US Technology Launches Logic Modeling Service.

Helps Enterprises Find Defects before Software is Written

ALISO VIEJO, Calif. -- US Technology, a leading provider of IT services and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) solutions for Global 2000 enterprises, today announced the launch of its Logic Modeling service to help enterprises detect software defects before they are coded into applications. Current statistics indicate that more than 50 percent of software defects originate in untested requirements. With the new Logic Modeling service, US Technology offers enterprises the ability to test business requirements and reduce the number of defects by more than half--before the first line of code is written. Once built, logic models are then used to generate high coverage test cases that approach 100 percent functional coverage. This yields extraordinarily low residual defect rates; in many cases zero defects are found in delivered software products.

Limits of Traditional Testing

Traditional testing is more time-consuming and therefore costly when compared to logic model-driven testing. Generally, traditional analysis takes 50 percent longer and produces twice the number of test cases with half the functional coverage. Traditional testing focuses on finding defects in delivered code and:

* Does not provide metrics on project health until well past 80 percent of the software development lifecycle

* Does not attempt to find defects in requirements, thus does not prevent defects

* Cannot effectively measure requirements coverage

* Makes it difficult to revise/maintain test suites when the application changes

* Is less effective when designed by subject matter novices

* Is prone to unnecessary redundancy as analysts attempt to cover all or most input combinations

* Achieves at best 60 percent of the functional coverage of logic modeling

* Stops to comply with project schedules

How Logic Modeling Surpasses Traditional Testing

When two percent of the defects in an application cause 1,000 times more failures than other defects, thorough testing becomes imperative to minimizing risk. Effectively addressing these limitations--which logic modeling does--can make a big difference to businesses.

"The top reasons why software projects fail are a result of incomplete and/or changing requirements and specifications and the lack of user input. The most sophisticated means of identifying incomplete requirements involves constructing software designs and then completing walkthroughs and testing. However, none of these methods allow organizations to quantify - and thus measure - test coverage," said Bob Dutile, general manager of strategy and solutions, US Technology. "While code coverage tools can help increase the depth and breadth of testing, they do not measure compliance to what was ordered in the requirements. Traditional test design, when employed vigorously, usually defines twice the number of test cases with only 50 percent of the coverage when compared to logic modeling. Logic modeling reduces the failure rate of software projects."

Clear and complete requirements are necessary to successfully build a logic model. When requirements fail to meet this standard - which most often is the case - questions (called ambiguities) are raised. Ambiguities identify opportunities to improve requirements documents in order to meet this standard. As an attempt is made to resolve ambiguities, design flaws can emerge that would otherwise manifest as defects if they were not detected at this early stage. Ambiguity resolutions are then incorporated into the requirements document, which makes the development and testing team more productive as scrap and rework are eliminated.

The Benefits of Logic Modeling

Because logic modeling focuses first on requirements, domain novices can be more effective than experienced traditional test analysts. While traditional analysts rely on their subject matter expertise, domain novices must rely on what is documented. This serves to improve documentation dramatically after ambiguity resolution. Additionally, subject matter novices are apt to raise ambiguities that would not occur to the experts.

There are several advantages to logic modeling. It:

* Provides test design that approaches 100 percent functional coverage.

* Takes less time (about two-thirds) than traditional test analysis (where a competent effort is the norm) and can be completed before conflicting with project schedule deadlines.

* Includes the ability to scientifically find the fewest number of test cases that exercise nearly 100 percent of logic branch behavior in the requirements, thus eliminating test redundancy and affording actual measurement of test coverage.

* Produces measurements in the second-fifth of the software development lifecycle (the requirements analysis phase). These measurements are based on logic models which count the number of logic branch behaviors (Functional Variations - FV), thus measuring complexity. With ambiguity statistics, the FV count can be used to assess confidence in the progress of a project as well as the remaining effort.

* Gives the ability to simply identify and modify impacted models and then regenerate the related test sets when a change request is accepted. This differs from traditional testing where testers must wade through their test suite, finding and revising tests impacted by the change request.

About Logic Modeling

US Technology approaches the dual problems of incomplete requirements analysis and inadequate test coverage with one solution: logic modeling. Logic modeling is a bidirectional testing discipline that allows analysis and development teams to ascertain when analysis is complete. Construction of the model helps analysts expose gaps, inconsistencies and ambiguous requirements before software design is complete and coding begins. The early identification of requirements faults adds quality while cutting costs and development time.

About US Technology

US Technology is a leading provider of end-to-end IT services and BPO solutions for the Global 2000 market. US Technology offers a client-centric Global Delivery Model that provides the optimal mix of senior local resources with the cost, scale and quality advantages of offshore operations for each client. The company is known for a relentless focus on its clients, flexibility and commitment beyond contract. Headquartered in Aliso Viejo, California, US Technology has more than 5,000 employees worldwide and is certified globally as CMMI([R]) Level 5, P-CMM([R]) Level 5, and ISO 27001. For more information visit: www.ustri.com.