Which problems do you find in a software development contract?

[AnderAI]

Hi everyone,

I’m currently writing a PhD about software development contracts.

As a lawyer, I’m trying to understand an engineer’s point of view in a contractual relationship, and particularly, what developers/engineers struggle with during a software development project. The aim of my research is to find the best solution in case of litigations or even to prevent such litigations from happening between the customers and the developers in a tailored made software contract.

To understand the real experience of developers, I’ve a bunch of questions, and it would be really helpful to have your point of view and (possibly) examples from experiences you had in various projects:

Which kind of process do you use for a software development project (for example, agile, cycle, waterfall, etc.)?

How do you define a failure in a software?

Which are the most common failures that you can find?

How do you detect a failure?

Which is the procedure to repair a failure that you usually use and why do you use this specific procedure?

Which problems do you usually find in a software project regarding the client’s needs and communication?

During a project, have you already experienced a problem which has rendered the software development (technically) impossible and/or extremely hard to develop (for instance due the development taking too much time, or becoming too expensive)?

How do you determine (or define) this impossibility or a piece of software that is “really hard” to develop?

How do you usually solve this kind of issue?

Your answers will be extremely precious for my PhD thesis. Thanks a lot, in advance for your help and please feel free to also share these questions with your colleagues.

 

[RiugarKaowi]

These are many questions... as a newbie myself, I can totally say I struggle with the same issues.

 

[Kuncode]

Hi everyone,

I’m currently writing a PhD about software development contracts.

As a lawyer, I’m trying to understand an engineer’s point of view in a contractual relationship, and particularly, what developers/engineers struggle with during a software development project. The aim of my research is to find the best solution in case of litigations or even to prevent such litigations from happening between the customers and the developers in a tailored made software contract.

To understand the real experience of developers, I’ve a bunch of questions, and it would be really helpful to have your point of view and (possibly) examples from experiences you had in various projects:

Which kind of process do you use for a software development project (for example, agile, cycle, waterfall, etc.)?

How do you define a failure in a software?

Which are the most common failures that you can find?

How do you detect a failure?

Which is the procedure to repair a failure that you usually use and why do you use this specific procedure?

Which problems do you usually find in a software project regarding the client’s needs and communication?

During a project, have you already experienced a problem which has rendered the software development (technically) impossible and/or extremely hard to develop (for instance due the development taking too much time, or becoming too expensive)?

How do you determine (or define) this impossibility or a piece of software that is “really hard” to develop?

How do you usually solve this kind of issue?

Your answers will be extremely precious for my PhD thesis. Thanks a lot, in advance for your help and please feel free to also share these questions with your colleagues.

When i was doing my PHD ,

1. Software development processes vary depending on the company, team, and project. Agile is a popular process that emphasizes flexibility and collaboration, while the waterfall model is a more structured and sequential approach.
2. A failure in software development can mean different things to different people. It could be a bug that causes the software to crash or a feature that does not meet the user's expectations.
3. Common failures include bugs, performance issues, security vulnerabilities, and compatibility problems.
4. Developers detect failures through testing, monitoring, and user feedback.
5. Repairing a failure usually involves identifying the root cause of the problem, fixing the code, and retesting to confirm that the issue has been resolved.
6. Problems related to client needs and communication often stem from misunderstandings or changes in requirements. Good communication and clear documentation can help prevent these issues.
7. Software development can become technically impossible or extremely hard due to various factors such as time constraints, budget constraints, or the complexity of the problem being solved.
8. Impossibility or difficulty can be determined through technical assessments, risk analysis, and cost-benefit analysis.
9. When faced with this kind of issue, developers may need to re-evaluate their approach, negotiate with the client, or consider alternative solutions. In some cases, it may be necessary to cancel the project.

These are general answers and the experiences of individual developers may vary.