P E O P L E A N D T H E WAY T H E Y B U I L D S Y S T E M S The software required for high-technology systems becomes more and more com-

32.3 P E O P L E A N D T H E WAY T H E Y B U I L D S Y S T E M S The software required for high-technology systems becomes more and more com-

plex with each passing year, and the size of resultant programs increases propor- tionally. The rapid growth in the size of the "average" program would present us with few problems if it wasn't for one simple fact: As program size increases, the number of people who must work on the program must also increase.

Experience indicates that, as the number of people on a software project team increases, the overall productivity of the group may suffer. One way around this problem is to cre- ate a number of software engineering teams, thereby compartmentalizing people into individual working groups. However, as the number of software engineering teams grows, communication between them becomes as difficult and time consuming as communi- cation between individuals. Worse, communication (between individuals or teams) tends to be inefficient—that is, too much time is spent transferring too little information con- tent, and all too often, important information "falls into the cracks."

If the software engineering community is to deal effectively with the communica- tion dilemma, the road ahead for software engineers must include radical changes in the way individuals and teams communicate with one another. E-mail, bulletin boards, and centralized video conferencing are now commonplace as mechanisms for connecting a large number of people to an information network. The importance If the software engineering community is to deal effectively with the communica- tion dilemma, the road ahead for software engineers must include radical changes in the way individuals and teams communicate with one another. E-mail, bulletin boards, and centralized video conferencing are now commonplace as mechanisms for connecting a large number of people to an information network. The importance

Video personalizes the communication. At its best, it enables colleagues at dif- ferent locations (or on different continents) to “meet” on a regular basis. But video also provides another benefit. It can be used as a repository for knowledge about the

“Future shock [is] software and to train newcomers on a project. the shattering stress

and disorientation The evolution of intelligent agents will also change the work patterns of a soft- that we induce in

ware engineer by dramatically extending the capabilities of software tools. Intelli- individuals by

gent agents will enhance the engineer's ability by cross-checking engineering work subjecting them to

products using domain-specific knowledge, performing clerical tasks, doing directed too much change in

too short a time.” research, and coordinating human-to-human communication. Finally, the acquisition of knowledge is changing in profound ways. On the Inter-

Alvin Toffler

net, a software engineer can subscribe to newsgroups that focus on technology areas of immediate concern. A question posted within a newsgroup precipitates answers from other interested parties around the globe. The World Wide Web provides a soft- ware engineer with the world’s largest library of research papers and reports, tutori- als, commentary, and references in software engineering. 1

If past history is any indication, it is fair to say that people themselves will not change. However, the ways in which they communicate, the environment in which they work, the way in which they acquire knowledge, the methods and tools that they use, the discipline that they apply, and therefore, the overall culture for software devel- opment will change in significant and even profound ways.