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From the QW2002 Chairman...

QW2002 Technical Program Announced
The QW2002 Advisory Board sifted through a record 185 presentation proposals and voted in a great Technical Program for QW2002. The conference has presentations on a wide range of topics dealing with software quality and internet quality and this year, there are also several presentations on Quality of Service (QoS) issues. The principles of the QW2002 Mission seem solidly intact!

General Session Talks
The tone of QW2002 is set by the general session speakers. We're very proud to announce the great lineup we have for you this year!

Mr. Fred Baker (Cisco Systems): Internet Reliability Under Stress (Presentation Summary). We all know how critical the Internet has become...and you can bet that it will experience a lot of stress in coming months and years. Baker's talk will emphasize how Cisco aims to enhance reliability!
Download Presentation in PDF format.

Mr. Greg Pope (LLNL): You Want It When? (Presentation Summary). If you have ever had a problem getting the budget you need to do the work you're supposed to get done by yesterday -- of course! -- you'll not want to miss this!

Mr. Erik Simmons (Intel) The Human Side Of Risk (Presentation Summary). Software and WebSite development and deployment involve risk, of course! But people are involved, too. How do you achieve balance? Hear this talk and learn!

Prof. Dick Hamlet (Portland State): Science, Computer 'Science', Mathematics, and Software Development (Presentation Summary). And you thought software engineering and quality assurance was a scientific endeavor. Think again! A renowned speaker and a distinguished researcher tells it like it really is!

Mr. Don O'Neill (Center for National Software Studies): Competitiveness Versus Security (Presentation Summary). Do you want it reliable and fast or do you want it to be secure? In these difficult times this may be the question! From the newly started Center for National Software Studies, hear Don discusses the tradeoffs! Then, make up your own minds!
Download Presentation in PDF format.

Mr. Robert V. Binder (Mobile Systems Verification): Achieving Very High Reliability for Ubiquitous Information Technology (Presentation Summary). In The Wired World everyone is wired in -- even if the last leg of the connection is "wireless" and mobile. You can bet people will grow to depend on these technologies -- just look at the cellphone! -- but how can you really assure the reliability of such widespread networking? Bob Binder will tell you how!
Download Presentation in PDF format.

Special Panel Sessions
We've lined up two special Panel Sessions for QW2002.

Ross Collard (Consultant) The Value of Agile Testing (Presentation Summary). Is agile testing (the QA side of Extreme Programming) a good story, or is it bunko? Consultant Ross Collard will bring competing voices to this sure-to-be raucous panel!

Selim Aissi (Intel) Web Services, QoS, Reliability and Security (Presentation Summary). In the increasingly Wired World the quality of what you are delivered becomes more and more important. But how do you measure "quality" and what does it really mean? Everyone wants better quality. But how do you get it? The panelists will take on this tough question from every side! Don't miss this one!

Asking Difficult Questions in a Difficult Times
In the April issue of Quality Techniques Newsletter I asked readers to consider some "tough questions". Tough because there are difficult times and tough because they aim deep into the key issues in the software quality arena. These are questions that, I believe, need to be asked within the software quality community -- and might be the basis for some good discussion at QW2002. Not to even think about these things is to avoid reality, and that can't be a good thing to do. (Or can it?) To think about them may bring better focus onto the real issues facing the Quality Community.

• Quality Technology. Does there exist a sufficient technological base, plus good enough tools, to really deal with software quality issues. After decades of tools and systems and approaches and methodologies, software systems continue to fail? What is the software quality community doing wrong?
• Issues About The Web. Does quality really make a difference on the Web? Can users get along just fine without any checking? If so, why are there so many slow and unreliable WebSites? Is the web infrastructure really secure? Has quality technology done anything good for the Web?
• Industry Awareness of Quality Issues. We all know the reality, that software quality may be great to talk about, but why is software quality nearly always the first casualty when budgets are tight? Do contemporary software development projects really need a software quality component? If so, what?
• What About XP?. Does the Extreme Programming approach obviate the need for testing, and monitoring, and software quality control? Do the decades of software engineering R&D really mean so little? Why is XP so appealing? Is it because XP reflects reality?
• What about CMM and SPICE and ISO/9000. Do these standards and process oriented really work? Are they worth the cost and trouble? Do they improve anything? If they don't, why are they still around? Isn't good, solid thinking and careful implementation what this is really all about? If so, what's the fuss?
• Security and Integrity. How insecure is the internet infrastructure, really? Are things actually at a crisis point? Or is it hyped up by a few for commercial gain?

What do YOU think? Email your responses, and any additional "tough questions" you may want to bring up at QW2002, to miller@sr-corp.com.
--Edward Miller, QW/QWE Chair