Electrodeposition of Sn and Co coatings from citrate solutions

Optimal conditions for Sn and Co codeposition were achieved in slightly acid citrate solutions containing no excess of ligand. Sn–Co coatings were deposited with amounts of Co ranging from 15 to 86 mass %. Bright deposits were obtained when the Co content exceeded 76%. These coatings may be considered as solid solutions of tin in -Co and -Co. The -Sn phase is predominant in the case of coatings containing less Co. Voltammograms of the partial processes of Sn(II) and Co(II) reduction may be described quantitatively with the proviso that SnL^2– and CoLH^– are electrically active complexes.     

Assessing the state of software in a large enterprise

To be relevant to the goals of an enterprise, an industrial software engineering research organization must identify problems of interest to, and find solutions that have an impact on, the software development organizations within the company. Using a systematic measurement program both to identify the problems and assess the impact of solutions is key to satisfying this need. Avaya has had such a program in place for about seven years. Every year we produce an annual report known as the State of Software in Avaya that describes software development trends throughout the company and that contains prioritized recommendations for improving Avaya’s software development capabilities. We start by identifying the goals of the enterprise and use the goal-question-metric approach to identify the measures to compute. The result is insight into the enterprise’s problems in software development, recommendations for improving the development process, and problems that require research to solve. We will illustrate the process with examples from the Software Technology Research Department in Avaya Labs whose purpose is to improve the state of software development and know it. “Know it” means that improvement should be subjectively evident and objectively quantifiable. “Know it” also means that one must be skilled at identifying the data sources, performing the appropriate analyses to answer the questions of interest, and validating that the data are accurate and appropriate for the purpose. Examples will include how and why we developed a measure of software quality that appeals to customers, how and why we are studying the effectiveness of distributed software development, and how and why we are helping development organizations to adopt iterative development methods. We will also discuss how we keep the company and the department apprised of the current strengths and weaknesses of software development in Avaya through the publication of the annual State of Software in Avaya Report. Our purpose is both to provide a model for assessment that others may emulate, based on seven years of experience, and to spotlight analyses and conclusions that we feel are common to software development today.     

Does code decay? Assessing the evidence from change management data

A central feature of the evolution of large software systems is that change-which is necessary to add new functionality, accommodate new hardware, and repair faults-becomes increasingly difficult over time. We approach this phenomenon, which we term code decay, scientifically and statistically. We define code decay and propose a number of measurements (code decay indices) on software and on the organizations that produce it, that serve as symptoms, risk factors, and predictors of decay. Using an unusually rich data set (the fifteen-plus year change history of the millions of lines of software for a telephone switching system), we find mixed, but on the whole persuasive, statistical evidence of code decay, which is corroborated by developers of the code. Suggestive indications that perfective maintenance can retard code decay are also discussed     

Effect of sintanol DS-10 and halides on tin(II) reduction kinetics

Voltammetry and the EIS technique were applied to study effect of polyether sintanol DS-10 on tin(II) reduction kinetics in strong acidic sulphate solutions containing different halides. Diffusion-controlled Sn(II) reduction was found to be significantly retarded by strong inhibitive adsorption of sintanol. Surface coverage obtained from both impedance and kinetic data may be quantitatively described by means of Frumkin isotherm accounting for interaction between adsorbed particles. Partial suppression of the surface activity of sintanol was observed in the presence of halides. This effect was found to increase in the sequence: Cl⁻ < Br⁻ < I⁻⋅     

Electrodeposition of yellow bronze from acidic sulfate baths containing polyether laprol and micromolar additives of halides

The composition of yellow bronze coatings deposited from acidic sulfate solutions added with polyether laprol and the electrodeposition conditions are studied by voltammetry and XPS. It is found that halides in rather low (micromolar) concentrations affect significantly the partial electrodeposition processes. Chlorides increases cathodic polarization, widen the current window of the yellow bronze electrodeposition, and favor the increase in tin content of the coatings. Bromides narrow the current window, lower the tin content in the coatings, and hinder the yellow bronze surface oxidation. Iodides inhibit the copper electroreduction markedly, which makes the yellow bronze deposition practically impossible. Original Russian Text ? Z. Mockus, S. Kanapeckaité, V. Jasulaitiené, A. Survila, 2006, published in Zashchita Metallov, 2006, Vol. 42, No. 5, pp. 526–531.     

Future of Mining Software Archives: A Roundtable

This article looks at what happens when you combine the four goal-driven approaches to testing classification (requirements-driven, structure-driven, statistics-driven, and risk-driven) with the three phase-driven approaches (unit testing, integration testing, and system testing).     

An empirical study of speed and communication in globally distributed software development

Global software development is rapidly becoming the norm for technology companies. Previous qualitative research suggests that distributed development may increase development cycle time for individual work items (modification requests). We use both data from the source code change management system and survey data to model the extent of delay in a distributed software development organization and explore several possible mechanisms for this delay. One key finding is that distributed work items appear to take about two and one-half times as long to complete as similar items where all the work is colocated. The data strongly suggest a mechanism for the delay, i.e., that distributed work items involve more people than comparable same-site work items, and the number of people involved is strongly related to the calendar time to complete a work item. We replicate the analysis of change data in a different organization with a different product and different sites and confirm our main findings. We also report survey results showing differences between same-site and distributed social networks, testing several hypotheses about characteristics of distributed social networks that may be related to delay. We discuss implications of our findings for practices and collaboration technology that have the potential for dramatically speeding distributed software development.     

Globalization by chunking: a quantitative approach

Because of economic, political, and practical needs, businesses regularly distribute their software production globally. Participants at the different development sites often suffer inhibited communication and coordination because they are remote from each other. One result of the affected communication and coordination might be reduced productivity and an increased production interval. We look for technical solutions to accommodate the business needs for distributed software development. In doing so, we investigate quantitative approaches to distributing work across geographic locations to minimize communication and synchronization needs     

Cathodic process in copper-tin deposition from sulphate solutions

Data on cathodic processes in sulphate solutions containing Cu(II) and Sn(II) ions and H₂SO₄ with and without Laprol 2402C (OA) is given. The sequence of cathodic processes and their dependence on the electrolyte composition were determined. The presence of OA extended the range of cathodic current densities (i _c) at which a high quality alloy was obtained. Electrolysis conditions under which the cathodic process rates considerably decrease were found. This is caused by passivation of the cathode surface by the film formed. The cathode passivation is accompanied by periodic oscillations. Anodic current peaks, i.e. reverse maxima, were found to occur during reverse potential sweeps. The peak values depended on the potential at which the reverse sweep began.