Software, lies? and ‘videotape’: or, where is the evidence to support claims made in the IT industry?

Dr. Austen Rainer, Senior Lecturer School of Computer Science University of Hertfordshire.

The IT industry is a rapidly changing industry, with new tools, technologies, processes and methodologies continually being introduced. These innovations often come with the claim that they will improve some part of the IT industry in some way. Many of the claims made, however, do not appear to be independently substantiated (e.g. the claims are not supported by evidence or rigorous arguments) or where they are substantiated the findings are disputed (e.g. through third-party consultancy evaluations).

A notable current example is the benefits of open source software in comparison to proprietary software. In this talk, I want to present some examples of claims made by leading IT organisations, the way in which those claims are made, and the difficulties with evaluating those claims. I want to introduce one approach to address these difficulties, an approach modelled on evidence-based medicine. I then want to critically assess the prospects for this new approach: can this approach genuinely benefit the IT industry in the longer term?

Location

Steria Limited, Hemel Hempstead
Three Cherry Trees Lane, Hemel Hempstead, HP2 7AH

Cost

Free for members and non-members

Last updated 12th November, 2023 at 11:57am