We sometimes help our authors get the word out by featuring their WME Books projects here on A-Ha! We’re really excited about this new title, The Reverse Detective: Pragmatic Software Requirements & Analysis, written by software engineer Thomas A. Bullinger with Sandeep Mitra.
Edgar Allan Poe is recognized as the father of the mystery story, but would never have imagined becoming part of a software development manual in today’s world. However, his method of solving crime is the compelling foundation for The Reverse Detective.
The average business owner is as clueless about software development as most citizens are about crime solving, despite the popularity of TV shows such as CSI and Law and Order. While it’s fun to watch TV sleuths solve murder mysteries, when the crime is a breakdown in communications or software engineering in our offices, those of us who are computer literate but not computer savvy, have to admit defeat. We know we need solutions, and we know the answer is often found in specifically designed software—but how that software gets written is beyond the comprehension of many. The Reverse Detective turns that unknown upside-down, offering a peek into the successful creation of customized software solutions, from first need to final approval. “We think software failure is a crime,” says Bullinger. “And the key is to solve the crime before it happens. In other words, to do things in reverse. Using our method prevents mistakes by precisely determining and modeling the right requirements before you begin writing code.”
By utilizing Poe and Sherlock Holmes in the most unusual roles of their fictional lives, Bullinger and Mitra have removed the veil of mystery surrounding software development and created a way for the average non-geek to “figure out” how the average geek does it—and does it well. The authors believe that “when you put The Reverse Detective process to work, you’ll minimize the chance of blown budgets, missed deadlines, endless revision rounds, and other career-busting problems.” The success is in the “clues”—little steps taken that unravel the mystery and reveal the solution. While the role of the software engineer and the role of the detective seem to have no relationship, the authors of The Reverse Detective suggest that the relationship is based “not in what they each do, but rather in their methodology: how they go about doing it.”
The Reverse Detective: Pragmatic Software Requirements & Analysis is intended for anyone who has a stakehold in a company’s software development—including business managers, project managers, process owners and hands-on software engineers. The book would also be an excellent addition to the reading list for a course on software development.
Tom Bullinger is President and founder of Isotope28, a company devoted to software architecture and development practices and blogs here. Sandeep Mitra is currently an Associate Professor of Computer Science at SUNY Brockport and a Research Scientist at Isotope28. Dr. Mitra has over thirteen years of academic and industrial experience in large-scale software development, object-oriented development, and distributed computing.
WME Books is an Author Services company offering customized publishing assistance for the author in search of excellence. The Reverse Detective can be purchased at the WME Books’ online bookstore at www.wmebooks.com and Amazon.com, or contact Yvonne DiVita/Tom Collins at WME Books by calling 585.427.7596 or send an e-mail to [email protected].
This is such a good comparison. I also adore Sherlock Holmes and Edgar Allan Poe. Thanks for the nice article.
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Posted by: lola | April 27, 2009 at 07:40 AM