Software sustainability in research: Interview study of the opinions and experiences of developers
Research from the School of CS provides new insight into software sustainability by exploring software developers' experiences and opinions
Software engineering in the context of research is typically funded for a limited period of time only and it is difficult to ensure software continues to function after funding has ceased. Moreover, much of the software produced during research is discarded despite costly production processes. There is a growing interest in improving the sustainability of software development in research. In other words, we need to find ways to add value to software developed during research so that it continues to be used, supported and improved.
Researchers from the University of Manchester and from the University of Lavras in Brazil teamed up to explore this question from a new direction. In an interview study, the researchers asked software developers to relate their own opinions and experiences regarding sustainability. Based on this, the researchers were able to deduce recommendations on how to enhance software sustainability in future research projects, and how to ensure software can be re-used in some capacity in the future. Recommendations centre around building communities who are interested in supporting and improving software, enhancing software quality and increasing motivation to keep software active.
To view the full article, click here. The study will be presented at a software sustainability workshop held in conjunction with Super Computing 2014 in New Orleans.