On Mon, Oct 12, 2009 at 1:54 PM, Oscar Plameras <[email protected]>wrote:
> I think it's silly to spend so much money and time to test the > Election System by reviewing Source code. > I find your assertions sillier Mr. Plameras because this Automated Election system isn't just another program that a program that may determine the fate of this country, and the last thing we may find acceptable is a lame excuse. > > From my experience, end users implement acceptance testing of the > system by developing a series of test > other than source code review.The main idea is to simulate scenarios > of operations with input test data > and pre-defining the expected results. Several scenarios are covered > with the input data that's prepared. > > The Election system itself is a simple count and tabulate system and > that is not difficult to simulate. > We do not need nor require simulation, what you have in mind is a black box testing where we expect certain results based on specific inputs. That should be done with and of less priority in this regard. > Hardly no commercial developer will allow third parties to have source > code access to their propriety > software. And in general, commercial confidence protects the privacy > of these codes.under the trade > secrets act of countries. I think the Philippines is a signatory to that. > > And lastly, which source codes are they going to review. The > application source codes? But application > source codes interacts with system source codes. Are they going to > review system source codes, too? > What about the source codes of all firmware chips used in the system? > Are they goind to review those source codes, > too? How long is a piece of string? The code done by one programmer > maybe anathema to another and so > source code review leads to more controversies. As you know > programmers are full of egos and one argument > leads to another and another. The point is if it does the defined > specifications, it does not matter how or why the > code is written that way. > I presume Mr. Palmeras isn't and never had his hands on software programming and we have to spare him the humiliation.Having this mantra "if it does the defined specifications, it does not matter how or why the code is written that way" will not make you last long in an IT project or any job for that matter. > > Reviewing source codes is a mine field of difficult issues to deal with. > The only difficulty that will hinder this to go forward is legalese which I think is being addressed by the petition. > > The simplest and easieast is to test by outcome, not how the code and > why the code is written that > way. After all, we are interested in the integrity of the system not > the integrity of the code. > > The integrity of the source code FYI is a factor to determine the integrity of the system. If you need an example: MS Windows vs. Linux or FreeBSD/OpenBSD/NetBSD
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