Factors in software quality for knowledge-based systems

Abstract The paper considers the need for quality knowledge-based software systems. The paper defines quality in terms of a manufacturing process and then relates the creation of software to manufacturing. It then considers the aspects that go towards the creation of a quality knowledge-based system: the specification, the development methodology, and the validation and verification processes that check that a product meets its specification. The paper does this by considering a set of benchmarks against which the level of quality can be measured and then how each of the aspects contributes to heighten each of the factors that contribute to the level of quality. The paper proposes that the specification, methodology, and validation criteria can all heighten the level of correctness and that if they are used collectively then the correctness of a system and hence the quality level can be raised significantly.

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