SQA - Definitions and Concepts

• Published in: Software Quality - Concepts and Practice p. 2
• Main Author: Galin Daniel
• Format: Book Chapter
• Language: English
• Published: Hoboken, NJ, USA John Wiley & Sons 2018; John Wiley & Sons, Inc
• Subjects: Simplex HR software package; software development; Software Engineering; software errors; software failures; software maintenance; software quality assurance; Software Testing & Verification
• ISBN: 1119134498; 9781119134497
• DOI: 10.1002/9781119134527.ch1

This chapter focuses on software quality and discusses the basic definitions of software quality, software quality assurance (SQA), an expanded definition of software quality assurance, and the objectives of SQA activities. The objectives of SQA activities refer to the functional and managerial aspects of software development and software maintenance. To better understand the essence of software errors, faults, and failures, the chapter looks at the performance of a deployed software system, as perceived by customers. A software fault is a software error that causes improper functioning of the software in a specific application, and in rare cases, of the software in general. The chapter focuses on the Simplex HR software package. It examines the software failures experienced by two of the Simplex HR users. As software errors are the cause of poor software quality, it is important to investigate their causes, in order to prevent them.