An Experimental Investigation of Software Metrics and Their Relationship to Software Development Effort

Research into Code Inspection
Papers, Presentations and Books

Journal Paper: Cover of IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering

Randy K. Lind, and Kenneth G. Vairavan
Recorded 1989 in IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering , SE-15, no. 5, May
Pages 649-53
Abstract:
The results are reported of an experimental study of software metrics for a fairly large software system used in a real-time application. A number of issues are examined, including the mutual relationship between various software metrics and, more importantly, the relationship between metrics and the development effort. Some interesting connections are reported between metrics and the software development effort.
Link:
An Experimental Investigation of Software Metrics and Their Relationship to Software Development Effort

Finding relevant IfSQ Standards:

Best size for routines is 100-150 lines
A study showed that when routines averaged 100 to 150 lines each, code was more stable and required less changes

IfSQ Defect Indicators:

SP-1—Routine Too Long
Routines longer than 150 lines (excluding comments and blank lines) have been shown to be less stable, more subject to change, and more expensive to fix than shorter routines.