| Revision as of 00:13, 17 December 2001 edit152.98.195.xxx (talk) addition of content (decription of main theme of paper) | Revision as of 00:17, 17 December 2001 edit undoDan~enwiki (talk | contribs)1,695 edits copyeditNext edit → | ||
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| This is largely due to the idea that while |
This is largely due to the idea that while a laborer can be added to the digging of a hole, in software development everyone’s idea, not only of what the hole is, but also the best way to dig it can vary widely and dramatically, leading to the idea that the addition of personnel to a development team will actually cause the schedule to slip more as they are made aware of the particulars of this 'hole' and the method being used by the existing team to 'dig' it. | ||
Revision as of 00:17, 17 December 2001
The Mythical Man-Month is a description of the unique problem facing software development, as applied to correction of schedule slippage. It makes special mention of the fact that unlike other engineering problems when you fall behind schedule you can't just add people to the project and expect the extra hands to resolve the problem.
This is largely due to the idea that while a laborer can be added to the digging of a hole, in software development everyone’s idea, not only of what the hole is, but also the best way to dig it can vary widely and dramatically, leading to the idea that the addition of personnel to a development team will actually cause the schedule to slip more as they are made aware of the particulars of this 'hole' and the method being used by the existing team to 'dig' it.