Can Software Metrics Be Unified?

Abstract

Software metrics produce discrete values as output from input source code as an indication of software quality. Many software have automated software metrics with different tools that are producing varying result. Measurement of software metrics cannot be said to be precise, repeatable and reproducible. This is consequent of varying definitions, design and implementation of the same software metrics, varying result, assessment and analysis of the same metrics from relative and personalized approaches to varying benchmarks, non-uniform definition of implementation contexts, software measurement terminologies and lack of standard reference and calibration with respect to the measure of “level of confidence” in software measurement. Several studies have proposed the unification of software metrics without necessarily looking at the underlying causes of these widely observed inconsistencies across existing metrics and their automated tools. This work identified pitfalls ways to minimize variances in the implementation of software measurements across contexts. From this stage of an ongoing research, we are determining the possibility of objectively unifying software metrics by closing the gap in observed sources of expressed variance and adoption of metrological approaches to software measurement.