Software Configuration Management - lecture 1:

Introduction, motivation and overview

Literature

• Babich - chapter 1, 2, 3 and 5.
  Read these chapters carefully (in particular chapter 1) - they contain many words of wisdome.
  Read them after the lecture, but before next week's lecture and exercises. Make sure that you fully understand:
  • the difference between revisions and variants
  • the importance of recording derivations
  • why we must have reproducibility
  • the need for and the distinction between baselines and private workspaces

Lecture summary:

• roll call and administratrivia
• outline and goals of the course
• what are the problems and goals of SCM
• definition of SCM
• process and perspectives
• versioning concepts and principles
• co-ordinating, working and sharing of information
• traditional SCM

Quote of the day

... what the hell, let's call him Ramses, too ... (Ramses the 1st, inventor of versioning, at the birth of his son, 1784 BC).