Problems in Embedded System Development

Oct 26, 2007 2 Replies

In general, we all share these same traits and the inescapable problems as follows:



=A1=A4 We jump from design to building too fast. Whether it's writingcode or drawing circuits, the temptation to be doing rather than thinking inevitably creates disaster.



=A1=A4 We abdicate our responsibility to be part of the project's manage- ment. When we blindly accept a feature set from marketing we're inviting chaos: only engineering can provide a rational cost/ bene-fit tradeoff. Acceding to capricious schedules figuring that heroicswill save the day is simply wrong. When we're not the boss, then we simply must manage the boss: educate, cajole, and demonstrate the correct ways to do things.



=A1=A4 We ignore the advances made in the past 50 years of software en- gineering. Most teams write code the way they did at age 15, when better ways are well known and proven.



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Whose "we"? For the last eight to ten years the only time I've been on a project like you describe it's been forced on me by management -- given a choice between not making house payments and acting like the above I'll do it, but when I can (which has been surprisingly often) I do it right.

I suspect you'll find others on the group agreeing.

Tim Wescott Control systems and communications consulting http://www.wescottdesign.com Need to learn how to apply control theory in your embedded system? "Applied Control Theory for Embedded Systems" by Tim Wescott Elsevier/Newnes, http://www.wescottdesign.com/actfes/actfes.html

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Sometimes It gets worse because of manage-ment guys when they politicize the on-going project because of their busy-ness contacts or any other reasons. I agree that engineer *should* demonstrate the facts and document the options before saying _yes_ to big manage-ment guy.

ali

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