Why the Last 1% of Software Development Can Take as Long as the First 99%
A mile is always the same length, which is why it’s great to measure distances. It never changes, it never gets smaller or longer. A mile’s length stays the same.
Percentage complete with software development is unreliable and misleading. Creating software is not exact and the percent complete is not reliable but this thinking is used consistently.
Software is complete or not, percentages are misleading. Plans give the illusion it’s possible to estimate software development accurately. You can estimate software development but be prepared to update these plans regularly.
Software development is a creative process; an original masterpiece not a exact blueprint. If you can’t say how the software works, you cannot say when it will finished.
Software development is like creating a jigsaw but without knowing the number of pieces. You can’t say how much of the puzzle you have done because you can never see the full picture.
