Capers Jones. The Technical and Social History of Software Engineering

Addison-Wesley, 2013. — 496 p. — ISBN 9780321903426, 0321903420.Software engineering is one of the world’s most exciting and important fields. Now, pioneering practitioner Capers Jones has written the definitive history of this world-changing industry. Drawing on several decades as a leading researcher and innovator, he illuminates the field’s broad sweep of progress and its many eras of invention. He assesses the immense impact of software engineering on society, and previews its even more remarkable future. Decade by decade, Jones examines trends, companies, winners, losers, new technologies, productivity/quality issues, methods, tools, languages, risks, and more. He reviews key inventions, estimates industry growth, and addresses «mysteries» such as why programming languages gain and lose popularity. Inspired by Paul Starr’s Pulitzer Prize–winning The Social Transformation of American Medicine, Jones’ new book is a tour de force—and compelling reading for everyone who wants to understand how software became what it is today.
Coverage includes:
The human need to compute: from ancient times to the modern era;
Foundations of computing: Alan Turing, Konrad Zuse, and World War II;
Big business, big defense, big systems: IBM, mainframes, and COBOL;
A concise history of minicomputers and microcomputers: the birth of Apple and Microsoft;
The PC era: DOS, Windows, and the rise of commercial software;
Innovations in writing and managing code: structured development, objects, agile, and more;
The birth and explosion of the Internet and the World Wide Web;
The growing challenges of legacy system maintenance and support;
Emerging innovations, from wearables to intelligent agents to quantum computing;
Cybercrime, cyberwarfare, and large-scale software failure.About the Author.
Prelude: Computing from Ancient Times to the Modern Era.
The Human Need to Compute.
Early Sequence of Numerical Knowledge.
Inventions for Improved Mathematics.
Mathematics and Calculating.
Recording Information.
Communicating Information.
Storing Information.
Enabling Computers and Software.
Key Inventions Relevant to Software.
Alphabetic Languages.
Binary and Decimal Numbers and Zero.
Digital Computers.
Higher-Level Programming Languages.
Random-Access Storage.
The Impact of Software on People and Society.
Beneficial Tools and Applications.
Harmful Inventions.
Weighing the Risks.
Summary.
1930 to 1939: The Foundations of Digital Computing.
The First Innovators of Modern Computing.
Small Mathematical Applications.
Summary.
1940 to 1949: Computing During World War II and the Postwar Era.
Global Conflict and Computing.
Wartime Innovations.
Analog Computers During World War II.
Computers in Germany During World War II.
Computers in Japan During World War II.
Computers in Poland During World War II.
Computers in France During World War II.
Computers in Australia During World War II.
Computers in Russia During World War II.
Computers in Great Britain During World War II.
Computers in the United States During World War II.
Computers in the Postwar Era.
The Cold War Begins.
Postwar Computer Development.
Historical Contributions of the Decade.
Building Software in 1945.
Summary.
1950 to 1959: Starting the Ascent of Digital Computers and Software.
Military and Defense Computers in the 1950s.
SAGE.
BOMARC.
Innovators of the 1950s.
Programming Languages of the 1950s.
The First Commercial Computers.
LEO.
IBM.
Other Computer Business Implementations.
Software Applications in the 1950s.
Function Points in 1955.
Summary.
1960 to 1969: The Rise of Business Computers and Business Software.
An Evolving Workforce.
Early Specialized Outsourcing.
Computer Programmers in the 1960s.
Becoming a Programmer.
A High Demand for Programmers.
Emergence of the Software Engineer.
IBM System/360.
The Turing Award.
The Invention of the Credit Card.
Automation and New Professions.
The DEC PDP-1.
Programming Languages of the 1960s.
The Computer Business of the 1960s.
Litigation Changes the Computer World Forever.
Computers and Software in Space.
Computer and Software Growth in the 1960s.
Function Points Backfired for 1965.
Summary.
1970 to 1979: Computers and Software Begin Creating Wealth.
Software Evolution in the 1970s.
Trends in Software.
Political Failures.
Rapid Rise of Computer Companies.
Major Companies Formed During the 1970s.
FedEx.
NASDAQ.
Southwest Airlines.
Computer and Software Companies Formed During the 1970s.
Altair Computers.
Apple Computer.
Baan.
Computer Associates (CA).
Cray Computers.
Cullinane.
Digital Research.
Galorath Incorporated.
IMSAI Computers.
InterSystems Corporation.
Lawson Software.
Microsoft.
Oracle.
Price Systems.
Prime Computers (Pr1me).
Systems Applications Programs (SAP).
Tandem Computers.
Yourdon, Inc.
The Impact of Companies Founded During the 1970s.
The Troublesome Growth of Software Applications.
Numerous Fragmented Software Subcategories.
Advanced and Experimental Software.
Business Software.
Communications Software.
Cybercrime and Hacking Software.
Database Software.
Education Software.
Embedded Software.
Gaming and Entertainment Software.
Manufacturing Software.
Middleware Software.
Military Software.
Open-Source Software.
Personal Software.
Programming Tool Software.
Project Management Software.
Scientific and Mathematical Software.
Security and Protective Software.
Social Network Software.
Survey Tools Software.
Utility Software.
A Lawsuit That Changed Computer History.
Background Enabling Inventions.
Function Points in 1975.
Summary.
1980 to 1989: The Rise of Personal Computers and Personal Software.
Rapid Changes in Computing.
Companies Formed During the 1980s.
Accenture.
Adobe.
America Online (AOL).
Avira.
BlackBerry (Research in Motion, or RIM).
Borland.
Computer Aid, Inc. (CAI).
Cisco Systems.
Digital Consulting Institute (DCI).
Huawei.
Intuit.
KPMG.
Lotus.
NeXT.
PeopleSoft.
Rational.
SEI.
Software Productivity Research (SPR).
Stepstone Corporation.
Symantec.
TechSoup Global.
Wolfram Research.
The Growth of Software During the 1980s.
Results for 1,000 Function Points Circa 1985.
Summary.
1990 to 1999: Expansion of the World Wide Web and the Rise of Dot-Coms.
Emergence of the World Wide Web.
Other Innovations of the 1990s.
Companies Formed During the 1990s.
Akamai.
Amazon.
Apache.
Craigslist.
Digital Playground.
eBay.
GoDaddy.
Google.
Heartland Payment Systems.
Insight Venture Partners.
The ISBSG.
Monster.com.
Netscape Communications.
Priceline.
Red Hat Software.
Red Storm Entertainment.
Sirius Satellite Radio.
ThoughtWorks.
Visio.
VMware.
Mass Updates and Aging Legacy Software.
Incompatibilities of International Date Formats.
The Expansion of Outsourcing.
Growth of Software Applications During the 1990s.
Results for 1,000 Function Points Circa 1995.
Summary.
2000 to 2009: The Rise of Social Networks and Economic Crises.
The Dot-Com Bubble.
The Great Recession.
Innovations of the 2000s.
Companies Formed During the 2000s.
AbsolutData Research.
Andreesen Horowitz.
Archon Information Systems.
Canonical, Ltd.
Facebook.
Freelanthropy.
Global Insight.
HIVE Group.
Intellectual Ventures.
Internet Marketing Association (IMA).
Meeting Zone.
Moody’s Analytics.
Mozilla Foundation.
Open Source Development Labs (OSDL).
PerfectMatch.
RPX Corporation.
SolveIT Software.
Twitter.
YouTube.
Zillow.
Growth of Software from 2000 to 2010.
Results for 1,000 Function Points Circa 2005.
Summary.
2010 to 2019: Clouds, Crowds, Blogs, Big Data, and Predictive Analytics.
Predicting the Future.
Professional Status for Software Engineering.
Possible Software Engineering Improvements in the 2010s.
Companies Formed During the Early 2010s.
AngelPad.
Authr.
CloudVelocity.
CrowdCube.
Fiverr.
Flattr.
Geekli.St.
GoFundMe.
Namcook Analytics LLC.
Nest Labs.
Peer Index.
Unified Inbox.
Yesware.
Predicting New Companies and Products from 2013 to 2019.
Big Data.
Crowd Intelligence and Crowdfunding.
Cybercrime and Cybersecurity.
Education.
Intelligent Agents.
Medical Devices.
Predictive Analytics.
Wearable Computers.
Projected Growth of Software from 2010 to 2019.
Results for 1,000 Function Points Circa 2015.
Summary.
Modern Software Problems.
Analysis of Major Software Failures.
1962: Failure of the Mariner 1 Navigation Software.
1978: Hartford Coliseum Collapse.
1983: Soviet Early Warning System.
1986: Therac 25 Radiation Poisoning.
1987: Wall Street Crash.
1990: AT&T Telephone Lines Shutdown.
1991: Patriot Missile Target Error.
1993: Intel Pentium Chip Division Problem.
1993: Denver Airport Delays.
1996: Ariane 5 Rocket Explosion.
1998: Mars Climate Orbiter Crash.
1999: Failure of the British Passport System.
2000: The Y2K Problem.
2004: Shutdown of Los Angeles Airport (LAX) Air-Traffic Controls.
2005: Failure to Complete the FBI Trilogy Project.
2005: Secret Sony Copy Protection Software.
2006: Airbus A380 Wiring Problem.
2010: McAfee Antivirus Bug Shuts Down Computers.
2011: Failed Investment in Studio 38 in Rhode Island.
2012: Knight Capital Stock-Trading Software Problems.
2012: Automotive Safety Recalls Due to Software.
Summary.
A Brief History of Cybercrime and Cyberwarfare.
A New Form of Crime.
The Hacker Invasion.
Preparing Defenses.
Increasing Seriousness of Cyberattacks.
A Growing Number of Victims.
Types of Cyberattacks.
Bluetooth Hijacking.
Botnets.
Browser Hijacking.
Computer Voting Fraud.
Cyberwarfare Against Civilian Targets.
Data Theft from Corporations.
Data Theft from Unsecured Networks.
Denial of Service Attacks.
Electromagnetic Pulses (EMPs).
Email Address Harvesting.
Identity Thefts.
Java Vulnerability Attacks.
Keyboard Trackers.
Macro Attacks in Word and Excel Documents.
Pharming.
Phishing.
Rootkits.
Skimming.
Smart Card Hijacking.
Spam.
SQL Injections.
Trojans.
Viruses.
Worms.
Zero-Day Security Attacks.
The Odds of Being Attacked.
Improving Defenses Against Cyberattacks.
Raising Our Immunity to Cyberattacks.
Access Controls.
Authentication Controls.
EMP Protection.
Encryption.
Estimating Cyberattack Recovery Costs.
Insurance Against Cybertheft and Cyberattack Damages.
Secure Programming Languages.
The Increasing Frequency and Costs of Cyberattacks in the United States.
Summary.
Appendix A: Annotated Bibliography and References.
Index.