Edward Yourdon
Encyclopedia
Edward Nash Yourdon is an American software engineer
, computer consultant
, author and lecturer, and pioneer in the software engineering methodology. He is known as one of the lead developers of the structured analysis
techniques of the 1970s, as co-developer of the Yourdon/Whitehead method for object-oriented analysis/design in the late 1980s and the Coad/Yourdon methodology for object-oriented analysis/design in the 1990s.
(MIT) in 1965, and has done graduate work in electrical engineering
and computer science
at MIT and the Polytechnic Institute of New York.
In 1964 Yourdon started working at Digital Equipment Corporation
developing FORTRAN
programs for the PDP-5 minicomputer and later assembler
for the PDP-8
. Later in the 1960s and begin 1970s after working at a small consulting firm and as independent consultant in 1974 Yourdon founded his own consulting firm, YOURDON Inc. to provide educational, publishing, and consulting services. After he sold this firm in 1986 he served on the Board of multiple IT consultancy corporations, and was advisor on several research project in the software industry throughout the 1990s.
In June 1997, Yourdon was inducted into the Computer Hall of Fame, along with such notables as Charles Babbage
, Seymour Cray
, James Martin
, Grace Hopper
, Gerald Weinberg
, and Bill Gates
. And December 1999 the Crosstalk: The Journal of Defense Software Engineering, named him one of the ten most influential people in the software field.
In the late 1990s Yourdon became the centre of controversy over his beliefs that Y2K-related computer problems would result in severe software failures that would culminate in widespread social collapse. These failures did not materialize and he was later criticized for exaggerating the severity of the problem.
In the new millennium Yourdon became Faculty Fellow at the Information Systems Research Center of the University of North Texas
, as well as Fellow of the Business Technology Trends Council for the Cutter Consortium
were he also was editor of the Cutter IT Journal.
techniques of the 1970s, and object-oriented analysis/design in the late 1980s and 1990s in the new millennium Yourdon has specialized in project management
, software engineering methodologies, and Web 2.0
development.
Software engineer
A software engineer is an engineer who applies the principles of software engineering to the design, development, testing, and evaluation of the software and systems that make computers or anything containing software, such as computer chips, work.- Overview :...
, computer consultant
Consultant
A consultant is a professional who provides professional or expert advice in a particular area such as management, accountancy, the environment, entertainment, technology, law , human resources, marketing, emergency management, food production, medicine, finance, life management, economics, public...
, author and lecturer, and pioneer in the software engineering methodology. He is known as one of the lead developers of the structured analysis
Structured analysis
Structured Analysis in software engineering and its allied technique, Structured Design , are methods for analyzing and converting business requirements into specifications and ultimately, computer programs, hardware configurations and related manual procedures.Structured analysis and design...
techniques of the 1970s, as co-developer of the Yourdon/Whitehead method for object-oriented analysis/design in the late 1980s and the Coad/Yourdon methodology for object-oriented analysis/design in the 1990s.
Biography
Yourdon obtained his B.S. in applied mathematics from Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyMassachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
(MIT) in 1965, and has done graduate work in electrical engineering
Electrical engineering
Electrical engineering is a field of engineering that generally deals with the study and application of electricity, electronics and electromagnetism. The field first became an identifiable occupation in the late nineteenth century after commercialization of the electric telegraph and electrical...
and computer science
Computer science
Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...
at MIT and the Polytechnic Institute of New York.
In 1964 Yourdon started working at Digital Equipment Corporation
Digital Equipment Corporation
Digital Equipment Corporation was a major American company in the computer industry and a leading vendor of computer systems, software and peripherals from the 1960s to the 1990s...
developing FORTRAN
Fortran
Fortran is a general-purpose, procedural, imperative programming language that is especially suited to numeric computation and scientific computing...
programs for the PDP-5 minicomputer and later assembler
Assembler
Assembler may refer to:* Assembler , for an assembly language, a computer program to translate between lower-level representations of computer programs...
for the PDP-8
PDP-8
The 12-bit PDP-8 was the first successful commercial minicomputer, produced by Digital Equipment Corporation in the 1960s. DEC introduced it on 22 March 1965, and sold more than 50,000 systems, the most of any computer up to that date. It was the first widely sold computer in the DEC PDP series of...
. Later in the 1960s and begin 1970s after working at a small consulting firm and as independent consultant in 1974 Yourdon founded his own consulting firm, YOURDON Inc. to provide educational, publishing, and consulting services. After he sold this firm in 1986 he served on the Board of multiple IT consultancy corporations, and was advisor on several research project in the software industry throughout the 1990s.
In June 1997, Yourdon was inducted into the Computer Hall of Fame, along with such notables as Charles Babbage
Charles Babbage
Charles Babbage, FRS was an English mathematician, philosopher, inventor and mechanical engineer who originated the concept of a programmable computer...
, Seymour Cray
Seymour Cray
Seymour Roger Cray was an American electrical engineer and supercomputer architect who designed a series of computers that were the fastest in the world for decades, and founded Cray Research which would build many of these machines. Called "the father of supercomputing," Cray has been credited...
, James Martin
James Martin (author)
James Martin is a British Information Technology consultant and author, who was nominated for a Pulitzer prize for his book, The Wired Society: A Challenge for Tomorrow .- Biography :...
, Grace Hopper
Grace Hopper
Rear Admiral Grace Murray Hopper was an American computer scientist and United States Navy officer. A pioneer in the field, she was one of the first programmers of the Harvard Mark I computer, and developed the first compiler for a computer programming language...
, Gerald Weinberg
Gerald Weinberg
Gerald Marvin Weinberg is an American computer scientist, author and teacher of the psychology and anthropology of computer software development.- Biography :Gerald Weinberg was born and raised in Chicago...
, and Bill Gates
Bill Gates
William Henry "Bill" Gates III is an American business magnate, investor, philanthropist, and author. Gates is the former CEO and current chairman of Microsoft, the software company he founded with Paul Allen...
. And December 1999 the Crosstalk: The Journal of Defense Software Engineering, named him one of the ten most influential people in the software field.
In the late 1990s Yourdon became the centre of controversy over his beliefs that Y2K-related computer problems would result in severe software failures that would culminate in widespread social collapse. These failures did not materialize and he was later criticized for exaggerating the severity of the problem.
In the new millennium Yourdon became Faculty Fellow at the Information Systems Research Center of the University of North Texas
University of North Texas
The University of North Texas is a public institution of higher education and research in Denton. Founded in 1890, UNT is part of the University of North Texas System. As of the fall of 2010, the University of North Texas, Denton campus, had a certified enrollment of 36,067...
, as well as Fellow of the Business Technology Trends Council for the Cutter Consortium
Cutter Consortium
Cutter Consortium, founded by Karen Fine Coburn in 1986 as Cutter Information Corp., is an American information technology research company. In 1990, Cutter purchased the American Programmer journal , and partnered with its founder, Ed Yourdon, to form the Cutter Consortium...
were he also was editor of the Cutter IT Journal.
Work
After developing structured analysisStructured analysis
Structured Analysis in software engineering and its allied technique, Structured Design , are methods for analyzing and converting business requirements into specifications and ultimately, computer programs, hardware configurations and related manual procedures.Structured analysis and design...
techniques of the 1970s, and object-oriented analysis/design in the late 1980s and 1990s in the new millennium Yourdon has specialized in project management
Project management
Project management is the discipline of planning, organizing, securing, and managing resources to achieve specific goals. A project is a temporary endeavor with a defined beginning and end , undertaken to meet unique goals and objectives, typically to bring about beneficial change or added value...
, software engineering methodologies, and Web 2.0
Web 2.0
The term Web 2.0 is associated with web applications that facilitate participatory information sharing, interoperability, user-centered design, and collaboration on the World Wide Web...
development.
Publications
Yourdon has authored over 550 technical articles and authored or coauthored 26 computer books since 1967. A selection:- 1967. Real-Time Systems Design. Information & Systems Press.
- 1972. Design of On-Line Computer Systems. Prentice Hall.
- 1975. Techniques of Program Structure and Design. Prentice Hall.
- 1976. Learning to Program in Structured COBOL, Part I and II. With C. Gane and T. Sarson and T. Lister. Prentice Hall.
- 1978. Learning to Program in Structured COBOL, Part II. With Timothy Lister. Prentice Hall.
- 1979. Structured Design. with Larry ConstantineLarry ConstantineLarry LeRoy Constantine is an American software engineer and professor in the Mathematics and Engineering Department at the University of Madeira Portugal, who is considered one of the pioneers of computing...
. Prentice Hall. - 1979. Classics in Software Engineering . Prentice Hall.
- 1982. Writings of the Revolution. Prentice Hall.
- 1988. Managing the System Life Cycle. 2nd ed. Prentice Hall.
- 1989. Modern Structured Analysis. Prentice Hall.
- 1992. Decline and Fall of the American ProgrammerDecline and Fall of the American ProgrammerDecline and Fall of the American Programmer is a book written by Edward Yourdon in 1992. It was addressed to American programmers and software organizations of the 1990s, warning that they were about to be driven out of business by programmers in other countries who could produce software more...
. Prentice Hall. - 1994. Object-Oriented Systems Development: An Integrated Approach. Prentice Hall.
- 1996. Case Studies in Object-Oriented Analysis and Design. With Carl Argila. Prentice-Hall.
- 1996. Rise & Resurrection of the American Programmer. Prentice-Hall.
- 1999. The Complete Y2K Home Preparation Guide. With Robert Roskind. Prentice Hall.
- 1999. Time Bomb 2000: What the Y2K Computer Crisis means for you!'. With Jennifer Yourdon. Prentice Hall.
- 1999. The Y2K Financial Survival Guide. With Jennifer Yourdon and Peter G. Gordon. Prentice Hall.
- 2001. Managing High-Intensity Internet Projects. Prentice Hall
- 2002. Byte Wars: The Impact of September 11 on Information Technology. Prentice Hall
- 2003. Death March (2nd edition). Prentice Hall
- 2004. Outsourcing: Competing in the Global Productivity Race. Prentice Hall