Research by Capers Jones (Estimating Software Costs, McGraw Hill, 1998) indicates that formal cost estimating techniques can roughly double the probability that your software project will be completed successfully. While many companies and individuals realize the crucial role estimating plays in a project?s success, few understand that software estimation is a science that can be learned. It really is possible to accurately and consistently estimate development costs and schedules for a wide range of projects.
C.A.S.E allows the project manager to decompose his project into smaller units (modules). The Project Manager can then specify sizes, risks and other factors independently for each of these modules. C.A.S.E will automatically estimate the size for the entire project and give scheduling data for the entire project and also for each module independently. As the project progresses the Project Manager can continuously recalculate his estimates depending on how factors affecting his project change. C.A.S.E is being developed by the University of Montana. The development team is being led by Dr. Joel Henry. C.A.S.E will be a new paradigm in software cost estimation. It is a robust tool that uses industry uncertainties and factors, uncovered by Dr. Barry Boehm and his COCOMO II (COnstructive COst MOdel) research team at the University of Southern California, for describing projects and calculating estimates.
C.A.S.E will allow a user to enter his project variables on the move and will give the user estimates on schedule and on cost. Because C.A.S.E runs on the PocketPC environment, it will allow the user direct access to numbers governing the project while he is on the move. The user can then change the project variables while he is in discussions with those who have an influence on the project. For the first time, the project manager is freed from his unwieldy laptop and from reams of printouts that other COCOMO II applications generate. C.A.S.E allows the user to enter project influencing information through simple and informative screens. It performs its estimates in real-time, adjusting its figures as quickly as you can input data.
C.A.S.E will be of interest to those within organizations that are responsible for the project planning activity. Typically this will be a Team Leader or Project Manager. It is a tool that can be used by a wide range of software organizations; including corporate MIS functions, Independent Software Vendors, developers and the Government. Project Managers are able to define the requirements, produce an estimate and analyze the effort required for implementing a set of requirements. It allows them to do what-if analysis so as to be able to balance and manage the resources he has at hand. Programmers involved in a project can download the entire project information and then based upon how the project is progressing, change only the information for their part of the project (the sub module). This allows them to see how it affects not only their schedules but also those of the entire project. Students of software engineering will find this a handy tool in understanding Cocomo II and how different factors affect a software project and its schedules.
C.A.S.E offers estimation at two levels of granularity, capturing two important stages of software development activity and providing two levels of model precision:
Early Design: Input sized in source statements or function points with project being described by 7 cost drivers.
Post Architecture: Input sized in source statements or function points or adapted source statements and project described by 17 cost drivers.
C.A.S.E uses five scale factors based upon project precedentedness, development flexibility, architecture and risk resolution, team cohesion, and development process maturity of the organization. The set of multiplicative cost drivers describing the project are applied at a module level.
C.A.S.E is designed for the stringent requirements of the pocket pc platform and has a very small footprint - requiring less than 500kb of free space for installation and only 4mb of RAM to work in. C.A.S.E will run on all PDAs running the PocketPC 2002 OS from Microsoft. A version for the older PocketPC2000 OS is also available. (you need to contact the developers directly for the PocketPC2000 version).
C.A.S.E has a simple interface ? making it easy to learn and use. The use of simple terminology allows the use of C.A.S.E, without any in-depth prior knowledge of Cocomo II.
In Summary, the benefits of using C.A.S.E as software cost estimation tool for assisting in better project management are:
1. It is mobile, it can be used anywhere, anytime: allowing the user instant access to important information.
2. It is easy and quick to use
3. It is the only application of its kind that runs on a PDA. It allows a project manager to move with his project data and try out various scenarios as he consults with people involved in his project.
4. It supports and speeds the iterative nature of the project planning phase
5. It exposes risk and allows the organization to manage it at the outset
6. It reduces the risk of inaccurate estimates
7. It makes it easier to comply with government contract data reporting requirements
8. It sets up the project for success at the outset
9. It is a valuable tool both for costing and for understanding your future software applications.