Software Project Management

Durga Prasad Mohapatra

Professor
CSE Deptt.
NIT Rourkela
Project Estimation Techniques cont…
• Parametric models
• Albrecht/IFPUG function points
 Parametric model for Size
Important example: Function Points
FPs originally used to estimate Lines of Code, rather than
effort

Number
of file types
‘system
model size’

Numbers of input
and output transaction types
Parametric models for Size
We shall examine four parametric models more closely :
1.Albrecht/IFPUG function points
2.Symons/Mark II function points
3.COSMIC function points
4.COCOMO81 and COCOMO II
International Function Point Users Group
(IFPUG)
Purpose
• To promote and encourage use of Function Points
• To develop consistent and accurate counting guidelines
Benefits
• Networking with other counters
• IFPUG Counting Practices Manual
• Research projects
• Hotline
• Newsletter
• Certification
Extent of Usage:
• Member companies include all industry sectors
• Over 1200 members in more than 30 countries
 Albrecht/IFPUG function point analysis
 Albrecht worked at IBM:
◦ Needed a way of measuring the relative productivity of
different programming languages.
◦ Needed some way of measuring the size of an
application without counting lines of code.
 Identified five parameters:
◦ Counted occurrences of each type of functionality in
order to get an indication of the size of an information
system
◦ It is a top-down approach
Why IFPUG Thinks One Should Not Use LOC?
 Lines of code tend to reward profligate design and
penalize concise design
 There is no industry standards (ISO or otherwise) for
lines of code
 Lines of code cannot be used for normalizing across
platform, language or by organization
 Some 4GL do not even use lines of code
 Lines of code can be misleading.
 How Do Function Points Overcome LOC
Problems?
 Function points are independent of the language, tools, or
methodologies used for implementation
 Function points can be estimated early in analysis and design
 Since function points are based on the user’s external view
of the system:
◦ Non-technical users of the software have a better
understanding of what function points are
measuring
Objectives of Function Point Counting
 Measure functionality that the user requests and receives…
 Measure software development and maintenance
independently of technology used for implementation…
 Simple enough to minimize the overhead of the
measurement process…
 A consistent measure among various projects and
organizations …
When Should You Count Function Points?
 Early and often
◦ The sooner you can quantify what a project is delivering,
the sooner it is under control
 Under IFPUG 4.1, there are rules and guidelines:
◦ Make it possible to count function points once the
requirements have been finalized
◦ The estimate of size in function points can be refined
continuously through out the development cycle.
 Function points should be recounted throughout the
development process: Can measure scope creep and
breakage
 Count Data
Determine
Functions
Unadjusted
Function Point
Count
Count
FP Computation Steps

Identify Transactional
Counting Functions Calculate
Scope and Adjusted Function
Application Point Count
Determine Value
Boundary
Adjustment
Factor
 Key Components in Function Point Analysis

Five key components (or External User Types) are identified

 External Inputs
 External Outputs
 External Inquiries
 Logical Internal Files
 External Interface Files
 Key Components in Function Point Analysis
cont…
1. External input (EI) types:
o Transactions which update internal computer files
2. External output (EO) types:
o Transactions which extract and display data from internal computer
files.
o Generally involves creating reports.
3. External inquiry (EQ) types:
o User initiated transactions which provide information but do not
update computer files.
o Normally the user inputs some data that guides the system to the
information the user needs.
 Key Components in Function Point Analysis
cont…

4. Logical interface file (LIF) types

o Equates roughly to a data store in systems analysis
terms. Created and accessed by the target system
5. External interface file types (EIF)
o Represents data retrieved from a data store which is
actually maintained by a different application.
 Function Point Parameters
External Input (Inputs)

External Input Count each unique user data or user control input type that (i)
(Inputs) enters the external boundary of the software system being measured
and (ii) adds or changes data in a logical internal file.
External Output Count each unique user data or control output type that leaves the
(Outputs) external boundary of the software system being measured.
Internal Logical File Count each major logical group of user data or control information
(Files) in the software system as a logical internal file type. Include each
logical file (e.g., each logical group of data) that is generated, used, or
maintained by the software system.
External Interface Files passed or shared between software systems should be counted
Files (Interfaces) as external interface file types within each system.
External Inquiry Count each unique input-output combination, where an input causes
(Queries) and generates an immediate output, as an external inquiry type.
 Definition of External input
An External Input (EI) processes data that comes from outside
the application’s boundary.

External Input
1.0
ON-LINE UPDATE
ENTRY Transaction CUSTOMER
INFORMATION

Multi-Screen

CUSTOMER INFO FILE

 Definition of External Output
An External Output (EO) generates data that is sent outside
the application boundary.

CUSTOMER INFO FILE

External Output
1.0

Category CATEGORIZE
END Summary CUSTOMER
USER INFO
 Definition of An Inquiry
An External Inquiry (EQ) is an output that results in data
retrieval. The result contains no derived data.

CUSTOMER INFO FILE

External Inquiry
1.0
END Selected DISPLAY
USER Customer CUSTOMER
Info INFO
 Definition of An IL File
An Internal Logical File (ILF) is a user-identifiable group of logically related
data that is maintained within the boundary of the application.

END
USER
1.0
UPDATE
CUSTOMER
INFO
Customer Info

Updated Customer Info

CUSTOMER INFO FILE

Internal Logical File

 Definition of an External Interface File
An External Interface File (EIF) is a user-identifiable group of data referenced by
the application, but maintained within the boundary of another application.

External Interface File

ZIP CODE
TABLE

VALID ZIP 1.0

CODES
VALIDATE UPDATES
ZIP CODE &
UPDATES UPDATE
CUSTOMER
END INFO
USER CUSTOMER INFO FILE
 Example
 Place Purchase Order:
◦ Input data items:
Date, Supplier Number,
Product Code
Quantity Required
Date Required
◦ Output data items:
PO Number (system generated)
◦ Entities referenced:
Product, Purchase Order
Supplier, Purchase Order Item
 Calculating the System Size
 For each function count:
◦ Number of input data items ni
◦ Number of output data items no
◦ Number of entities read/updated ne
 Add these up for the whole system, giving:
◦ Number of input data items Ni
◦ Number of output data items No
◦ Number of entities read/updated Ne
FP Counting - Example Requirement inputs outputs entity accesses

A1 10 2 4
A2 10 3 6
A3 1 25 1
A4 10 10 9
A5 4 10 5
A6 26 9 2
A7 5 11 8
A8 14 4 5
A9 22 7 4
A10 6 6 4
A11 9 9 7
A12 3 24 5
Ni = 120 No = 120 Ne = 60
 Albrecht complexity multipliers
External user Low Medium High
types complexity complexity complexity
External input type 3 4 6
External output type 4 5 7
External inquiry type 3 4 6
Logical internal file 7 10 15
type
External interface 5 7 10
file type
 IFPUG file type complexity
Number of Number of data types
record types

< 20 20-50 > 50

1 Low Low Average

2 to 5 Low Average High
>5 Average High High
 Example
A logical internal file might contain data about purchase
orders. These purchase orders might be organized into two
separate record types: the main PURCHASE –ORDER details,
namely purchase order number, supplier reference and
purchase order date, and then details for each PURCHASE-
ORDER-ITEM specified in the order, namely the product code,
the unit price and number ordered. The number of record
types for that file would therefore be 2 and the number of
data types would be 6. According to the previous table, this file
type would be rated as ‘low’. This would mean that according
to the previous table, the FP count would be 7 for this file.
 Example - 1
The Spell-Checker accepts as input a document file and an
optional personal dictionary file. The checker lists all words
not contained in either of these files. The user can query the
number of words processed and the number of spelling
errors found at any stage during processing.
Example 1 - cont…
errors found enquiry # words processed message

words processes enquiry

Spelling # errors message
User Checker User
document file
Dictionary

Personal dictionary report on misspelled words

 Example 1 - cont…
• 2 users inputs: document file name, personal dictionary name
(average)
• 3 users outputs: error report, word count,
misspelled error count (average)
• 2 users requests: # processed words?, #spelling errors? (average)
• 1 internal file: dictionary (average)
• 2 external files: document file, personal dictionary (average).
We know that, for average (medium) complexity parameters,
UFP= # inputs*4+ # outputs*5+ # inquiries*4+ # files*10+ #
interfaces*7
= 2×4 + 3 × 5 + 2 × 4 + 1 × 10 + 2 × 7
= 55
 Example - 2
Tom is starting a dental practice in a small town. He will have a dental
assistant, a dental hygienist, and a receptionist. He wants a system to
manage the appointments.
When a patient calls for an appointment, the receptionist will check
the calendar and will try to schedule the patient as early as possible
to fill in the vacancy. If the patient is happy with proposed
appointment, the receptionist will enter the appointment with the
patient name and purpose of appointment. The system will verify the
patient name and supply necessary details from the patient records,
including the patient’s ID number. After each exam or cleaning, the
hygienist or assistant will mark the appointment as completed, add
comments and, then schedule the patient for the next visit if
appropriate.
 Example - 2
The system will answer queries by patient name and by date.
Supporting details from the patient’s records are displayed along with
the appointment information. The receptionist can cancel
appointments. The receptionist can point out a notification list for
making reminder calls 2 days before appointments. The system
includes the patient’s phone numbers from the patient records. The
receptionist can also print out daily and weekly work schedules with
all the patients.

Calculate Unadjusted Function Point (UFP).

Type Simple
SolutionAverage Complex Total
Inputs • Patient name • Cancel appointment 13
• Appointment completed
• Appointment purpose

Outputs • Comments • Calendar • Daily schedule 38

• Supporting details • Weekly schedule
• Appointment
information
• Notification list

Inquires • Query by name • Verify patient 18

• Query by date • Check calendar
• Available appointment

Files • Patient data 10

Interfaces
Total 79
 Function Point: Refinement
14 General Systems Characteristics are evaluated and used to compute a
Value Adjustment Factor (VAF)
General System Characteristics
Data Communication On-Line Update
Distributed Data Processing Complex Processing
Performance Objectives Reusability
Heavily Used Configuration Conversion & Install Ease
Transaction Rate Operational Ease
On-Line Data Entry Multiple-Site Use
End-User Efficiency Facilitate Change

The final calculation is based upon the Unadjusted FP count X VAF

 Degrees of Influence
0 Not present, or no influence
1 Incidental influence
2 Moderate influence
3 Average influence
4 Significant influence
5 Strong influence throughout
 Procedures to Determine the VAF
 Evaluate each of the 14 general system characteristics on a
scale from zero to five to determine the degree of influence
(DI)
 Add the degrees of influence for all 14 general system
characteristics to produce the total degree of influence (TDI).
 Insert TDI into the following equation to produce the Value
Adjustment Factor (VAF) / Technical Complexity Factor (TCF).
VAF = (TDI * 0.01) + 0.65
 It expresses the overall impact of the corresponding
parameter on the development effort.
 Procedures to Determine the VAF
The following VAF is calculated, if the degree of influence (DI)
for each of the 14 GSC descriptions is 3, (i.e. 3*14):
VAF = (42 * 0.01) + 0.65 = 1.07
The Adjusted Function Point for Example – 1, is calculated as
follows:
FP=UFP* VAF
= 55*1.07
= 58.85
Procedures to Determine the VAF cont …
14 general system characteristics with different DIs: 8. End-user Efficiency 3
9. Complex Computations 0
1. Data Communication 3
10.Reusability 3
2. Distributed Data Processing 0 11.Ease of Installation 3
12.Ease of Operation 5
3. Performance Criteria 4
13.Portability 3
4. Heavily Utilized Hardware 0 14.Maintainability 3
5. High Transaction Rates 3
6. Online Data Entry 3
7. Online Updating 3
Total Degree of Influence (TDI)=36
Procedures to Determine the VAF cont …
So,VAF = (36 * 0.01) + 0.65 = 1.01

The Adjusted Function Point for Example – 1, is

calculated as follows:

FP = UFP * VAF

= 55 * 1.01

= 55.55
 Example 3
A Payroll application has:
1. Transaction to input, amend and delete employee details – an
EI that is rated of medium complexity
2. A transaction that calculates pay details from timesheet data
that is input – an EI of high complexity
3. A transaction of medium complexity that prints out pay-to-
date details for each employee – an EO of medium complexity
4. A file of payroll details for each employee – assessed as of
medium complexity LIF
5. A personnel file maintained by another system is accessed for
name and address details – a simple EIF
What would be the FP counts for these?
 External Low Medium High
user types complexit complexit complexit

FP counts External
y
3
y
4
y
6
input type
External 4 5 7
1. Medium EI = 4 FPs output
type
2. High complexity EI = 6 FPs External 3 4 6
inquiry
3. Medium complexity EO = 5 FPs type
Logical 7 10 15
4. Medium complexity LIF = 10 FPs internal
file type
External 5 7 10
5. Simple EIF = 5 FPs interface
file type
Total (UFP) = 30 FPs

If previous projects delivered 5 FPs a day, implementing the above should

take 30/5 = 6 days

You may compute the AFP considering all the influence values medium.
 Exercise 1: Tic-Tac-Toe Computer Game
 As soon as either of the human player or the computer wins,
◦ A message announcing the winner should be displayed.
 If neither player manages to get three consecutive marks
along a straight line,
◦ And all the squares on the board are filled up,
◦ Then the game is drawn.
 The computer always tries to win a game.
 Exercise 2
 It is needed to develop an Alumni Repository software for
IIM, Ranchi. The software will extract the details of
students from the existing academic software of IIM,
Ranchi. It will provide an online display of the Alumni
names. The details of the Alumni can be entered by any one
by double clicking on the Alumni name. The details of
Alumni would be stored in a file. It should be possible to
print out a report detailing all alumni.
 Determine UFP.
 Exercise 3: Supermarket Prize Scheme
 A supermarket needs to develop the following software to encourage regular customers.
 TO register, a customer needs to supply his/her residence address, telephone number, and
the driving license number.
 Each customer who registers for this scheme is assigned a unique customer number (CN)
by the computer.
 Based on the generated CN, a clerk manually prepares a customer identity card after
getting the market manager’s signature on it.
 A customer can present his customer identity card to the check out staff when he makes
any purchase. In this case, the value of his purchase is credited against his CN.
 At the end of each year, the supermarket intends to award surprise gifts to 10 customers
who make the highest total purchase over the year. Also, it intends to award a 22 caret gold
coin to every customer whose purchase exceeded Rs.10,000/-.
 The entries against the CN are reset on the last day of every year after the prize winners’
lists are generated.
 Exercise 4
Calculate Unadjusted Function Point (UFP), Complexity Adjustment Factor (CAF) and
Function Point (FP) for the following problem.
Number of user inputs=32
Number of user outputs=60
Number of user inquiries=24
Number of files=8
Number of external interfaces=2
Assume all weighting factors to be average and all complexity adjustment values to be average.
 Exercise 5
Calculate Unadjusted Function Point (UFP), Complexity Adjustment Factor (CAF) and
Function Point (FP) for the following problem.
Number of user inputs=24 (Weighting factor is average)
Number of user outputs=46 (Weighting factor is simple)
Number of user inquiries=8 (Weighting factor is complex)
Number of files=4 (Weighting factor is average)
Number of external interfaces=2 (Weighting factor is simple)
The various complexity adjustment values are 4, 1, 0, 3, 3, 5, 4, 4, 3, 3, 2, 2, 4, 5.
 Summary
 Discussed Albrecht/IFPUG function points analysis
 Also, discussed the steps to compute FP count
 Presented Albrecht/IFPUG function point parameters
 Explained Albrecht/IFPUG function points counting with
some suitable examples.
References :

1. B. Hughes, M. Cotterell, R. Mall, Software Project Management, Sixth Edition,

McGraw Hill Education (India) Pvt. Ltd., 2018.
2. R. Mall, Fundamentals of Software Engineering, Fifth Edition, PHI Learning Pvt. Ltd.,
2018.