Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!jarthur!usc!julius.cs.uiuc.edu!apple!motcsd!dms!albaugh
From: albaugh@dms.UUCP (Mike Albaugh)
Newsgroups: comp.software-eng
Subject: Re: some advice to a software engineer (let's get real)
Message-ID: <1161@dms.UUCP>
Date: 1 Oct 90 17:17:46 GMT
References: <31112@athertn.Atherton.COM>
Organization: Atari Games Inc., Milpitas, CA
Lines: 35

From article <31112@athertn.Atherton.COM>, by mcgregor@hemlock.Atherton.COM (Scott McGregor):
[... a bunch of stuff with which I mainly agree ...]

> The problem of describing the acceptable "tolerance" for failure also
> causes problem. [...]
> Errors in game software (while annoying) are less fatal, and since low cost
> and early time to market are more crucial in these markets, people will 
> accept a certain tolerance for failures.  Of course, fewer failures are
> obviously to be preferred, but again steps to ensure this may need to be
> factored in with the other cost and time requirements.

	Is there some sort of Software Engineer's code of ethics that
_requires_ games to be singled out as the canonical "who cares" product?
I would point out that in 14 years of working on games, I have had (and
observed in the work of my peers) about the same bug density as found
in the Gnu C compiler, and a significantly _lower_ density than in
any of the "shrink wrap" software I have ever used. Perhaps this has to
do with the fact that when we have a "real bug" (as opposed to a feature
we included that may not meet _some_ customer's expectations) _we_ often
eat the cost of sending out ROMS with the fix. We _may_ charge for the
ROMS, (i.e. media and handling), but we do _not_ follow the "commercial"
practice of charging > 60% of the "new" cost of a software package to fix
what were our mistakes to begin with. In other words, "Lighten up dudes" :-)

	If Lotus/uSoft/etc were to have a similar bug-fix policy, I
suspect that a) they would be a bit more careful about testing _before_
they ship :-) and b) they would ship even less frequently and at even
higher prices than they do now :-( TANSTAAFL

					Mike

| Mike Albaugh (albaugh@dms.UUCP || {...decwrl!pyramid!}weitek!dms!albaugh)
| Atari Games Corp (Arcade Games, no relation to the makers of the ST)
| 675 Sycamore Dr. Milpitas, CA 95035		voice: (408)434-1709
| The opinions expressed are my own (Boy, are they ever)