research in software engineering about aspects of the internal code quality that are largely neglected, but affect deeply the programmer’s ability to carry out code modification and bug fixing tasks. Such aspects revolve around the way in which the natural language is embedded into the code as a form of domain modeling.
Code Quality from the Programmer’s Perspective
Tonella, Paolo;Abebe, Surafel Lemma
2009-01-01
Abstract
Code quality has traditionally been decomposed into internal and external quality. In this paper, we discuss the differences between these two views and consider the contexts in which either of the two becomes the main quality goal. We argue that for physics software the programmer’s perspective, focused on the internal quality, is the most important one. Then, we revise the available tools and techniques for the verification and improvement of the internal code quality, having in mind the programmer’s perspective. We conclude with a list of challenges for research in software engineering about aspects of the internal code quality that are largely neglected, but affect deeply the programmer’s ability to carry out code modification and bug fixing tasks. Such aspects revolve around the way in which the natural language is embedded into the code as a form of domain modeling.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
