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A Tool Evaluation Framework based on fitness to Process and Practice. A usability driven approach

Authors:
Diego Fontdevila

Keywords: tool evaluation; usability-based framework; process and practice.

Abstract:
Most current and traditional research on software development tool evaluation focuses on tool capabilities and features following the traditional approach for generic software evaluation. Existing evaluation frameworks and methods address functional and non-functional requirements, constraints, technology, knowledge domain, costs and other acquisition aspects, but such approaches do not account for the context in which work is done. We propose a usability-based framework for tool evaluation in terms of fitness to the development process and practice of their users. Our contribution is a framework for relating ways of working to tool evaluation, and a concrete checklist for performing that evaluation. We present this paper as proof-of-concept of our framework and validate its applicability (but not the evaluation results) by using it to evaluate tools with which we have hands-on experience.

Pages: 15 to 21

Copyright: Copyright (c) IARIA, 2014

Publication date: October 12, 2014

Published in: conference

ISSN: 2308-4235

ISBN: 978-1-61208-367-4

Location: Nice, France

Dates: from October 12, 2014 to October 16, 2014