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McCall's Quality Model

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47 views6 pages

McCall's Quality Model

here is a assignment on McCall’s Quality Model with exampe

Uploaded by

wajeeha4804
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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UNIVERSITY OF ENGINNERING AND

TECHNOLOGY, TAXILA

Subject: Software Quality Engineering (SE 301)


Assignment No # 01
Topic: McCall’s Quality Model

Submitted By:
22-SE-18
Wajeeha Islam
(OMEGA)

Submitted To:

Engr. Wajeeha Yaseer

Department of Software Engineering,


UET TAXILA
Software quality plays a critical role in ensuring that software products meet the needs of both
developers and users. One of the earliest comprehensive models for assessing software quality
is the McCall Quality Model, developed in 1977.

Historical Context:

Developed during a time when software engineering was becoming a distinct discipline, the
McCall Quality Model emerged in response to the growing complexity and criticality of
software systems. During the 1970s, software failures were becoming more frequent and more
costly, leading to a demand for systematic approaches to software quality. The McCall Quality
Model was among the pioneering efforts to address this need, influencing subsequent models
and standards in software quality assurance.

Introduction:

One of the more renown predecessors of today’s quality models is the quality model presented
by Jim McCallet al. (also known as the General Electrics Model of 1977). This model, as
well as other contemporary models, originates from the US military (it was developed for the
US Air Force, promoted with in DoD) and is primarily aimed towards the system developers
and the system development process.

In this quality model McCall attempts to bridge the gap between users and developers by
focusing on a number of software quality factor that reflect both the users’ views and the
developers’ priorities.

The McCall quality model has Three major perspectives for defining and identifying the
quality of a software product:

➢ Product Revision (ability to undergo changes),


➢ Product Transition (adaptability to newenvironments) and
➢ Product Operations (its operation characteristics).

Product Revision: It includes

➢ Maintainability → the effort required to locate and fix a fault in the program within
its operating environment
➢ Flexibility → the ease of making changes required by changes in the operating
environment
➢ Testability → the ease of testing the program, to ensure that it is error-free and meets
its specification

Product transition: It is all about

➢ Portability → the effort required to transfer a program from one environment to


another
➢ Reusability → the ease of reusing software in a different context
➢ Interoperability → the effort required tocouple the system to another system

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Product operations: Quality of product operations depends on

➢ Correctness → the extent to which a program fulfils its sp ecification


➢ Reliability → the systems ability not to fail
➢ Efficiency → further categorized into execution efficiency and storage efficiency and
generally meaning the use of resources, e.g. processor time, storage
➢ Integrity → the protection of the program from unauthorized access
➢ Usability → the ease of the software.

Hierarchy of Quality Factors

McCall’s Quality Model outlines a hierarchy of factors, criteria, and metrics to evaluate
software quality:

➢ Quality Factors: These represent the external attributes that describe how users
perceive the software (e.g., correctness, usability, reliability).
➢ Criteria: These are the internal characteristics of the software, related to the developer's
perspective (e.g., coding standards, system design).
➢ Metrics: These provide a quantitative way to measure the software’s quality. For
instance, metrics such as Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF) help assess reliability.

Conclusion

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The McCall Quality Model provides a robust framework for understanding and improving
software quality. By focusing on the key quality factors of maintainability, flexibility,
testability, portability, reusability, interoperability, correctness, reliability, efficiency,
integrity, and usability, software development teams can create high-quality software that
meets user needs and stands the test of time. Embracing these principles in modern software
development practices ensures that quality remains at the forefront of every project, ultimately
leading to more successful and reliable software products.

Application of McCall’s Quality Model to


WhatsApp

1. Product Operations

Correctness:

WhatsApp fulfills its core functionalities of messaging, voice


and video calling, and file sharing. It delivers accurate
message transmission, ensuring that messages, media files,
and voice notes are correctly sent and received between users.
Notifications and delivery reports (e.g., single tick, double tick, and blue ticks) help users
verify that messages are correctly delivered and read.

Reliability:

WhatsApp is highly reliable, with minimal downtime or


crashes. Its ability to function well under various network
conditions (like poor internet connections) makes it reliable for
communication. However, occasional synchronization issues
may arise with messages or calls, especially in weak networks.

Efficiency:

WhatsApp is efficient in using system resources, working


smoothly on a wide range of devices, from low-end
smartphones to high-end ones. It performs well with minimal
battery and data consumption, even when running in the
background. However, long-term usage can sometimes lead to
high storage consumption due to media files.

Integrity:

WhatsApp places a high priority on security, using end-to-end encryption for messages, calls,
and media sharing. This ensures that only the sender and the intended recipient can access the
content. Features like two-step verification add an extra layer of security, protecting user data
from unauthorized access.

Usability:

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WhatsApp is extremely user-friendly, with an intuitive interface. Even new users can easily
navigate through its features like chatting, calling, and status
updates. The simplicity of the design, coupled with features
like group chats and broadcasts, ensures ease of use for
individuals as well as businesses.

2. Product Revision

Maintainability:

WhatsApp receives frequent updates that improve its


functionality, fix bugs, and introduce new features. These updates are easy to apply and rarely
cause disruptions in the service. The platform’s maintainability is enhanced by its modular
design, making it easier for developers to address issues.

Flexibility:

WhatsApp is flexible in terms of adapting to user needs,


allowing users to configure settings such as notification
preferences, privacy settings, and chat backups. It supports
various media formats for sharing (e.g., images, videos,
documents) and can integrate with Google Drive or iCloud for
backups, demonstrating flexibility in its environment.

Testability:

WhatsApp’s features are regularly tested through beta versions


that users can opt into. This makes the platform highly testable,
as issues can be identified and resolved before the global
release of new features. Additionally, automated testing frameworks are likely used to verify
functionality across different devices and operating systems.

3. Product Transition

Interoperability:

WhatsApp integrates well with various systems, including


cloud storage (Google Drive, iCloud) for backups, and contacts
from the phone’s address book. However, its interoperability
with other messaging platforms is limited, as it primarily works
within its own ecosystem and doesn’t support direct interaction
with other messaging services like Telegram or Signal.

Portability:

WhatsApp is highly portable, running on multiple platforms including Android, iOS,


Windows, and macOS. Users can switch between mobile and desktop versions (WhatsApp

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Web or WhatsApp Desktop) seamlessly. The transition between devices is also supported by
cloud backups for easy restoration of chat history when switching phones.

Reusability:

WhatsApp’s API allows businesses to integrate its


messaging system into customer service solutions,
making components of its communication protocol
reusable in different applications. Features like
message templates and bots for businesses demonstrate
reusability across different services.

Summary

After applying McCall’s Quality Model to WhatsApp,


it is evident that the app excels in usability, correctness,
and integrity due to its intuitive interface, reliable
communication services, and strong encryption standards. However, interoperability remains
limited as WhatsApp does not allow for interaction with other messaging platforms. Overall,
WhatsApp is a high-quality software that performs reliably across different devices and
environments.

References:

Software quality Factors & McCall Quality Model - Tutorials Hut

Dhivya, “Understanding the McCall Quality Model: A Deep Dive into Software Quality,”
Medium.

Software Quality Attributes and Trade-offs. ResearchGate

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